Lahat ng Kabanata ng Escaping The Billionaire's Embrace : Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

I sat by the large window in the living room, staring out at the rolling hills beyond, but I wasn’t really seeing any of it. My thoughts were too tangled in the mess of everything that had happened in the past few days, in the strange, unsettling dance between me and Dylan.I ran my fingers through my hair, the weight of it dragging my thoughts down further. I felt… lost. Not just physically, but emotionally. Everything around me was so pristine, so perfect, and yet I couldn’t shake the sense of suffocation that had settled over me since I woke up here.Dylan had left the house earlier, something about work or a meeting or whatever it was that kept him out of the house so often. He hadn’t said much, just a quiet goodbye as he slipped out the door. Part of me felt relieved, like I could finally breathe without the weight of his gaze on me. But then there was another part of me, one that wasn’t so sure about being left alone with my thoughts.I stood and moved towards the kitchen, a

Something I couldn't quite name, had been building between us ever since the surgery, ever since I first woke up in Dylan’s care. I’d seen the way his eyes lingered on me, how he looked at me when he thought I wasn’t paying attention. There was always a moment when our gazes would lock, and I’d feel something in the pit of my stomach twist, like we were both standing on the edge of a cliff, waiting for the other to fall.I wasn’t sure if I was ready for whatever this was.But I also wasn’t sure I could keep ignoring it.That morning, the house felt different. More silent than usual. I could hear the rustle of his clothes from the other side of the hallway, the soft thud of his boots as he moved around. It should’ve been comforting. But there was something about the way he moved that made my skin tingle, something predatory in the way he shifted between spaces, never fully looking at me but always aware of me.I took a breath and tried to center myself. I needed to get through the da

Dylan sat next to me, his hand resting on the seat between us, his fingers twitching as if he wanted to touch me but was unsure whether to do so.I kept my gaze fixed out of the window, watching the city lights blur into a haze of color. It almost felt like I was in a dream. But it wasn’t a dream, it was my life now. Or at least, a life I had to pretend was mine.I wanted to ask Dylan a thousand questions. I wanted to scream, to demand answers. What was he really asking of me? Why was he so insistent that I become Emily, that I wear her life like a second skin? But every time I opened my mouth, the words felt too heavy to speak.Instead, I turned to him, just enough to catch his profile in the dim light of the car. His jaw was tight, his brow furrowed in a way that suggested he was lost in his thoughts as much as I was in mine.“Dylan,” I said softly, breaking the silence. “What happens when they see through it? When they realize I’m not her?”He glanced at me, his eyes flickering wit

Dylan shut the door behind us with a soft thud, the sound feeling too final. Too much like the world outside was still pressing down on me.The car started moving, the soft hum of the engine doing nothing to ease the storm inside me. I stared out the window, the city lights blurring by, but I wasn’t really seeing any of it. My thoughts were consumed by one thing, and one thing only.Aiden.I had spent so long running from him, escaping the life he’d built around me, and yet here I was, with him still somehow right there in front of me. Like some fucking ghost, haunting me.And Dylan?Dylan was his cousin.I couldn’t stop the words from slipping out.“Why the hell didn’t you tell me?” My voice was raw, barely above a whisper, but it still felt like a shout inside the car. “How could you not tell me that?”Dylan didn’t look at me. His hands were clenched tight on the wheel, his jaw set like granite. He kept his gaze fixed on the road ahead, his posture tense. But I could feel the shift

The Next Day,Morning light filtered through the blinds, casting long shadows across the room. I woke with a start, my heart racing, the memory of the previous night’s events flooding back. Aiden. Dylan. Lily. The ballroom. Everything felt like it was closing in on me.I pushed myself out of bed, the weight of what I had to do pressing down on me. Emily’s office. The words echoed in my mind. I had to do this. There was no other choice.I didn’t take long to get ready, just a simple black dress, no makeup, no frills. I wanted to look invisible. I didn’t need to draw any attention to myself today.When I stepped downstairs, Dylan was already waiting, sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee. He didn’t look up when I entered, but I knew he was aware of me. He always was.“I’m heading out,” I said, my voice steady but tired.Dylan finally glanced up at me, his expression unreadable. “You're not having breakfast?.”“I’ll be fine,” I said, forcing a smile, though I could feel the h