All Chapters of While Marrying Mr. Steele: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

(Ethan's Pov)Time stood still the instant Veronica charged."Amelia, return!" I cried, trying to propel the wheels on my chair to move more quickly.She was frozen stiff, unable to move, inches from the thin strip of metal that was hidden in Veronica's jacket. The knife glinted in fluorescent light, gliding through air with lethal precision. My heart seemed to be working overtime.Without hesitation, I pushed ahead. A stinging, burning agony ran down my back as I forced my legs to support more weight than their unaccustomed frames could bear. But I showed no weakness.Amelia let out an anguished cry. I caught her in time, shoving her back. At that moment, searing agony pierced my wrist. Hot blood gushed out in an instant. My breath stuck in my constricted throat.Rather, the blade had found me.“Ethan!” Amelia fell to her knees next to him, seizing his wrist in alarm. “You’re bleeding—God, you’re bleeding!”I gritted my teeth, doing my best to keep my pain from blinding my eyes. “I’m

Amelia's Pov I rose to the sweet, earthy scent of coffee wafting down the corridor, a warm embrace enfolding me. I let myself linger in bed for an instant, enjoying the stillness as the aroma crept onto my lips in the form of a soft smile.It was calming, comforting—one of life's small pleasures I used to take for granted in my old life, but now presented to me, it felt so indulgent.I fell out of bed and stumbled into the kitchen, still wiping the slumber from my eyes. The sun streamed through the windows, lighting the room in warm, glowing light, and there at the counter sat Ethan. His wheelchair was positioned in front of him with perfect precision, a tray on his lap, and a mischievous crinkle at the corner of his mouth.“Good morning,” he whispered, his voice soft and low. “I made breakfast.”I stared in disbelief. "You didn't."He gestured proudly at the tray. "Scrambled eggs, toast, and a bit of bacon that may be a bit overcooked. Don't examine it too closely, please; I had to

Amelia's POV"You didn't have to blindfold me," I laughed, tugging at the silk around my eyes as Ethan wheeled himself and helped me out of the car."You would have peeked," he said with that boyish grin I had come to love. "Just a few more steps.""You mean rolls?" I teased.He chuckled. "You're terrible. Alright, you can look now.”He took away the blindfold, and I stood with my mouth wide open.The villa materialized like something out of a dream, set in between great cliffs and overlooking an undiscovered beach. There, regal palm trees swayed gracefully in the wind, as the sun warmed the marble of the courtyard. It was nothing short of stunning—peaceful, secluded.“You brought me here?”"I yearned for us to get away from everything and go where the rest of the world could not find us," he told her. "Even for an instant."I bent and softly pressed my lips to his. "You did well."A warm mist surrounded the pool that night, steam curling elegantly upwards through the amber luminescen

Amelia's Pov You're doing it again, I whispered, dropping to the floor beside Ethan's wheelchair."What's that?" His tone was slicing, verging on snappish.I tried to keep calm. "Pulling away. Shutting me out."He snorted and spun around, his fists clenched around the wheels. "You're dreaming.""No, I'm not." I stood, crossing my arms. "You've spoken barely two full sentences to me since last night."His jaw set, his gaze as unyielding as stone. "If you're here to psychoanalyze me, Amelia, you may leave."His words hurt. He'd never spoken to me like that in weeks. Not since he'd begun to trust me. Not since we'd confessed to one another about how much we loved each other."I'm not your enemy, Ethan."Then stop acting like my messiah.The air grew warmer between us. I leaned in closer, holding onto the armrest of his wheelchair. "What's wrong with you?"He lifted his eyes to encounter mine. There was frustration there, as well, and something else—pain, confusion… fear, even?"No, the

Amelia’s POVMy heart pounded in my chest, even as the video vanished from the screen and Ethan hurled the phone across the room. It crashed into the wall with a sharp crack, the shards bursting everywhere."Dammit!" he shouted, putting a shaking hand through his hair.I hugged myself, attempting to regulate my breathing, but my mother's face kept flashing before my gaze—gagged, bound, helpless."I'm calling security," Ethan declared, already reaching for the landline and punching numbers into it. "We need all the surveillance tapes reviewed. Find out where this video originated. Trace the IP. Get all available recent footage from the warehouses—""Ethan,"I gently touched his arm.He turned to confront me. His jaw was clenched so tightly that I thought he would shatter it. His eyes blazed with cold anger, which I had not seen there before."He warned me," I whispered. "He threatened that if I spoke, that if I informed you about it."“This is not your fault,” he declared immediately, i