All Chapters of Bound by Deception : Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

The quiet hum of the city seemed distant from the large floor-to-ceiling windows of the apartment. Dakota stood there for what felt like hours, her arms crossed, staring out at the endless sea of lights. The streets of New York pulsed with life, with people hustling to and fro, completely oblivious to the storm raging inside her. She had always been a fighter, had always found a way to claw herself out of every mess life had thrown at her, but now… this was different.Stone & Royale Atelier. Her father’s legacy. The fashion empire that had dominated New York’s elite for decades. It had once been her father’s pride, his carefully curated empire of elegance and prestige, but now, with Helen’s manipulations and deceit still lurking in the shadows, it was a battlefield waiting to be claimed.Dakota’s fingers tightened around the rim of her coffee cup, her mind a whirlwind of doubts and fears. Could she really do it? Could she really take over the company that had been her father’s life’s

Dakota woke up before the sun rose, long before the city began humming its usual morning rhythm. She lay still on the bed for a few seconds, staring at the ceiling, feeling that old familiar pressure settle at the base of her chest. The one that came whenever she was about to do something she couldn’t take back. Today wasn’t ordinary. Today wasn’t safe. Today wasn’t something she could undo with one apology or one step backwards. Today, she was walking into Stone & Royale for the first time not as the neglected adopted daughter… not as the girl who lingered quietly behind Helen’s shadow… not as the one who absorbed humiliation without protest. Today, she was walking in as Executive Vice President of Corporate Strategy & Operations, a position she’d intentionally chosen because it put her directly beneath the CEO, her father and directly above Helen. A power move. A dangerous move. A necessary move. Her fingers curled slowly around the duvet as anxiety nipped quietly at her nerv

Dakota straightened her blouse and smoothed her skirt for what felt like the hundredth time. Her heart thrummed with a mixture of anticipation and dread. The day had been long, exhausting, and at times humiliating, but now came the real test. The private meeting with Helen. The boardroom battles had been public; this would be personal, intimate, a one-on-one that could make or break her footing at Stone & Royale. She entered the sleek office where Helen waited, perched like a queen at her polished mahogany desk. The room smelled faintly of expensive perfume and polished wood, an aroma that had always signaled power and control to Dakota. Helen looked up, arching a perfectly shaped eyebrow. “Well, Dakota,” Helen said, her voice sweet but sharp as broken glass, “I wasn’t sure if you’d survive today without breaking down. Impressive. Truly.” Dakota settled into the chair across from her, spine straight, chin lifted. “I can handle more than you think,” she said evenly, trying to keep

Diana hadn’t slept. Not really. She’d closed her eyes, yes. She’d lain in bed, yes. But sleep? No. Her mind refused to give her even a moment of peace. The echoes of Ryan’s voice from the previous evening kept replaying on a loop, stabbing at her skull like dull pins. Marry me, Diana. I want to build a family. With you. With our child. We can make it work. For the baby… and for us. She squeezed her eyes shut now, hating that the words still made her chest tighten in a way she couldn’t explain. It wasn’t romance. It wasn’t joy. It wasn’t even surprise anymore. It was… confusion. Thick, choking confusion that wrapped around her like a python. And beneath it, deeper and far more dangerous, was dread. The kind of dread that settled into her bones. The kind that whispered: You have ruined your own life. Because this wasn’t what she wanted. Not even close. She’d never dreamed of being pregnant this early, and most definitely not for Ryan. She had wanted Elias. His wor

The office was quiet, as it usually was in the early afternoon, the hum of the air conditioning mingling with the soft clicking of Elias’s keyboard. He had been working, though not as efficiently as usual. His movements were careful, measured, every twist or stretch of his torso cautious because of the lingering soreness from the gunshot wound that still throbbed intermittently on his side. The pain was nothing compared to the events that had led him here, but it was a reminder, sharp and constant, of just how close he had come to losing everything he had fought for in the last few months.His personal assistant, Esme, was about to speak, briefing him on the last few emails when the door swung open abruptly.“Elias!” Serena’s voice rang through the office before Esme could even finish, sharp and insistent.Elias looked up, lifting his head slightly, a frown tugging at his features. “Serena?” he said evenly, though the tension in his chest tightened. He noticed immediately the look in