Candice POVI didn’t know when I fell asleep again.These days, sleep just comes and goes. Sometimes I lie in bed for hours, staring at the ceiling, waiting for the tears to stop. Other times, I just cry myself to sleep before I even realize it.Tonight wasn’t any different.I had gone to bed after crying again. I tried not to cry, really. But it’s hard when the person you love disappears without a word. It’s even harder when you keep hoping they’ll come back—and every day they don’t, it breaks something else inside you.I curled up in bed, holding a pillow close to my chest like it could somehow comfort me.I missed him.I thought about his voice, his stupid smirk, the way he always looked annoyed at first but always softened when I looked at him long enough. I thought about the way he’d place a hand on my lower back protectively, or the way his eyes lit up when he looked at the ultrasound picture.He was the first person who made me feel seen… and now, he was gone.“Maybe he doesn’
Dorian’s POVAlora’s face was red from crying. Her lips trembled. She suddenly threw the sheets off her legs and tried to get up, but the moment she moved, she gasped in pain and fell back onto the bed.“Alora, stop,” her mother said softly, rushing toward her.“Don’t touch me!” she yelled at her mom, pushing her hand away. She looked at me again, tears pouring down her face.“Dorian,” she whispered. “what did I do to deserve this? I have never hurt anyone. I have never done anything wrong—except loving the wrong person… Declan. I was young. I made a mistake. But I changed. I changed for you!”I didn’t say anything. My hands were in my pockets. My eyes locked on hers.“You don’t know how much I love you,” she went on. “I gave everything to you. My time, my energy, my loyalty. I was always there, waiting. I thought you would see it one day. I thought you would look at me and say, ‘She’s the one.’”She shook her head slowly.“But you… you never did. You chose her.”“And now? Look at m
Dorian’s POV“Please tell me you’ve gotten the location and find her.”“We found her,” he said.My breath hitched. “Where is she? Tell me now.”“She’s being kept in a private estate on the west side of the city. Near the old vineyard area. I’m about to send you the pin—”Before he could finish, I heard loud footsteps.The front door burst open.I turned around, already on edge, and saw her—the woman I never wanted to see again.My stepmother.And behind her, a group of men. Big. Uniformed. Armed like private security.My grip tightened on the phone.“You really have no limits, do you?” I snapped. “You break into my home now?”She smiled like it was nothing. “Oh, I came to take my son to his bride. You’re getting married, remember?”I stepped forward. “If you’re finally here to tell me where Candice is, then go ahead. Otherwise, get the hell out of my house.”She ignored me completely and turned to the bodyguards.“Take him,” she said coldly. “We don’t have time to waste. Alora is awak
Candice’s POVIt’s been almost a week now.Seven long days.Seven empty, quiet, confusing days locked inside this big, cold house with nothing but my thoughts, a kind-faced nanny, and two bodyguards outside the door who won’t even look me in the eyes.I don’t know where I am. Somewhere Dorian can’t find me… or maybe somewhere he doesn’t even want to find me.I hate that I’m thinking like this. I hate that part of me is beginning to believe what his stepmother said.But what else am I supposed to think?The first day, I was sure he’d come.The second day, I kept checking the window, hoping I’d see his car pull up.The third day, I stayed dressed all day—just in case he came rushing through that door to take me home.But now?Now it’s day seven, and I’m sitting here, alone again. No calls. No texts. Nothing.Why hasn’t he found me yet?Dorian is Dorian. He can track people with just a phone number or a shoe print. But he can’t find me?Maybe… maybe he doesn’t want to.Maybe everything
Dorian povThe phone rang again. I stared at the screen like I could force her to answer faster.Come on… come on…Just as I was about to hang up and call again, she finally picked up on the third ring.“Why are you blowing up my phone like this?” her voice snapped through the speaker, cold and sharp. “Can’t a woman get a moment of peace?”I didn’t respond to her sarcasm. “Where is she?” I asked, straight to the point.“Where the hell is Candice?”“Wow,” she said. “Straight to the point, aren’t you? No greetings, no hello, no respect left at all?”Her voice was mocking—like this was all just entertainment to her.I clenched my jaw. “I’m not playing with you. Did you take her?”“Of course I did. You think I was going to let that poor, desperate girl hang around forever? She’s already overstayed her welcome. She’s served her purpose.”My blood boiled.“Purpose?” I echoed slowly, my voice tight. “She’s not an object.”“She’s a burden,” she snapped. “A pregnant, hormonal burden. What else
Dorian’s POV“What do you mean I’m going to marry her?” I asked, stepping back, my brows furrowed in disbelief.Alora’s father looked me straight in the eyes. “You heard me, Dorian. You’re going to marry my daughter.”I let out a bitter laugh. “Are you being serious right now? After everything that’s happened? I wasn’t the one who pushed her off a damn building.”“She’s lying unconscious in that bed,” her father snapped, pointing toward the room. “She tried to end her life because you humiliated her in public. You dragged our family name through the dirt. This is the least you can do.” “So that’s it? You’re going to guilt-trip me into marrying someone I don’t love?“Without another word, Alora’s parents turned and walked out of the ward.I rushed after them, but the moment I reached the door, it slammed in my face.A loud click followed.“What the hell—open the door!”I banged on it. “You can’t lock me in here!”But no one responded.When I tried to push past the guards standing insi