All Chapters of THE BILLIONAIRE SECRET TWIN HEIR : Chapter 111 - Chapter 120

FEW MONTHS LATER ~ Alex POV ~ The morning sun cuts through the floor-to-ceiling windows of our new headquarters, and I can't help but think how different everything looks in daylight. Six months ago, we were hiding in warehouses, dodging bullets, watching our grandmother get held hostage by a psychopath. Now Austin and I are sitting in leather chairs that probably cost more than most people's cars, reviewing quarterly reports like actual adults. "You're doing that thing again," Austin says without looking up from his laptop. "What thing?" "That brooding stare out the window thing. Like you're waiting for another shoe to drop." He's not wrong. I've been jumpy since graduation months ago. Every time someone knocks on the office door, every time my phone buzzes with an unknown number, my shoulders tense up. The therapist Mom made us see calls it hypervigilance. I call it being realistic about the fact that our lives have been anything but normal. "I'm not brooding. I'm thinking."

~ Isabella POV ~The taxi lurched to a stop in front of the Walton Gallery, and my stomach clenched so hard I had to press my hand against it to keep from doubling over. Through the rain-streaked window, the building rose like a monument to everything I'd never been able to touch, sleek glass and steel reaching toward a gray Manhattan sky."This is it, right?" The driver's voice cut through my spiraling thoughts. "The fancy art place?""Yeah." My voice came out smaller than I'd intended. "This is it."Nora grabbed my wrist from the seat beside me, her fingers warm and grounding. "Breathe, Bella. You've got this."I wanted to believe her. God, I wanted to believe her so badly it hurt. But sitting here, staring up at the Walton name etched in elegant letters across the building's facade, all I could think about was everything that had gone wrong in Chicago. The whispers. The accusations. The way former colleagues had stopped returning my calls."I shouldn't have come," I whispered."Lik

~ Isabella POV ~The coffee shop three blocks from my hotel had become my temporary office, my sanctuary in a city that still felt foreign despite my best efforts to claim it. I'd been there since seven that morning, my laptop open to emails from artists, vendors, and critics, but my mind kept drifting back to yesterday's meeting at the gallery.Specifically, to the way Alex Walton had looked at me like I was a puzzle he wanted to solve. And the way Austin had smiled when he called me gifted."You're doing it again," Nora said, sliding into the seat across from me with her own coffee. She'd been staying at my hotel, claiming she didn't trust me alone in the big city, but I knew she was worried about more than just my navigation skills."Doing what?""That thing where you replay conversations in your head until you've analyzed every word to death." She stirred sugar into her cup with more force than necessary. "It's not healthy, Bella.""I'm just trying to understand the dynamic," I sa

Alex's hand remained steady against my back as he guided me through the crowd, his touch burning through the thin fabric of my dress. We moved past clusters of guests, their conversations a blur of praise and speculation, until we reached a quieter corner near the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city."Here," he said, signaling a waiter who appeared instantly with champagne. "Away from the noise."I accepted the glass, hyperaware of how his fingers brushed mine during the exchange. The city lights twinkled below us, but I could barely focus on anything except the magnetic pull of the man beside me."To taking risks," Alex said, raising his glass. His dark eyes held mine with an intensity that made my breath catch. "And to the woman bold enough to make them pay off.""To the gallery," I countered, trying to keep things professional even as my pulse hammered against my throat."No." His voice was firm, commanding. "To you, Isabella. Tonight proved something I already suspected.

The music shifted to something with a stronger beat, and Austin adjusted our dance accordingly, his movements confident and sure. Other couples pressed closer around us, the gallery transformed into an elegant ballroom under the soft lighting."You're full of surprises," I said, impressed despite myself by his skill."I'm the twin who actually paid attention during those ballroom lessons," he replied with a grin. "Alex spent most of the time arguing with the instructor about the practical applications of the foxtrot."I laughed, and the sound felt good, natural. "I can picture that.""He's not wrong, you know. Dancing doesn't serve a strategic purpose in most business situations." Austin's expression grew more serious. "But not everything worthwhile has to be strategic.""Like what?""Like this." He gestured to the space between us, to the way we moved together, to the easy conversation flowing between us. "Like getting to know someone without an agenda. Like finding out what makes th