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Chapter 36: Performance and Paparazzi.
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2025-04-23 18:23:28
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The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 37: Shadows Beneath The Crown.
************************Claire's POV************************ The events of the past few months lingered in my mind as I walked through the garden. The Roses were in full bloom. Their scent wasn't sweet and heavy in the autumn air. But I couldn't escape the gnawing feeling in my stomach, as I drifted to what Liam said to me at my wedding reception. I had no idea what his intentions were or how far his obsession had grown. A tall figure appeared on the other side of the garden; the figure was framed by the ivy-covered stone walls, and my heart skipped a beat. His presence was magetic_ too magnetic for my own good. "Claire." Liam's voice was smooth. But here was an edge to it. Something strained. He stepped closer, his gaze intense, though his face remained impassive. "Liam," I said as I forced a smile. "What are you doing here?" I asked " I wanted to talk to you." He said quietly as he glanced up briefly over his shoulder as if to ensure, no one watched. "Talk? About what? I ask
최신 업데이트 : 2025-04-23The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 38: The Confrontation 1.
***********************"POV: Sadie************************* Liam was in the conference room again. Alone. Back to the door. Lights dim. His hands are shoved deep in his pockets like he’s trying to hold himself together from the inside out. "Liam." He doesn’t turn around. "I’m not in the mood, Sadie." He said. "Too bad," I said as I shut the door behind me. It clicks with finality. "I don’t care what mood you’re in. This conversation is long overdue." I said. He exhaled, slow. Controlled. Like I haven’t just dropped a grenade in the room. "You gonna lecture me again?" He asked. "Only if you keep pretending Claire isn’t Mack’s wife." His jaw flexed. Boom. "Sadie, don’t." He said. His voice was hard. "Don’t what? Say her name? Call you out? Remind you that you’re practically drooling over someone who shares a mortgage and a king-size bed with your brother?" I asked. My voice was firm. "I said don’t." He replied. "You think I’m scared of you, Liam?" I asked. He
최신 업데이트 : 2025-04-24The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 39: The Obsession.
***********************Claire's POV***************************Liam: I saw you this morning; you looked tired. Didn't you sleep? Or was it difficult to sleep? I could help with that.**** Why do you keep ignoring me?**** Don't pretend like what we had was nothing.**** I hate being ignored. You'll talk to me eventually.**My phone buzzed with messages from Liam. As if the messages weren't enough. My phone keeps vibrating from his calls.I stood in front of the espresso machine as I willed the hiss of steamed milk to drown out my buzzing phone_ it vibrated against the stainless steel counter, relentless and insistent. Liam. Again.I didn't need to check the screen. I already knew.The barista glanced at me with a polite concern but just offered a tight smile. I grabbed my cappuccino and left the phone where it lay briskly back to my desk on the 12th floor. It was only 8:42am. I have five unread messages from Liam.I closed my laptop; nausea climbed in my throat. I'd blocked his numbe
최신 업데이트 : 2025-04-24The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 40: The Stalker.
*********************Claire's POV***************************"Claire!" I jumped at the sound of a voice. The hum of air from the air conditioning was the only sound in my office with the rhythmic tapping from my keyboard. I hadn't expected anyone. Mack was not yet in town. "Jesus, Kelvin, you scared me," I said as I pinned in my chair."Sorry." He said as he walked in. His eyes scanned the ceiling."What's wrong?" I asked as I frowned."Nothing _ just." He said as he stepped at the back of my desk."You ever feel like you're being watched? He asked as he looked up."Paranoid much?" I chuckled.Kelvin didn't laugh, he reached up and tilted one of the ceiling tiles."What the hell do you think you're doing?" I asked."There's something here." He said as he pulled down a tiny black object."Hidden camera." He said.I froze as I stood up."What?_ How?" "Wireless", he said as he turned it over in his hands."Someone has been watching you." He continued."Who would that be?" I asked.
최신 업데이트 : 2025-04-24The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 41: The Break_ of the Shadow Beneath.
**************************Claire's POV*******************I stood at the centre of my room in Mack's first house_ the first house he brought me to. The events that had occurred for the past few days were playing in my head like a projector didisplayedlides.I couldn't shake off the uneasiness in my stomach.I paced around the room, lost in my thoughts. My heart skipped a beat everytime I remember that it was just Liam. There's someone out there who wants me that I'm not totally not aware of.My phone vibrated at the coffee table by the side of the table.I ran to take it because I had been expecting a call from Mack."Claire_ " He called out to me. I didn't realise how much I missed him till now."Mack?" I replied."Are you okay? Are you hurt in any way?_" He asked. His tone was calm and shaky with concern."Mack_ I'm good. I wasn't hurt in any way." I said.I heard him exhale deeply on the other side."Kelvin had been doing a great job," I said. I felt a pang of regret as I was to b
최신 업데이트 : 2025-04-24The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 42: The Shadow Through the Window.
*******************Claire's POV************************The te Sion in the air was palpable, even hours after the masted intruder had slipped through the second-story window like a ghost. Security personnel swept the grounds again, barking into radios, frustration mounted on every face. Whoever it was, he'd disappeared without a trace. There were no fingerprints and no scents for the dogs. I sat at the edge of the grand staircase, wrapped in a thick robe, my eyes hollow as replaying the scene on a loop."I didn't hear him Mack," I whispered as he knelt beside me."How the hell did he get past all of them?" I asked rhetorically."I have no idea, I swear. I'm not letting this happen again." He said as he took my hand, rough, steady against my cold fingers. "He was going to take advantage of me and.....he shot at you," I said as my eyes met his for the first time in an hour."He didn't. That counts as something." He said as his jaw tightened."I'm here and you're still here. Now, I'm g
최신 업데이트 : 2025-04-24The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 43: Unravelled.
*********************Claire's POV***************************The text from yesterday still lingered in my mind. I couldn't shake off the feeling of dread that had settled in my chest, like a heavy weight I couldn't push away. "I'd shown Mack immediately I showed Liz. My hands trembled as I handed him the phone. And the look on his face...I could see his concern for me. His instincts kicked in. It was like a dark cloud on a sunny day.He held the phone for a moment. His jaw tightened. "He can't protect you?" He muttered to himself as he read the message."What the hell does this mean?" He asked."I_ I don't know. " I said. The word trembled in the air "And I don't like it. I don't even know who it's from, and I feel...I don't know...I feel like." My breath caught in my throat as the words escaped." I don't know Mack," I said.He looked at me. His eyes softened with concern. "We're going back tomorrow. We can't be running like cowards. We'll expose whoever it is." He said.That wa
최신 업데이트 : 2025-04-25The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 44: The Confrontation: Mack and Liam's Edition
************************Mack's POV**********************The parking lot behind Chambers Grill was nearly empty. Save for Liam and I as we stood in the shadow of the flickering streetlamp. The cold wind cut through the silence like a blade, rustling leaves and sweeping dust across cracked asphalt.I stood on one side of the parking lot. My arms crossed over my chest, my jaw clenched. My eyes locked onto Liam like a predator. I had finally cornered my prey. Liam_ lit a cigarette with trembling fingers, but his smirk was still in place_ forced, brittle."You've got guts to lay your hands on my wife," I said. My voice was low and sharp like a razor."But, let's make this quick. I didn't come here to see your ugly face." I continued.Liam exhaled a cloud of smoke and tilted his head slightly."Relax man, I was just checking in on Claire. While you were away. Didn't know that was a crime." He said."You text her again. You call her. You even think about her_ your very existence will be ju
최신 업데이트 : 2025-04-25
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The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 72: Old Bonds and New Shadows.
************************Morgan's POV********************* The sun cast a golden hue over the manicured lawn of Henry's estate. The familiar crunch of gravel under my shoes stirred memories of the countless visits, shared cigars, and debates that stretched into the night. It had been years since I'd last walked this path, but here I am this late afternoon because of the weight of the recent events___ which made the distance between us feel even longer. Henry greeted me at the door in a quick hug, his once jet-black hair now peppered with grey, but his posture remained as upright as ever. "Morgan," he said, extending a firm hand. "It's been too long." His lips curved into a smile. "Far too long," I replied, gripping his hand with equal strength. He led me into his study, a room that had always been a sanctuary of sorts. Shelves lined with books, artefacts from our travels, and the ever-present decanter of aged whiskey. He poured us both a glass, and we settled into the leather
The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 71: A Perfect Lie.
**************************Rowe's POV************************The rain had been relentless since morning. The city looked faded, the streets coated in uncertain reflections—like illusions pretending to be real. Just like the truth, I was desperately trying to cling to.Etian sat opposite me in the dim back room of the safe house. A bandage covered his temple, and a nasty bruise darkened the skin around his eye. He didn’t just look exhausted—he looked haunted, like someone. the skin around his eye. He didn’t just look exhausted—he looked haunted, like someone who had been dragged through something too dark to fully explain.“She’s everywhere,” he said as he face was still stung to the Monitor like a stungfish.I opened the file. Inside were surveillance stills, time stamps, device identifiers—Aliana’s name popping up in systems we hadn’t even known she could access. There were USB records, footage of her car near the penthouse on the night Sadie died, her login activity on Etian’s rest
The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 70: The Architect.
************************Liam's POV*************************The scent of cedar and the rain drifted through the half-cracked window, but I barely noticed. My study was quite__ too quiet. The kind of quiet that comes after the storm, when you're sure if it's over or just waiting to return.I stood by the fireplace, swirling a glass of bourbon I hadn't touched. The logs hissed softly, flames curling like whispers. On the table behind me, a black duffel bag waited.They were late.I checked my watch for the third time. 12:47 AM. The city below was asleep—or pretending to be. But not me. Not tonight. Not until this final piece slid into place.A soft buzz echoed from the elevator.Finally.I turned just as the elevator door opened with a muffled chime. Three men stepped out __ all dressed in black, soaked from the rain. The one in front__ Roger__tossed the bag on the table with a dull thud."Everything's intact." He said."Phone, USB. Notes. He had backups, but we scrubbed his cloud befor
The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 69: Morgan Arizona.
********************Morgan's POV*************************The news hit like a hammer—Etian had been attacked.Rowe isn't safe if Etian had been attacked.I stood by the tall windows of my office, the early morning light bled through the blinds, castung long shadows across the floor. My knuckles were white against the mahogany desk as i gripped the edge tightly, stared blankly at the city skyline. My jaw clenched and unclenched."I should've seen this coming." I muttered under my breath.My aide delivered the report minutes ago. Detective Etian had been found near an abandoned district on the outskirts of the city, bruised, bloodies, his phone and any evidence he had gathered completely destroyed. No cameras. No witnesses. It had been deliberate ___ too clean to be random.My thoughts spun like a storm. "It wasn't an accident Abba. " The exact words Rowe said to me.Someone was trying up loose ends and if Etian had gotten that close to the truth, then we're running out of time.I did
The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 68: His Resolve.
****************************Etian's POV*********************The bruises on my ribs ached with every breath I took as I walked. I was still shaken from the ambush. My body felt like it had been seen through a war zone__ my ribs were sore, my lips split, and my shoulders ached deeply from where one of them had kicked me as I tried to crawl away. They didn't say anything. Just left me on the cold gravel like I was trash. Whoever they were, I would dig out what they wanted to be buried.And they took everything I had—my phone, the USB drive, even the photo I was analyzing, they thought they were smart.But they didn’t take what I remembered.My mind kept circling back to that image. That single frame. A woman, half-shadowed, slipped through the side entrance of Sadie’s building. Slender build. Dark hair. Long coat. Her face was turned away, but it was enough to start digging.Enough to point me back to Aliana.Rowe had picked me up that night, finding me bloodied and half-frozen in the
The CEO’s Temptation chapter 67: Stripped To Silence.
************************Etian's POV*************************The van growled as it rattled over broken pavement, the engine muffled by the chaos thumping in my head. My wrists were tied behind my back, my ankles bound, and a strip of thick cloth was cinched tight around my eyes, making everywhere dark as the darkness clung to me like smoke. I could hear their voices__ gruff, low, calculated __ but the words were indistinct, distant like a bad memory.They took a sharp turn which flung me into the van's metal wall. Pain bloomed across my shoulder, but I barely flinched. My ribs ached from the blows I'd received earlier, and the taste of blood still lingered on my tongue. The bastards had taken everything __ my phone, the USB, the photo, even my watch. Every piece of evidence I'd managed to secure had vanished in a whirlwind of fits and black cloth.I had no idea where we were going or where they were taking me.I gritted my teeth as I focused on the rhythm of the van's movement. Rough
The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 66: Behind Closed Doors.
**********************Claire's POV**************************The drive back to our main house was far quieter than it had any right to be. The city's light blurred past us, a collection of neon lights and faded shadows, as if it were trying to forget the chaos of the e last few hours. I sat in the passenger seat, my mind still churning over the cryptic message and the cold dread that had followed it.Mack's eyes were fixed on the road ahead, his jaw clenched tight. He didn't even glance at me nor did he speak, but his presence was a constant force beside me. It was a comfort in a way that it was just us, but it also felt like he was carrying something heavy__ something he wasn't ready to share.When we reached the main house, the feeling of danger intensified in the air. The property was large and _ expansive; even__ but tonight, it looked more like a fortress than a home. The light was dim, casting long shadows over the carefully manicured grounds. Security cameras were visible at e
The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 65: A warning in the Dark.
*****************************Claire's POV*******************The air in the warehouse grew colder as the minutes dragged by.I tugged my sleeves down over my wrists as I leaned back against Mack's truck, watching the alley stretch into endless shadows. The tech guy was late, and something about it doesn't sit right in my gut.Mack stood nearby, his arms crossed, eyes sharp and restless. He hadn't said much since we parked, he kept scanning the street like he expected trouble to come walking out of the darkness.I shifted, as I pulled my phone put my phone to check the time__ and saw a new message blinking at me from an unknown number.My heart gave a quick, stuttering thud as i clicked it open.**You think it’s that easy?**That was it. Just that. No name. No threat spelled out. But it hit me harder than if they had screamed it in my face.I stared at the screen for a second longer than I should have.”Claire?" Mack's voice was low, rough with warning. He stepped closer, already picki
The CEO’s Temptation Chapter 64: Unearthed Lie.
*************************Etian's POV************************The city never really slept. It just toned itself down at night, humming low like it was trying to act innocent. I wasn’t buying it. I knew exactly what was hidden underneath.Pulling my jacket tighter, I headed up the broken sidewalk toward an old rundown building off 7th Avenue — the kind of place that reeked of mildew and bad choices.But it was where my contact said the package would be.Inside, a single overhead bulb flickered and buzzed like it was on its last legs.The guy behind the counter didn’t even bother glancing up from his beat-up laptop."Name?" the guy asked, his voice dull and bored."Etian," I said.Without lifting his eyes, he slid a small manila envelope across the counter.Cash passed between us — fast, no fuss.I didn’t hang around.Out in the alley, I ripped the envelope open with stiff, impatient fingers.Inside: a lone USB drive, a few blurry copies of what looked like security access logs... and on
