Share

Strings of Control

last update Dernière mise à jour: 2025-04-19 11:00:53

"Damn it! She really is a control freak!"

Crystal could no longer hold back her frustration after the woman beside her had truly left. She shot an annoyed glance at her biological mother, who hadn’t defended her earlier, then narrowed her eyes even more sharply when she turned to Leon—who was sitting silently as if lost in deep thought.

"Why does it feel like she’s known you for a long time? Were you two close before? Or… was she your ex or something?"

Leon returned her gaze, expressionless, before slowly pushing his chair back. "I think this meeting is over, isn’t it? I’d like to head home now. If you all want to stay, that’s up to you."

"You... you’re seriously ignoring my question?" Crystal gasped in disbelief, her eyes narrowing even more as her breathing grew heavier. "You’re going to see her, aren’t you? Don’t forget, Leon. My r

Continuez à lire ce livre gratuitement
Scanner le code pour télécharger l'application
Chapitre verrouillé

Related chapter

  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Drama I Never Asked For

    Athena flinched at the sharp tone on the other end of the line. Her throat tightened, but she still tried to respond with a measured voice."I know, and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to delay anything. I just... I got caught up in—"["Spare me the drama!"] The voice cut her off again—cold, commanding, unforgiving. ["You think an apology will fix everything? I don't need your sorry. I need results. You promised to prove yourself, and so far? You're falling behind!"]"I just needed a little more time," Athena whispered, swallowing the knot in her throat. "Please… I—"["You don’t have more time! You only have a few hours left. I made it clear. Get it done and don’t forget to take the pills I gave you. You can’t afford mistakes now, not when things are this close. You know what’ll happen if you mess this up!"]There was a beat of silence as

    Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-20
  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Last Surprise

    Tears began to fall again as Athena nodded. She clutched both of his strong arms that were still wrapped tightly around her body, taking a deep breath before fully turning to face the man before her."I’ve fallen so deeply in love with you too, prince," she said, her voice shaky as she tried to hold back the ache in her chest. "So deeply that I can’t stop thinking about you every single second of my life!"With their foreheads pressed gently together, Athena and Arthur finally shared a kiss. It was soft and calming, surrounded by the beauty of the setting sun. Their silhouettes lingered at the edge of the ship, bathed in the golden glow of warm, fading light."I… I need to use the restroom!"As the kiss turned hotter, Athena gently pulled away with her voice breathless. Arthur frowned slightly before finally letting out a small laugh."Again?"&nbs

    Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-21
  • The Piano of Vengeance   One Final Symphony

    Athena closed her eyes for a moment as she said her wish. She begged deeply from the bottom of her heart. She hoped that her prayers would be answered soon so that her days could continue to run normally like today."You're incredible!"Arthur's voice suddenly broke the momentary silence that almost brought tears to her eyes. She quickly smiled, before finally looking closely at the handsome face beside her with her fingers still finishing the melody."Don’t say that, prince.""I mean it. Watching you like this... I feel like I’m seeing magic!"Athena laughed for a moment, her cheeks turning a soft shade of pink. She let her fingers linger on a final note. Her voice softened. "I wouldn’t be here like this if it weren’t for you. I don’t think I’d have found the strength, the will... the music again. You never gave up on me, even when I gav

    Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-22
  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Unwanted Morning

    "Baby...."When Arthur opened his eyes the next morning, the first thing he reached for was her—soft skin, steady breath, that familiar warmth he’d grown addicted to. But his hand touched only the cool, empty sheet beside him. Frowning, he sat up, blinking through the haze of sleep."Baby?" he called out softly, expecting her to answer from the bathroom.Silence.He waited a few seconds, listening. Still nothing. Throwing back the covers, Arthur climbed out of bed and padded to the bathroom door knocking lightly."Baby? You in there?"No answer.A chill crawled up his spine as he slowly pushed the door open. Empty. Pristine. The room smelled faintly of her perfume, but there was no trace of her presence. No running water. No voice calling back.He turned around, eyes scanning the bedroom again. Her clothes

    Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-23
  • The Piano of Vengeance   Twisted Devotion

    The rain didn’t fall that night, but the sky remained gray as if it understood that someone was lost in the deafening silence.In the room that once echoed with laughter, Arthur sat alone. The chandelier's dim light reflected dully in his lifeless brown eyes. His fingers gripped his phone tightly, as though he were holding on to the last pieces of hope, now almost completely shattered.Athena’s name was still displayed on the screen. And just like so many times before, there was no answer. He took a deep breath, trying to push down the tightness in his chest while replaying every memory he had of her."Ah, that tickles! Let me go!"That voice still sounded so soft in his ears—the way she giggled as he kept kissing her neck. The echo of her laughter was something he could never forget. Her gaze and her smile always warmed his heart, as if he could still feel them now."Where are you now?" he murmured, barely audible. "Why did you have to leave without a word? Didn’t you say you loved s

    Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-24
  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Only Way Out

    "Sorry..."Not far from the city's chaos, in a modest apartment tucked inside a quiet complex, Athena sat curled in a chair by the window.She had rented the place under a false name, using forged documents—anything to disappear. She knew Arthur would look for her, and that was exactly why she had to vanish. It was the only way to protect both him and Reyna from more pain."I'm sorry, prince. I'm so sorry," she whispered again, though the words barely reached her ears anymore.Tears welled as she hugged her knees to her chest, forehead pressed to the cool glass. The world outside carried on—cars passing, voices rising—but none of it touched her.The ache wasn’t just emotional anymore. It lived in her body now—tight in her chest, heavy in her limbs. Across the street, a couple walked hand in hand. The man leaned in to adjust the woman’s scarf, s

    Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-26
  • The Piano of Vengeance   Persistent

    "Mr. James! Did you just meet with Mrs. Athena inside? Has she returned? What’s your response to the rumors claiming that Mrs. Athena intentionally dropped her charges against Mr. Leon to reunite with her ex-husband?""Yes, Mr. James! As the person closest to her these past few months, surely you have something to say. Is the news true? Please, Mr. James, we've been struggling to reach her!""Yes, is your visit today connected to all this? Are you planning to cut ties and cancel your company's collaborations with hers out of disappointment? Rumor has it you only pursued the partnership to get close to her. Do you now feel betrayed, Mr. James? Played for a fool?"The flood of questions rained down without pause, each word sharpened by the blinding flash of camera lights. Stepping out of the Athena family’s corporate building, Arthur James hadn't anticipated the swarm of reporters that awaited him, hungry for a headline.Who had tipped them off? And how had the rumors spiraled so viciou

    Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-27
  • The Piano of Vengeance   Love Isn't Enough

    Throughout the ride, Arthur couldn’t shake his assistant’s words from his mind. Every part of them rang true. No matter how much time passed, Leon, Crystal, and Caroline would never let him or Athena live their lives in peace. They would never be satisfied, not even now when he and the woman he loved were already suffering under the weight of their cruelty.If they truly had joined forces to weave this trap around him, especially with Reyna relentlessly working to tear him away from Athena, he genuinely didn’t know what else he could do. If Athena were still by his side, none of this would feel so overwhelming. He wouldn’t be lost like this, drifting without direction, weak and broken, like a man abandoned for days in a barren, merciless desert."Sir... it seems your persistence has finally paid off."His assistant’s voice pulled him back from the chaos in his mind. Arthur snapped his gaze forward, eyes narrowing slightly at the sight of a woman stepping out of a taxi. Her face was h

    Dernière mise à jour : 2025-04-29

Latest chapter

  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Wrong Kind of Right

    Hearing those words, Arthur shook his head as if denying a truth too painful to accept. He took a step forward, reaching out to grab the wrist of the woman standing before him, but Athena had already stepped back, her eyes silently pleading with him—don’t."We’re over, Arthur. I’m sorry I never got to say goodbye back then. I just… I couldn’t bear to see you hurting and—""And falling apart!" Arthur cut her off sharply, running a hand over his face, overwhelmed. "Goodbye or not, I still felt it! Every inch of it! Don’t you see that?""I’m sorry. I just…""Why?" His voice cracked, raw with pain, as she struggled to find her words. "Why him? Why choose him over me? Hasn’t he done enough? Hasn’t he already broken you, made your life hell, and—""Enough! Please!"Arthur shook his head again, this time more desperately. His eyes locked onto the woman in front of him, her body trembling as she sobbed—just like him, if not even more heartbreakingly.How did it come to this? What made her giv

  • The Piano of Vengeance   Love Isn't Enough

    Throughout the ride, Arthur couldn’t shake his assistant’s words from his mind. Every part of them rang true. No matter how much time passed, Leon, Crystal, and Caroline would never let him or Athena live their lives in peace. They would never be satisfied, not even now when he and the woman he loved were already suffering under the weight of their cruelty.If they truly had joined forces to weave this trap around him, especially with Reyna relentlessly working to tear him away from Athena, he genuinely didn’t know what else he could do. If Athena were still by his side, none of this would feel so overwhelming. He wouldn’t be lost like this, drifting without direction, weak and broken, like a man abandoned for days in a barren, merciless desert."Sir... it seems your persistence has finally paid off."His assistant’s voice pulled him back from the chaos in his mind. Arthur snapped his gaze forward, eyes narrowing slightly at the sight of a woman stepping out of a taxi. Her face was h

  • The Piano of Vengeance   Persistent

    "Mr. James! Did you just meet with Mrs. Athena inside? Has she returned? What’s your response to the rumors claiming that Mrs. Athena intentionally dropped her charges against Mr. Leon to reunite with her ex-husband?""Yes, Mr. James! As the person closest to her these past few months, surely you have something to say. Is the news true? Please, Mr. James, we've been struggling to reach her!""Yes, is your visit today connected to all this? Are you planning to cut ties and cancel your company's collaborations with hers out of disappointment? Rumor has it you only pursued the partnership to get close to her. Do you now feel betrayed, Mr. James? Played for a fool?"The flood of questions rained down without pause, each word sharpened by the blinding flash of camera lights. Stepping out of the Athena family’s corporate building, Arthur James hadn't anticipated the swarm of reporters that awaited him, hungry for a headline.Who had tipped them off? And how had the rumors spiraled so viciou

  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Only Way Out

    "Sorry..."Not far from the city's chaos, in a modest apartment tucked inside a quiet complex, Athena sat curled in a chair by the window.She had rented the place under a false name, using forged documents—anything to disappear. She knew Arthur would look for her, and that was exactly why she had to vanish. It was the only way to protect both him and Reyna from more pain."I'm sorry, prince. I'm so sorry," she whispered again, though the words barely reached her ears anymore.Tears welled as she hugged her knees to her chest, forehead pressed to the cool glass. The world outside carried on—cars passing, voices rising—but none of it touched her.The ache wasn’t just emotional anymore. It lived in her body now—tight in her chest, heavy in her limbs. Across the street, a couple walked hand in hand. The man leaned in to adjust the woman’s scarf, s

  • The Piano of Vengeance   Twisted Devotion

    The rain didn’t fall that night, but the sky remained gray as if it understood that someone was lost in the deafening silence.In the room that once echoed with laughter, Arthur sat alone. The chandelier's dim light reflected dully in his lifeless brown eyes. His fingers gripped his phone tightly, as though he were holding on to the last pieces of hope, now almost completely shattered.Athena’s name was still displayed on the screen. And just like so many times before, there was no answer. He took a deep breath, trying to push down the tightness in his chest while replaying every memory he had of her."Ah, that tickles! Let me go!"That voice still sounded so soft in his ears—the way she giggled as he kept kissing her neck. The echo of her laughter was something he could never forget. Her gaze and her smile always warmed his heart, as if he could still feel them now."Where are you now?" he murmured, barely audible. "Why did you have to leave without a word? Didn’t you say you loved s

  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Unwanted Morning

    "Baby...."When Arthur opened his eyes the next morning, the first thing he reached for was her—soft skin, steady breath, that familiar warmth he’d grown addicted to. But his hand touched only the cool, empty sheet beside him. Frowning, he sat up, blinking through the haze of sleep."Baby?" he called out softly, expecting her to answer from the bathroom.Silence.He waited a few seconds, listening. Still nothing. Throwing back the covers, Arthur climbed out of bed and padded to the bathroom door knocking lightly."Baby? You in there?"No answer.A chill crawled up his spine as he slowly pushed the door open. Empty. Pristine. The room smelled faintly of her perfume, but there was no trace of her presence. No running water. No voice calling back.He turned around, eyes scanning the bedroom again. Her clothes

  • The Piano of Vengeance   One Final Symphony

    Athena closed her eyes for a moment as she said her wish. She begged deeply from the bottom of her heart. She hoped that her prayers would be answered soon so that her days could continue to run normally like today."You're incredible!"Arthur's voice suddenly broke the momentary silence that almost brought tears to her eyes. She quickly smiled, before finally looking closely at the handsome face beside her with her fingers still finishing the melody."Don’t say that, prince.""I mean it. Watching you like this... I feel like I’m seeing magic!"Athena laughed for a moment, her cheeks turning a soft shade of pink. She let her fingers linger on a final note. Her voice softened. "I wouldn’t be here like this if it weren’t for you. I don’t think I’d have found the strength, the will... the music again. You never gave up on me, even when I gav

  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Last Surprise

    Tears began to fall again as Athena nodded. She clutched both of his strong arms that were still wrapped tightly around her body, taking a deep breath before fully turning to face the man before her."I’ve fallen so deeply in love with you too, prince," she said, her voice shaky as she tried to hold back the ache in her chest. "So deeply that I can’t stop thinking about you every single second of my life!"With their foreheads pressed gently together, Athena and Arthur finally shared a kiss. It was soft and calming, surrounded by the beauty of the setting sun. Their silhouettes lingered at the edge of the ship, bathed in the golden glow of warm, fading light."I… I need to use the restroom!"As the kiss turned hotter, Athena gently pulled away with her voice breathless. Arthur frowned slightly before finally letting out a small laugh."Again?"&nbs

  • The Piano of Vengeance   The Drama I Never Asked For

    Athena flinched at the sharp tone on the other end of the line. Her throat tightened, but she still tried to respond with a measured voice."I know, and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to delay anything. I just... I got caught up in—"["Spare me the drama!"] The voice cut her off again—cold, commanding, unforgiving. ["You think an apology will fix everything? I don't need your sorry. I need results. You promised to prove yourself, and so far? You're falling behind!"]"I just needed a little more time," Athena whispered, swallowing the knot in her throat. "Please… I—"["You don’t have more time! You only have a few hours left. I made it clear. Get it done and don’t forget to take the pills I gave you. You can’t afford mistakes now, not when things are this close. You know what’ll happen if you mess this up!"]There was a beat of silence as

Découvrez et lisez de bons romans gratuitement
Accédez gratuitement à un grand nombre de bons romans sur GoodNovel. Téléchargez les livres que vous aimez et lisez où et quand vous voulez.
Lisez des livres gratuitement sur l'APP
Scanner le code pour lire sur l'application
DMCA.com Protection Status