LOGIN"Are you serious? You’re sure you didn’t see it wrong?"William’s words directly contradicted everything Serena had believed all this time. She lifted her head again, meeting the man’s gaze, then finally lowered it when he handed her an old photograph, its edges visibly worn and damaged."At first, I thought the same thing," William said while staring at the photo now in Serena’s hands. "I thought it might just be a business tactic, but... that photo changed my assumptions."Serena narrowed her eyes, trying to recognize the woman standing between her biological father and William’s grandfather. At first, she thought it was her mother, but it wasn’t. The woman’s gaze and the curve of her smile were very different, even though her height was almost the same as her mother’s."Who is this woman?" Serena asked, looking back at William. "She seems very close to your grandfather and my father.""That’s what I still don’t know," William replied, his eyes returning to the photo. "I accidentall
"What? Why are you only telling me this now?!"Serena immediately straightened her back when she heard the words of one of her father’s most trusted men that afternoon. She had just begun to feel a little calmer as, one by one, the people who had destroyed her life and William’s were finally being exposed. But now, she was confronted with shocking news she had never expected."I’m sorry, Miss," Martin said again, lowering his head. "I was only carrying out your father’s orders. He told me to inform you if his condition was still unstable after five days.""Just tell me the name of the hospital where he is," Serena cut in quickly, unwilling to waste any more time. "I’ll talk to him myself. I want to see his condition with my own eyes. And I want to ask him what happened to him before, what made him end up like this.""I’m sorry, Miss."Serena frowned when her father’s trusted subordinate only repeated his apology and said nothing more. She let out a shallow breath before finally closin
Serena couldn’t bring herself to say everything yet, fear still tangled tightly around all the things she worried about. She looked at William, whispering an apology only in her heart. As if answering it, William nodded, then gently rested his forehead against hers.Serena gasped, completely unprepared for the movement. Yet once again, she couldn’t step back or push him away. Every part of her felt frozen, held in place by emotions she had been desperately trying to bury deep inside her chest."Thank you," William whispered, his hand closing over hers, which was still cupping his face.Only then did Serena realize it. Her touch against William’s cheek slowly weakened, trembling so noticeably that William instinctively tightened his grip, grounding her before she could slip away.Serena’s hand lingered against William’s cheek longer than it should have.She felt the warmth of his skin beneath her fingers, felt the way his breath stuttered almost imperceptibly at the contact. He didn’t
"Did she really throw me out?"William glanced back, staring at the door that was now firmly shut between them. He drew in a slow breath, steadying himself, then cast a brief look around to make sure no one had witnessed Serena pushing him out of her office.Behind the glass window, Serena watched him leave. Only then did she release a quiet breath and sink back into her chair. She closed eyes for a moment, then reached for the tablet on her desk, forcing herself back into work."At least he’s gone," she whispered, though a strange, uncomfortable feeling still pressed against her chest.Numbers, charts, meeting notes, she clung to them desperately, letting them crowd her thoughts until there was barely any room left for William’s face, which refused to leave her mind."God! Is it already this late?"Serena frowned when she checked the time on her phone. She stood up at once. She should have gone home an hour ago, but she had been forced to replace her father in an internal meeting for
"So they’re back together?"The words slipped from Serena’s lips just like that, her chest tightening painfully. Her eyes blinked rapidly as moisture began to pool, and she quickly lifted her head just before a tear could fall, fanning her suddenly overheated face with her hand."How stupid of me to ever hope for anything with him," she muttered, lowering her head again as the ache in her heart deepened."He never really changed, did he? Yeah, I should’ve known better!"Letting out a shallow breath, Serena wiped her face, trying to steady herself. She looked back at her phone screen and picked it up to open the online news notification that had popped up.A photo of William and Cassandra together was clearly displayed amid the dim lighting, making her heartbeat spiral out of rhythm. The two of them were touching affectionately, with not the slightest distance between them.Serena shook her head as she recalled the fact that the man had indeed gone to a bar last night after meeting her
William closed his eyes as he felt Cassandra’s touch again. That woman truly knew exactly how to tempt him. He really couldn’t push her away anymore, especially when she shifted her position on his lap."Don’t hold it back, Will," Cassandra whispered more sensually. "Just do it. Do it the way you used to do it to me."Before William could react, Cassandra suddenly leaned forward and kissed his neck. She guided his hand, which was already resting on her thigh, to move higher, sliding over her very short black dress until it brushed against the thin, triangular piece of fabric she was wearing underneath."You’re still free to touch me even though our relationship is over, Will," Cassandra whispered again, right in front of his lips. "You’re still free to do whatever you want to me so all the weight on your mind can disappear."Kissing William again, Cassandra deliberately began to move seductively against something that had grown fully tense beneath her. When she met no real resistance,







