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Chapter 85: The Unspoken Truth
Last Updated:
2025-04-22 13:28:07
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Shattered Vows Chapter 86: Fractures and Foundations
The following days were filled with subdued skepticism for Isla. She was returned to her life—her job, her schedule—but everything was different. It was as though a small shift had occurred, something she couldn't define, but it gave her an irrevocable feeling that something was coming. She wasn't sure what it was, or how to prepare herself for it, but she knew it would change everything.She sat at her desk in the office, staring into her computer screen, the documents before her blurring to a haze. Her mind kept drifting back to Killian's words. His voice lingered in her head, with the sincerity that both comforted her and disturbed her. She wasn't going to decide yet—she knew that. But whenever she thought she had shaken him off, a part of her wanted the connection they had shared.The phone suddenly rang, snapping her out of her reverie. She glanced down at the screen, her racing heart as it read Killian's name.Her fingers lingered over the phone for a moment, a flash of emotions
Last Updated : 2025-04-22Shattered Vows Chapter 87: A Love Worth Fighting For
Rain drenched the sidewalk as **Killian Blackwood** stood at the entrance of the charity gala, his stylish suit soaked, but he didn't move. Umbrellas hovered, cameras snapped, but none of it mattered. Not the murmurs of shock on passersby, not the reporters shouting questions. Not even the blistering disappointment in his father's eyes when the older man stepped from a black limousine, lips pursed into a tempestuous line."Mr. Blackwood—" a journalist shouted, shoving a mic in his face. "Is it true you've ended your engagement with Celeste Van Alder?""Yes," Killian said firmly, his voice crisp. "Because I was engaged to the wrong woman."A collective gasp of shock filled the crowd. The cameras clicked more wildly now, catching the unadorned truth in his eyes."What about Isla Carter?" another journalist shouted. "Are you doing this for her?Killian didn't hesitate. "I'm doing this because I finally realized what real love feels like. And I lost it once. I'm not losing it again."Insi
Last Updated : 2025-04-24Shattered Vows Chapter 88: Whispers of a New Beginning
The city hummed with its own rhythm, but for Isla Carter, it was all just a bit. softer. Quieter. It had been three days since she'd stood beside Killian Blackwood in the brightly lit community center and said the words she'd never been brave enough to say until that moment. "Maybe I'm still in love with you."Those words had changed everything. And nothing had been rushed. There were no grand statements or fireworks. No immediate talk of labels or planning. Just a slow rebuilding. And for once, Isla didn't feel like she needed to rush to get ahead of her emotions.She was in her bookstore again today. The scent of old paper and cinnamon coffee greeted her, and sunlight streamed through the windows, casting golden squares on the wooden floor. Customers browsed idly through the shelves, and her helper, Margo, waved as Isla entered."Morning, boss. You look. glowy," Margo teased.Isla smiled, her cheeks going pink. "It's the weather.""Okay, let's pretend it's not the sexy billionaire
Last Updated : 2025-04-24Shattered Vows Chapter 89
City lights twinkled in the weight of twilight, as though the horizon itself held bated breath. Killian Blackwood stood against the roof garden of the Carter Foundation, the wind tugging at his open coat, his expression impassive. The city raged beneath him, unaware of the storm brewing in one man's soul.Tonight was not one of pomp and circumstance. There were no fireworks, no red carpet, no over-the-top displays of riches. Tonight was raw, bare, and totally human. It was about truth. About redemption.Killian had sent the invitation to Isla Carter days before, a scribbled note in the bouquet of lilies she still refused to accept. But he knew she'd be there. He had caught it in the quiet between them, in how her eyes clung a beat longer on their last encounter, as if she heard words that he hadn't spoken yet.As she stepped onto the roof, her heels ticking quietly on the wooden deck, Killian turned lazily. The sight of her, in the gentle light of string lights swaying above them, too
Last Updated : 2025-04-24Shattered Vows Chapter 90
Rain was still coming down on the city, sheeting the streets with a damp, mournful glow. Isla Carter slumped beside the big glass wall of her tiny rented studio, her knees to her chest, looking blankly out into the world beyond. Her tea had gone cold hours ago, sitting on the table.She hadn't replied to Killian Blackwood's previous attempts to reach out to her.Hundreds of messages. Voicemails, emails, even handwritten letters left on her doorstep — all ignored.She didn't know if she was brave enough to see him again. She didn't trust him — not entirely. Not yet.And the ache in her chest warned her that even one small mistake could destroy her for good this time.A sharp knock shattered her downward thoughts.Isla braced.She hadn't been expecting anyone. Her heart hammered pitifully. She crept quietly to the door and peered through the peephole.Of course.Killian.He stood there, dripping from the rain, a fistful of white lilies clutched tightly in one hand. His face was a map of
Last Updated : 2025-04-27Shattered Vows Chapter 91
The next morning, it had stopped raining, but the city was shrouded in a thick fog, as if the world itself was catching its breath.Isla Carter stood in her window, holding a mug of steaming coffee between her hands, looking out at the gray skyline.The midnight conversation with Killian Blackwood still ran through her head, as vivid as if it had just happened.His cracked voice.His soaked body at her doorstep.His promise: *I'll wait forever if I have to.*She wasn't sure if she was ready to pardon him yet.But she did know this — she couldn't ignore him either.Her phone on the counter rang.Her heart skipped a beat.A message.**Killian Blackwood:**> *There's something I have to show you. No pressure. If you want to see it, I'll be at 345 Lennox Street at noon. If not. I'll get it.*Isla stared at the note for a moment, stomach twisting with nerves.She should leave it alone.She should stand up for herself.And yet. her fingers seemed to act of their own accord, typing out two b
Last Updated : 2025-04-27Shattered Vows Chapter 92
The next morning, Isla Carter woke to the smell of coffee drifting through her small flat.For a moment, she lay still, eyes closed, letting the warmth of it seep into her bones.It had been a while since she woke up feeling anything like peace.When at last she opened her eyes and moved into the kitchen, Killian Blackwood was waiting for her — his back to her, shirt sleeves rolled up, pouring two mismatched mugs with coffee.It was this small, ordinary moment. This brutally normal thing.And it hit her smack in the middle of her chest.This might be real.This might be them.Killian turned at the sound of her footsteps and smiled — a tentative, uncertain smile that twisted her heart in torture."Morning," he offered, holding out a mug.She took it, their hands touching, a spark of electricity shooting up her arm."Morning," she whispered in return.They stood there for a moment, sipping coffee, the silence comfortable.But Isla knew that it couldn't stay this easy forever.Last night
Last Updated : 2025-04-28Shattered Vows Chapter 93
The glow of the fundraiser still warm in Isla Carter's memory the next morning, she came into the small office of the shelter, an armful of paperwork in her arms.Her cheeks burned even now as she recalled the kiss — their kiss — amid a sea of onlookers. She hadn't cared who might see.For the first time in many years, Isla could hope without terror tightening its grip on her throat.Killian Blackwood was transforming into the man she needed.Maybe, just maybe, they had a hope of forever.She put down the papers and started to put them in order, humming a tune to herself. The office was unusually silent on a Monday morning, but she wrote that off as post-event exhaustion.It was only when she listened in to the strained, hurried words behind the door that she stopped.Janine's voice. Taut. Concerned.A different voice — gruffer, lower. Male.And Killian's voice — hot, tight.Isla's gaze grew darker and took a step toward the door.The moment she pushed it a little way open, she listen
Last Updated : 2025-04-28
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Shattered Vows Chapter 103 - Deciphering the Silence
Isla Carter stirred her coffee with deliberate purpose, watching the dark liquid swirl in slow arcs. Across the small table, Killian Blackwood sat still, his own cup untouched, both hands wrapped around the ceramic as though it would hold him.They'd been sitting there in that strained silence for nearly ten minutes, the city sounds outside breaking through every now and then. The atmosphere was thick with all the things they weren't saying."You said you wanted to earn my trust," Isla said at last, setting her spoon down with care, her voice measured. "Start now. Be truthful. Everything. No filters. No rehearsed apologies. Just the ugly, hard truth."Killian looked back at her, and in that instant, she saw the exhaustion in his eyes—not physical, but emotional, soul-deep. He looked like a man who had finally decided to stop running from himself."I played it to be near you," he began, his tone low but clear. "It was strategy at first. You were with someone I needed to use as leverage
Shattered Vows Chapter 102
The fog clung to the city in the morning like a memory that would not let go. Isla Carter leaned against the high window of her new studio apartment, coffee cup cradled in her hand, watching the fog curl and peel back from the skyline. There was something lovely about the sight. It was imperfect, cluttered with buildings and scaffolding and the ceaseless hum of the waking world. But it was hers. No penthouse dreams. No designer illusions. Just a small space, filled with second-hand furniture and the scent of jasmine from the plant she had put by the door.She had begun to rebuild.The past several weeks had graven lines of resilience onto her bones. Her mornings remained still, her nights often emptier than she'd ever dare acknowledge, but between—she was herself once more. She painted. She journaled. She met strangers who didn't recognize her history and didn't inquire. That anonymity was a gift.And Killian Blackwood.He hadn't stopped reaching out.Not strangling. No theatrics late
Shattered Vows Chapter 101
The rain returned like an old memory—unwanted, but not quite unmissed.Isla Carter stood in the window of her new apartment, arms crossed, as the city disappeared behind the curtain of falling water. The soft pitter-patter on the glass should have been soothing. Instead, it woke up the weight in her chest that never really went away.She had started again, hadn't she? New apartment. New clients. New schedule that didn't involve Killian Blackwood. Her name was on the lease this time. Her name was on the company licenses. It was all hers, hers and hers alone.And yet, there were days when she caught herself waiting for him to walk through the door like he was waiting there for her. Like he used to.She brushed the idea away and turned from the window. The doorbell sounded.She hadn't been expecting anyone.She dried her hands on her slacks, Isla coming and peering through the peephole. Her heart stuttered.Killian.Raindrops dripped through the shoulders of his coat. His hair inky black
Shattered Vows Chapter 100
Sunlight poured through the window of the coffee shop as Isla Carter and Killian Blackwood stepped out into the newly vacant street. The smell of rain was still in the air, fresh and infused with a gentle kind of hope. Neither of them said a word for a moment or two. It wasn't an uneasy silence but one that was heavy with the weight of all that hadn't been spoken—the past, the hurt, the what's-next."Do you want to walk a little bit?" Killian asked, his hands jammed deep in the pockets of his coat, his voice quiet.Isla nodded. "Yeah."They started walking down the sidewalk, falling into step without speaking. The city swirled around them—living, bustling—but their lives had been narrowed to this moment, this tenuous peace between them. Isla had no idea what would be next after this moment. But for the first time, she wasn't running from her feelings, and Killian wasn't hiding behind motivation.They reached the park, familiar yet altered in the way things are when viewed through diff
Shattered Vows Chapter 99
The following days were filled with a tense, quiet rhythm—a condition of cautious peace. Killian Blackwood did nothing. He didn't stick around. He called every day, just a friendly calling-in: *Do you need anything? May I bring something?*Isla Carter never heard him like this. soft before. There was a reserve in his voice, as if he were pacing on thin ice, not wanting to shatter the delicate balance she'd begun to restore.She didn't always pick up. Sometimes she let the phone ring out. But she listened to the voicemails.And every night, she looked at the empty space on the other side of her bed and wondered why the pain had not lessened.On the fourth day, she opened her front door to find a package. A hardcover book sat on the welcome mat, wrapped in brown paper and twine. There was no note. But she knew it was from him.It was the same novel they'd argued about previously at that bookstore near his penthouse. The one she'd called overhyped, and he'd said she hadn't had a decent s
Shattered Vows Chapter 98
The morning sun filtered through the lace curtains of Isla Carter's cottage, casting soft golden shafts that crept across the wooden floorboards. It had rained during the night, but now all was glittering with dew, as though nature itself had decided to cleanse the past.Isla awoke beneath the quilted blankets of her grandmother's old bed, her mind already racing with the events of last night. Her heart thudded with a mix of disbelief and something more tender. Not quite trust. Not yet. But its ghost.She turned her head a little and discovered Killian Blackwood sleeping in the armchair across the room, his large frame uncomfortably slouched, his head resting on the wooden back, and his dark lashes casting a shadow on his cheekbones. He looked. human. Vulnerable. Not the invincible magnate who had once discarded her like a broken deal.Just a man who had stayed.She sat up slowly, careful not to wake him. But his eyes fluttered open anyway."Morning," he murmured, his voice gravelly w
Shattered Vows Chapter 97
Morning light streamed through the transparent curtains of Isla Carter's loft, casting golden threads across the wooden floor. It was quiet, peaceful, almost too still.Isla stood by the kitchen window, a cup of steaming chamomile tea held in her hands. Her eyes followed the soft sway of the trees beyond the window, but her mind was elsewhere. The words from Killian Blackwood the night before had stuck with her, each one ringing with the finality of something that could not be undone."I want to be worthy of you, Isla. Even if it takes the rest of my life.".Those words had unraveled something inside her, something she'd fought to tighten up in past months. She'd rebuilt herself from the ground up. Improved. Intelligent. But also better guarded.Yet Killian returned — not the cold, rational man who formerly considered love an exchange, but a rough, unfinished, and terrifyingly real person.There was a knock that interrupted her thoughts.She spun towards the door, already pounding wit
Shattered Vows Chapter 96
The next morning, after Killian Blackwood's offer, was bright and beautiful, the kind of golden light that made all things seem fresh. Isla Carter awoke with her hand still lying softly over the engagement ring on her finger, her heart still skipping a beat in disbelief and joy. The previous night had seemed like a dream created, but the sparkle of the diamond and the heat of Killian's arms about her reminded her it was real.She rolled over in bed to find him already awake, lying on one elbow, looking at her with quiet respect."Morning, fiancée," he whispered, voice low with sleep and love.She laughed, stretching out. "Morning, fiancé."He got up and kissed her softly, his thumb tracing her cheek. "We have to get up. Big day today."She groaned. "I just want to lie here and pretend the world doesn't exist."He smiled, his face buried in her hair. "Tempting. But I promised a very clever woman that we would do something real."Her heart skipped another beat.Isla threw off the covers
Shattered Vows Chapter 95
For a couple of days, it looked like the storm had actually passed.The made-up stories fell out of the headlines.A formal denial from Marcus's so-called "anonymous sources" appeared, recanting all the charges. The donors who had pulled out of Haven's Hope began calling again, bearing apologies and tentative promises of aid.The shelter breathed again.The town itself, cautiously at first, but ever more warmly, welcomed Killian Blackwood back home.But Killian wasn't the same man anymore.He'd surrendered his empire, his riches, and his fine reputation for Isla Carter.And even though he didn't resent it — not one minute of it — the weight of it came upon him now and then on nights that stretched interminable and sleepless.He didn't tell Isla everything.Not yet.Not with the phone calls he wasn't returning from old friends who now saw him as a liability.Not with the lawyers circling like vultures over the deals Marcus had bullied him into signing.Not with the creeping, insidious
