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Todos os capítulos de STEP ASIDE EX-HUSBAND: THE RISE OF LIANA: Capítulo 1 - Capítulo 10

288 Capítulos

CHAPTER ONE

LIANA'S POVI stayed in the kitchen, surveying the candles I had burned with care, the silverware laid out on the table and the roses, still pungent in their vase. Today is our anniversary night, it's been three long years. I'd been counting down the minutes, or rather not, but praying under my breath we'd finally make it together tonight. It hadn't been an easy year, but I'd stayed true.Dominic and I had known each other so many years ago in a world of stolen kisses and whispered promises, and then it had felt like magic. The sort of love you read about in books. And so when my marriage had lost its heat and its passion, I had hoped that perhaps we could turn it around. That this evening could be our new beginning.I smoothed my dress, a soft slip of satin that I was certain would catch his eye. It was demure, but I had never been the flashy sort, never hungry for attention. He had liked that about me once. He had adored it and sadly, I had assumed that never would change.Within m

CHAPTER TWO

LIANA'S POVThe streetlights fuzzed as I drove. My fingers wrapped tighter than they had to around the steering wheel, but I didn't care. Dominic hadn't called. No text. Not a single missed call. Nothing.And really? That hurt worse than I anticipated.I knew that he was proud. I had known that he had always felt the world would revolve on his whim. But that he could sleep beside me one night, betray me the next and not even be bothered enough to ask where I went?That was what shattered me all over again.I rolled into the driveway of my childhood house at a little past 10 PM. The porch light was still on, most probably because my mom was still watching "Sam and Cat" on Nickelodeon. I turned my headlights off, and for an instant, I simply sat there staring at the house.The house where I had witnessed my first heartbreak, my first scraped knee and my awkward adolescence. And here I was today, an adult woman, crawling back with nothing but a dead phone battery and a bruised ego.I got

CHAPTER THREE

LIANA'S POVThe sunlight filtered through the curtains, warm and golden, reaching the wooden wardrobe and the faded floral bedspread. It smelled of polish and stale fabric in here, I had missed my bedroom but until this morning, I hadn't realised that. .I stood still for a moment and let myself be wrapped in the silence. I did not wish to stir. My body was heavier than usual but not with sleep. With memory.I lay there, combing through what I still had left of Dominic and me. The good parts. The first apartment, furnished with dreams and too many mugs. His hand brushing against mine as we coded together in sync. Stolen kisses, whispered concepts, the way he would look at me as if I were a miracle.Before everything went wrong.Before the silence. Before promiscuity.I still remember the meetings when he wouldn't even glance at me. The lunches when he would "forget" I was right beside him. The public praises he got alone for a project we developed together, AIra.Our AI prototype. Th

CHAPTER FOUR

LIANA'S POVBy the time I was done setting up and ensuring that the code was up and running, I stepped out to break the news but the house was quiet when I emerged.Mum was not there and Camilla was sleeping, balled up like a cinnamon roll on the couch, drooling on her favorite stuffed bunny. I didn't want to wake her up. I needed to express my happiness but a two year old wasn't going to suffer for that.I waited, paced, stared at the clock a thousand times. When she finally opened the back door, rubbing her hands on her skirt and complaining about the curious neighbor's dog all over again, I almost grabbed her."Mum!"She turned round sharply, having been startled. "Jesus, Liana. You almost killed me.""I'm sorry, I just… Mum, It's done. I got a text from Keon. The flight is booked. I'm leaving next Friday."Her eyes widened. "Wait, what?"I nodded, suddenly breathless again. “Kion said everything's ready. The papers, the logistics, it’s all set. We’re leaving.”Her mouth dropped o

CHAPTER FIVE

DOMINIC'S POVTHREE YEARS LATERI adjusted my tie, the crispness of my shirt almost painful against my skin. The conference room was immaculate, lined with pristine glass tables and gleaming floors that reflected my nervous shape. Today wasn't business as usual, not like the others that blended together in the drudgery of my life. Today was different. The ZCorp shares had been a subject of discussion among the financial circles, and now I was completing the finishing touches on the last bits of the puzzle. I and my colleagues had negotiated for months, and today it was heating up.The ZCorp executives walked into the room, and I smiled well-rehearsed. Their suits were gleaming with prosperity, and I could tell that their arrogance was well-earned. ZCorp had been buying up smaller companies, getting their fingers into every lucrative pie they could. But this, this was a monster. The contract would put my firm in a good place, ensuring that our position in the market would be insurmou

CHAPTER SiX

THREE YEARS LATERThe ballroom glittered like a jewel box under a thousand chandeliers, each surface polished to an impossible gloss. Music drifted like silk through the air, and laughter blended with the clink of champagne flutes. But underlying the gilded surface was tension — the kind only the powerful disguised.I moved through the crowd with the assurance of someone who belonged there, but every step was purposeful. My heels clicked on the marble floor, each one the measured beat of my heart. My emerald satin gown shimmered in the light, clinging to every curve like armor, and my mask—smooth, obsidian crystals flung like stars rested lightly over my face, concealing all… and nothing.They didn’t know me. Not yet.Three years ago, I’d been a shadow in rooms like these. And then I was ignored, left behind by a cheat who thought stepping on me was the final act of his rise. And as fate would have it, there he was in front of me, talking and smiling, his arm possessively around the wa

CHAPTER Seven

Liana’s POVI barely noticed the music as we stepped out of the gala.His hand was still locked around mine, warm and tight, as if he feared I would vanish if he let go. But I wasn't there anymore. I was already thinking of home. I slipped into the passenger side of his car without a sound. He looked at me with uncertainty, as if waiting for the words, any words that would let him know that tonight had been an awesome night. He glanced at me a few times as he started the engine, waiting for me to smile, to laugh, to lean in against him like I probably should after all that had transpired tonight.I didn't.I kept my face pressed against the glass, watching the city lights blur by. My chest ached, like something too big was stuck inside, something too sharp to breathe around."You were tremendous tonight," he said to me finally, his voice low and guarded.I smiled at him. Barely. I wasn't strong enough to stroke his ego right now. Not when every nerve in my body ached, not when all I

CHAPTER Eight

Dominics POVI stared at the stack of files on my desk, the silence in my office a jarring contrast to the chaos of the previous few days. Plans were not going well, not with the firm, and certainly not with Liana. It was as if everything was slipping through my fingers. I had asked my guys to keep an eye on her and her movement but I was yet to hear anything. My phone rang, pulling me from my distraction. I glanced at the screen. Russel. This better be good news.I answered the call, pinning the phone between my ear and shoulder."Dominic," Russel's voice slashed through, tight and strained. "We've heard word about Liana's movement."I sat up straight, tension slicing through my veins like a knife forged of ice water. "Tell me about it," I drawled, trying to sound as uninterested as possible, even though every nerve in my body was on fire."She's attending the Blackstone Summit today." Russel said to me. "Private business retreat for tech CEOs. Invitation-only. No press, nothing lea

CHAPTER NlNE

I walked into my apartment, more dazed in my head with the excess of the night. The conference, the humiliation in public and all was a haze. The one thing that I could sense was the tightness in my chest, the suffocating weight of defeat bearing down on me. My kingdom is going to be in shambles if care isn't taken .I walked into the living area, I stood still in shock. Serena.She was sitting at the table, her eyes bright but guarded. Food already out on the table, a wispy cloud of steam hovering over the plates, and yet I couldn't help but wonder how I'd gotten it all wrong. How I'd pushed her away when all she ever did was love me, even in the chaos. I stood there for a moment, my throat constricted, too shocked to talk. She looked at me, as if waiting for me to come out of it.Finally, she spoke."Are you going to come and sit with me, or are you going to just stand there and stare at me like you've seen a ghost?"I didn't shift, just stood there stiff, stuck in between losing

CHAPTER 10

Dominic's POV The sun spilled gently through the blinds, casting long, golden bars across the king-sized bed. I blinked slowly at the ceiling, willing myself to stay in the cocoon of quiet just a little longer. Serena’s perfume, jasmine with a trace of vanilla curled into my nostrils, familiar now, soft and predictable. Her head rested against my chest, her hand draped across my waist. Light, delicate. Like she always was.For a moment, everything was still.Peaceful, even. Then, I heard a buzz.A violent vibration tore through the silence, rattling the nightstand beside me. My phone lit up like a flare.I stretched out an arm, careful not to disturb Serena, and swiped the screen to life.And just like that, my peace shattered.“#QueenOfTech” was trending.My breath caught. My thumb trembled slightly as I opened the app. And there she was.The photo nearly knocked the wind out of me. She was walking out of the summit, that high ponytail sleek and commanding. Her pantsuit clung to her

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