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Shadows of the Past
Last Updated:
2025-05-02 08:14:38
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The following day began with a heavy air at Carlyle Holdings. Everyone walked on eggshells, their movements hushed, eyes filled with nervous curiosity. The tension had become a permanent resident in the sleek hallways, following Liam wherever he went.He entered the boardroom early, before any of the executives arrived. The footage had been secured, and Damien was working on getting a strategic release to the media. But that was only the tip of the iceberg. He needed to know the truth and it started with Emily Grant.She arrived minutes later, perfectly punctual as always. Her ash-blonde hair was tied in a neat bun, and her dark navy suit was unwrinkled despite the storm swirling around the company. Her calm demeanor hadn't changed.“You wanted to see me, sir?” she asked, setting down her briefcase.“Yes. Please sit,” Liam gestured, motioning toward the seat across from him.Emily took her seat, watching him closely. “Is this about the leak?”“It is,” he said, folding his hands. “Our
Last Updated : 2025-05-02THE BILLONIARE UNWANTED SUBSTITUTE BRIDE SHADOWS OF THE PAST
The storm outside mirrored the one brewing inside Liam’s mind. Rain hammered against the windows of the Carlyle estate as thunder cracked through the sky like a warning. But Liam paid no attention to the weather. All he could focus on was the photograph of his father and Emily.It haunted him.He stared at the fire dancing in the fireplace, his jaw clenched, mind racing. How had Emily ended up beside Marcus Carlyle? What did she know? What had she done? More importantly what had his father done?Behind him, Lily emerged from the hallway, wrapped in a silk robe. She hadn’t said much after the revelation. They were both stunned. But the silence between them wasn’t distant. It was heavy with thought and concern.“Liam?” she said softly, approaching him. “I’ve been thinking… if my sister worked with your father, it must’ve been before the wedding was even arranged. Before you and I ever crossed paths.”“That means your sister didn’t just disappear for no reason,” Liam said darkly. “She va
Last Updated : 2025-05-03THE BILLONIARE UNWANTED SUBSTITUTE BRIDE THE HIDDEN BLOODLINE
The silence in the office was thunderous. Liam stood rooted, his mind reeling from the revelations Damien had just laid before him. A hidden heir. A forged will. And a father who had manipulated everything..even Lily. The room felt colder, the walls tighter. Damien leaned against the glass table, arms folded. “I didn’t want to believe it either. But the documents we decrypted… they don’t lie.” Liam slowly sat down, fingers steepled beneath his chin. “So what you’re saying is, my father had a second family?” Damien nodded. “Or at least a child he kept hidden. There are bank transactions brecurring ones made to an unlisted name. And some travel records that suggest he flew to London frequently, always to the same address.” “Do we have a name?” Lily asked, her voice laced with disbelief. Damien opened the tablet again. “Elias Thorn. Born nineteen years ago. His mother, Marianne Thorn, was once Marcus Carlyle’s personal assistant. She resigned under suspicious circumstances and mov
Last Updated : 2025-05-03THE BILLONIARE UNWANTED SUBSTITUTE BRIDE THE SCANDAL THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
Lily Harper suddenly woke up, with her racing...Her eyes got nervous around, her veins were nervous. The sheets under it felt impossiblely feeling soft, some rich and the masculine smell sticks to the wind , sandalwood and expensive colon. Her breath became shallow. This was not her room. The huge windows flooded the place with morning lights, revealing an breathtaking horizon she had only seen in magazines. Crystal chandelier sprinkled the overhead, and smooth black furniture shines in a soft glow. The room launched luxury calm, distant luxury. Her stomach tightened. no heat. No familiarity. Nervousness hit her like a wave of tide. How did I get here? she threw the cover aside, her barefoot hit the cold marble floor. A sharp pain beat in her head. she pressed her fingers trembling her temples, preparing to clean the fog in her mind. Think, lily. Think. The glow of the last night was in her memory. Emily's tired smile, whispering, "Please go for me, lily. I'm fine."
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Lily saw Liam, her breath got stuck in her neck. The morning sunlight flowed through the huge windows, but all she felt was cold. His words echoed in his ears so harsh, unforgiven, and final."You have pulled my name in this dirt. And now you are going to fix it."Her fingers trembled around the crumpled newspaper. "Fix it? How?"Liam stepped even closer, above him. his fragrance -mahing colon and cold steel - influenced her senses, causing her dizziness. His silver-gray eyes were rigid, unmatched."By marrying me."The room seemed to be inclined.Lily stumbled back. "Marry you?" Her voice exploded with mistrust. "You can't be serious."His lips became curved, but there was no heat in his smile. "Deadly serious.""But I - I don't even know you!""You know a lot." Liam's gaze was swept over to her, cool and calculated. "You know my name, my wealth, and now you are putting the scam in danger that I have created. The media believes that you are my lover. The world expects a marriage. a
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Lily's breath got stuck in her neck. The room seemed to shrink, the air was thick with stress. "what did you just say?" She whispered, her voice was barely audible. The man who was standing long, his sharp jaw was held, the dark eyes were boring with him. "You heard me. She is engaged to me." Lily stumbled back. "No! I don't even know you!" Liam did not flinch. Their silver-gray gaze moved between them, between the cold and the calculation. His expression was unmatched, but it was impossible to face the storm in his eyes. "Interesting," he said softly, his voice like silk on steel. "You claim that you don't know him, yet he is making adventure claims here. Care to explain, Lily?" "I don't know what he is talking about!" Lily gasping, moving towards the window. Her heart came in his chest. "I had never seen him before in my life." The stranger's gaze became harsh. "Don't lie to me." "Who are you?" Liam demanded, moving forward, his entire frame was threatened. The man became s
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Lily's breath went around her neck. "what do you mean?" His voice trembled, darting between his wide eyes Liam and the maid. "I don't understand. Is the past?" The maid was hesitant, she was nervous at Liam before continuing. "They are saying ... you are not really a lily Harper. That your real identity is completely something else." silence. Liam's cold gaze intensified, narrow with suspicion. "Is it true?" "No!" Lily retreated, shaking her head. "They are lying. I am a lily Harper. I swear-" But even when words left her lips, the memories gnawed in her mind. faint. Remote. Buried for years. "Lily," Adrian's voice became softened, but her eyes shone with something else curiosity, calculation. "If you are not telling us something there, then you need to say it now." "I don't know what they are talking about!" He insisted, but his voice erupted uncertainty. Liam stepped closer, her appearance became heavy, her silver gray eyes piercing her soul. "Then why do you look like yo
Last Updated : 2025-02-25THE BILLONIARE UNWANTED SUBSTITUTE BRIDE THE COST OF THE UNSPOKEN
Lily was sitting in a cold marble floor room, her arms were tightly wrapped around him. He was burnt in his mind reminding her of the hatred of a past which he tried hard to forget. Liam's father her father. Blood. Screams I thought it was just a bad dream. But it was not. The silence was suffocating. she looked at Liam. He was standing from the window from the floor to the roof, staring at her back, on the city's horizon. His reflection on the glass looked cool and away as usual. Lily shivered. He did not say a word since showing him the photo. Not a single word. The air between them felt thick with stress delicate to tolerate too much to tolerate too much heavy breakdown. "Liam," Lily whispered, her voice was barely audible. He did not turn. "I didn't kill him," he said again, this time more strongly. "I did not hurt your father. I swear." Gradually, Liam changed. His silver-gray eyes were unmatched, his face was carved with stone. "Do you expect me to b
Last Updated : 2025-02-25
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The silence in the office was thunderous. Liam stood rooted, his mind reeling from the revelations Damien had just laid before him. A hidden heir. A forged will. And a father who had manipulated everything..even Lily. The room felt colder, the walls tighter. Damien leaned against the glass table, arms folded. “I didn’t want to believe it either. But the documents we decrypted… they don’t lie.” Liam slowly sat down, fingers steepled beneath his chin. “So what you’re saying is, my father had a second family?” Damien nodded. “Or at least a child he kept hidden. There are bank transactions brecurring ones made to an unlisted name. And some travel records that suggest he flew to London frequently, always to the same address.” “Do we have a name?” Lily asked, her voice laced with disbelief. Damien opened the tablet again. “Elias Thorn. Born nineteen years ago. His mother, Marianne Thorn, was once Marcus Carlyle’s personal assistant. She resigned under suspicious circumstances and mov
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The storm outside mirrored the one brewing inside Liam’s mind. Rain hammered against the windows of the Carlyle estate as thunder cracked through the sky like a warning. But Liam paid no attention to the weather. All he could focus on was the photograph of his father and Emily.It haunted him.He stared at the fire dancing in the fireplace, his jaw clenched, mind racing. How had Emily ended up beside Marcus Carlyle? What did she know? What had she done? More importantly what had his father done?Behind him, Lily emerged from the hallway, wrapped in a silk robe. She hadn’t said much after the revelation. They were both stunned. But the silence between them wasn’t distant. It was heavy with thought and concern.“Liam?” she said softly, approaching him. “I’ve been thinking… if my sister worked with your father, it must’ve been before the wedding was even arranged. Before you and I ever crossed paths.”“That means your sister didn’t just disappear for no reason,” Liam said darkly. “She va
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The following day began with a heavy air at Carlyle Holdings. Everyone walked on eggshells, their movements hushed, eyes filled with nervous curiosity. The tension had become a permanent resident in the sleek hallways, following Liam wherever he went.He entered the boardroom early, before any of the executives arrived. The footage had been secured, and Damien was working on getting a strategic release to the media. But that was only the tip of the iceberg. He needed to know the truth and it started with Emily Grant.She arrived minutes later, perfectly punctual as always. Her ash-blonde hair was tied in a neat bun, and her dark navy suit was unwrinkled despite the storm swirling around the company. Her calm demeanor hadn't changed.“You wanted to see me, sir?” she asked, setting down her briefcase.“Yes. Please sit,” Liam gestured, motioning toward the seat across from him.Emily took her seat, watching him closely. “Is this about the leak?”“It is,” he said, folding his hands. “Our
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The following morning, the mansion was unnaturally quiet, despite the chaos unfolding beyond its walls. Liam sat in his private study, poring over the leaked documents for the third time. Lines of numbers and names danced in front of him like ghosts from a time he had tried so hard to forget. Somewhere in these files, someone had planted the seeds meant to destroy him.There was a knock.“Come in,” he said, not looking up.Lily stepped in, a cup of coffee in her hand. “You need to eat something.”He offered a faint smile, taking the cup. “Thanks. I didn’t sleep much.”“Neither did I,” she murmured, sitting beside him. “You’ve been quiet since last night. You okay?”“No,” he answered honestly. “But I will be. Once I find out who’s doing this.”They sat in silence for a moment, the hum of the city beyond the windows muffled by thick glass.“I’ve been thinking,” Lily said softly. “About that photo they leaked… the one of you and your father.”“What about it?”“You said you didn’t go insi
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The morning light filtered through the bedroom curtains, casting golden streaks across the wooden floors. Liam sat at the edge of the bed, elbows on his knees, staring at the unread message Damien had forwarded to him at dawn.The headline was bold and damning: “Carlyle Legacy Tied to Financial Crimes: Leaked Documents Surface.”Though the article didn’t mention Liam by name, it danced dangerously close. The Carlyle estate. The offshore accounts. The shell corporations. The web of it all threaded neatly back to the past he had barely survived.He looked at Lily. She was still sleeping, her brow relaxed for once, the faint trace of peace softening her usually guarded face. He hated that this peace would be shattered soon.Liam slid his phone into his pocket and left the room.Downstairs, the house was already abuzz. Sofia, his long-time housekeeper, handed him a tablet. “It’s everywhere, sir. Social media. Business news. Blogs.”He took the tablet and skimmed headlines, each one more s
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The following days were quieter, not because of tension, but a newfound softness that grew between them. Lily had not yet given her heart fully back, but she had let down the thick walls she’d built around it. Liam, for the first time in years, was learning to speak the language of vulnerability.They spent their mornings in the garden and their evenings at the dinner table not in stiff silence, but with small conversations, shy smiles, and cautious laughter. It wasn’t a return to what they were, but the first steps toward something new.But even as the pieces began to align, something restless stirred beneath the surface.It started with a phone call.Liam had been in his office when the private line rang. Only a few people had that number his lawyer, his assistant, and Damien.He picked it up.“What is it?” Liam asked, expecting routine business.But Damien’s voice came in low and urgent. “I need to see you. It’s important.”Liam leaned back in his chair. “Can’t it wait?”“No. It’s
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The morning sun filtered through the tall windows of the Carlyle estate, casting long golden beams across the marble floor. The warmth of the day contrasted sharply with the coldness Lily felt inside. Though she’d asked for time and space, the emptiness it brought felt like a burden she wasn’t prepared for.For days, Liam respected her boundaries. He kept to his study, engaged with work or perhaps simply brooding in solitude. Meals were often quiet. If they crossed paths, they did so silently, a nod or a fleeting glance the only acknowledgment of each other’s presence. Lily wasn’t sure if it was what she truly wanted, but she feared that if they spoke, the rawness of her heart would take control.But life continued outside their strained cocoon.Lily found herself drawn to the garden, the only place where her thoughts could roam free. The blooming orchids and gentle rustle of the trees provided her with a strange sort of peace. She would sit for hours, sketching idly or journaling her
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The days following their confrontation were heavy with silence, each passing moment a reminder of the vast chasm that now existed between Lily and Liam. The house, once filled with the soft hum of daily life and whispered conversations, had become a quiet prison. Every corner seemed to hold an unspoken truth, every glance between them a question left unanswered.Lily spent her days walking the halls aimlessly, her mind a maze of conflicting emotions. She hadn’t expected forgiveness to come so easily, nor had she expected the weight of it to feel so suffocating. Each time she tried to think of a way forward, the shadow of Liam’s secrets loomed larger, clouding any hope she had left for their future.She had known from the start that love wasn’t simple, that the path they had chosen would be fraught with challenges. But this... this betrayal was something she hadn’t prepared for. To think that Liam, the man she had trusted with her heart, had kept so much from her, had hidden so many tr
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Lily’s mind was spinning, her thoughts tangled like the threads of a broken tapestry. The weight of Liam’s revelation hung heavy in the air between them, an invisible barrier that neither could break. Despite the tension, she felt a strange sense of clarity creeping in. She had come to the realization that there were things they couldn’t control, forces beyond their reach. But what she did know—what she had to know—was that Liam’s betrayal, his silence, was the root of the fracture between them.Her chest tightened as she sat down on the edge of the bed, her hands gripping the soft fabric of the sheets. The cool air seemed to have a calming effect on her, but the storm inside her raged on. How had things gotten to this point? They had been through so much together, fought side by side, yet the truth of his family’s involvement had torn them apart in a way that she couldn’t fully understand.She lifted her head to meet his gaze. His eyes were darker now, the usual warmth replaced by a
