Lahat ng Kabanata ng Your Lips to Mine #4: The Billionaire's Heartbeat: Kabanata 71 - Kabanata 80

The house was filled with the soft hum of quiet conversation, the clink of glasses, and the scent of warm food that seemed to cling to the air. For once, the chaos of the world outside—the media, the pressure, the threats—felt far away. It was just the people I loved, gathered together in this space to share something simple yet profound. A celebration. James had insisted on keeping it small, intimate. Just a few of our closest friends—Ben, Ethan, Nadia, and of course, my sister at the hospital, Maya—people who had been with us through the highs and the lows. They had all seen the worst of us, and yet, they were still here, smiling and laughing as though nothing had ever happened. I couldn’t ask for a better group of people to call my family. As I moved through the room, a glass of wine in my hand, I felt a sense of calm settle over me. It had been a long road, full of unexpected turns, but I was finally starting to feel like we had something solid beneath our feet. I hadn’t realize

It was just an ordinary day. At least, that’s how it started. I woke up early, feeling the weight of the world in the familiar stiffness in my neck. A few too many hours at the clinic the day before, more than I’d planned, had left me feeling a little off balance. But it was nothing I couldn’t shake off with some caffeine, a warm shower, and a few quiet moments to myself. My morning routine, I realized, had become one of my few sanctuaries. It was predictable and soothing in a way that comforted me amidst the chaos of everything else. But as the hours passed, something felt… off. It started with a dull ache in my head—nothing unbearable at first. I brushed it off as dehydration. But as the morning wore on, the ache deepened, and by lunchtime, a wave of dizziness swept over me. I stumbled, almost losing my footing as I walked from the examination room back to my office. The dizziness lingered, making everything seem a little too far away, a little too unsteady. I tried to power thr

I should have known it was coming. Claire had been lurking in the shadows for too long, her presence always a lingering reminder of the past. But this? This was different. This was her final attempt—her last, desperate shot to remind me that she still thought she had a claim on James. I was sitting in the café near the office, scrolling through my phone, enjoying my rare moment of peace when I saw her across the room. Claire. She was sitting at a table, watching me with an intensity that would have been unnerving if I wasn’t already used to her games. I’d seen her try to insert herself into James’s life before, and I was done playing the role of the naive woman who wasn’t aware of the strings she was pulling. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. She was about to learn that this time, I wouldn’t back down. I stood up, my fingers tightening around my coffee cup as I approached her. The air felt thick with tension as I closed the distance. She hadn’t moved, not even to acknowledge my pr

It was supposed to be just another ordinary afternoon, but I could feel the weight of the moment settling in. The wedding was coming together, bit by bit. James and I had always talked about the day in passing, and at times, it felt so surreal that we hadn’t actually set things in motion earlier. Now, with the big day approaching, everything was suddenly very real. Very serious. “Olivia, I swear, if you say ‘we’ll think about it later’ one more time, I’m going to lose it,” James said with a playful glare as he sat across from me at the kitchen table. Papers, books, and wedding planning magazines were scattered everywhere between us. I couldn’t help but chuckle at his exaggerated frustration. He’d been surprisingly meticulous about this whole process. But honestly, who could blame him? This wasn’t just any wedding—it was our wedding. “Fine,” I groaned, pushing my glasses up the bridge of my nose. “We’ll think about it now.” I smiled at him, watching as his face softened. I knew he

The morning of the wedding, I woke up to the sound of soft rain tapping against the window. It wasn’t a storm or anything dramatic—just a gentle, steady rhythm that seemed to calm the world around me. It felt appropriate, in a way. The calm before the storm, though this wasn’t a storm at all. It was the beginning of something new, something beautiful, and I could feel the weight of it in every inch of my body. I stretched out in the bed, the sheets tangled around me like a cocoon, keeping me warm and secure. For a moment, I didn’t want to leave the comfort of the bed. It felt safe here. But I knew the day wasn’t going to wait for me. I was getting married today. My heart fluttered with the realization. It was happening. The day I had thought about for so long was finally here. I sat up slowly, glancing at the clock. The wedding was only a few hours away, and there was still so much to do. My mind was buzzing with a million things at once—details about the ceremony, the small gatheri