All Chapters of BRIDE FOR A YEAR : Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

76 Chapters

CHAPTER 61 ~ CHECKMATE

LOUIS'S POVCarter snatched the folder from the table, his face already flushed red ... He flipped through the pages like a madman, each turn of the paper loud and shaky... “Hell no, no, no, no,” he muttered... “This can’t be true.”“Oh, it’s very true.” I said calmly, watching the storm build behind his eyes.He glared at me. “How the hell did you acquire shares in my company without my knowledge?”I leaned back in my chair, fingers steepled, enjoying every second of this. “Well, you were too busy chasing after married women and people who didn’t want you, Carter. You forgot to focus on what actually mattered... your company.”“I can’t let that happen,” he snapped.“It already did,” I said smoothly... “And there’s nothing you can do about it...”His eyes narrowed... “You called this meeting to gloat?”I laughed hard at his statement, as much as I would love to gloat, it would be ridiculous to call a meeting just to gloat, that's crazy... I gave him a cool smirk. “No. I called this m

CHAPTER 62 ~ THE BREAKING POINT

FLAVIA'S POVLouis had been way too happy this morning. Not that I didn't like and enjoy the fact that he was happy but it was the kind of happy that made you suspicious.He was whistling while putting on his tie, smiling at his reflection, and humming under his breath like life was a damn musical...Now... I love seeing him in a good mood... who wouldn’t? But something about it didn’t sit right with me...So, of course, I told Jaz.“He was so excited this morning while dressing up,” I said... leaning back in my chair with a sigh. “Like, unusually excited.”Jaz looked up from her tablet, arching a brow. “And what’s wrong with that? Isn’t that what women pray for... a man who’s actually happy to go to work?”I gave her a look. “Yes but this was different. I tried asking what the meeting was about, and he said, ‘I don’t want to lie to you, babe. We will talk when I get back.’”Jaz’s eyes widened. “Ooooh. So it’s one of those ‘I will tell you later’ situations.”“Exactly.” I frowned... f

CHAPTER 63 ~ AFTERSHOCK

LOUIS'S POVTommy and I were still tasting victory when the phone rang. We had barely sat down... still riding that high after the boardroom... “Thats Flavia, right?” Tommy asked before I could check the caller ID. He grinned at me like it was obvious. And he was right, it was Flavia. "Yes, give me a minute."I answered her call with the easy cadence I use when everything’s under control. “Hey, sweetie. I was about to call you...”Her voice cut me off like ice. She wasn’t laughing. She wasn’t flirty. She was raw and breaking.“Louis…” she said, and then she started to cry. The moment I heard her voice and she started crying, I knew something was horribly wrong... I didn't want to panic but I couldn't help it, not when she sounded like that...“What’s wrong?” I asked, every pleasant thing in me evaporating.“I think… we... we just killed Carter,” she said.A second of nonsense... my brain scrambled for a joke, for some explanation that would make it make sense but before I could say

CHAPTER 64 ~ THE MYSTERY ON THE BEACH

LOUIS'S POVFlavia was curled up in bed... knees to her chest, lost in the pages of some romance novel ... Her hair was tied in a loose bun... strands spilling over her face, and the oversized T-shirt she wore, my T-shirt practically swallowed her whole. She looked so small and fragile...Three days had passed since Carter showed up at her office and tried to choke the life out of her. Three damn days, and she still hadn’t stepped foot outside this room. Not even after I told her Carter had been arrested and charged with trespassing and attempted murder...And I couldn’t even blame her because if I hadn’t been so obsessed with revenge... if I hadn’t poked the beast, maybe Carter wouldn’t have gone after her again...I stood by the door... watching her flip another page with trembling fingers. Her eyes weren’t really reading... she was just staring, pretending...“Flavia,” I said quietly, breaking the silence. “You need to get out of the house.”She didn’t even look up. “Why? I am just

CHAPTER 65 ~ SOMETHING HE’S NOT SAYING

FLAVIA'S POVLouis walked off the beach like a man chased by ghosts. No word, no explanation... just turned around and started walking away, his jaw locked tight and his shoulders were tensed.“Louis!” I called, running after him, my sandals slapping against the wet sand... “What’s wrong with you?”He didn’t stop. He didn’t even glance back. It took me half a jog to catch up, my heart thudding from both the run and confusion...He was the one who dragged me here ... practically forced me to get out of bed after days of shutting myself away. And now? He was acting like he suddenly saw a ghost. Or did it have anything to do with Carter?I turned around and looked frantically for any sign of him. The possibility that Louis might have seen Carter scared me but on a second thought, I was positive that Louis wouldn't have left me behind and walked away if he saw Carter.By the time we got to the car, I was fuming and confused... Louis opened my door like a gentleman, but the tension radiati

CHAPTER 66 ~ THE GHOST AT THE BEACH

LOUIS'S POVI barely slept last night... not a damn minute of peace. Every time I closed my eyes, all I saw was her... standing there at the beach in that damn bikini, staring at me like she knew exactly what kind of chaos she was causing...Emily.And if seeing her wasn’t enough to ruin my night... her calls kept coming. Over and over again. The call from the unknown number was irritating and persistent... But what I didn't understand was if she was following me, or she knew I was going to the beach or maybe it was just a coincidence...Then there was Flavia... sweet, stubborn Flavia... asking questions I couldn’t answer. I didn’t blame her though, because if I were in her shoes, I would demand an explanation too but how do you tell your wife you just saw the woman who broke you two weeks before your wedding?I walked into my office looking like hell. Tommy was already there, sitting on my chair like he owned the place.“Goodness,” he said, staring at me. “You don’t look good... man.

CHAPTER 67 ~THE WOMAN IN RED

FLAVIA'S POVBy the time I walked into my office, it was a few minutes to noon and the first thing that crossed my mind was the attack from Carter the last time I was here. Coming back here felt like the attack was just yesterday, it was fresh in my memory and real but I pushed it to the back of my mind, I don't need it affecting my day. I must have looked like a walking raincloud because Jaz barely looked up before smiling...“I am glad you could finally grace us with your presence... Your Highness.”Normally... I would laugh, maybe even roll my eyes and say something sarcastic but today, I just dropped my bag and sank into my chair with a sigh.Her smile faded instantly. “Okay, pause. That’s not the face of a woman who had breakfast, and maybe a quickie before work. What’s wrong?”I wanted to tell her everything... that something was off with Louis, that he had been distant and secretive since last night, that I was starting to feel like he was keeping something big from me but the

CHAPTER 68 ~ THE TEMPTATION THAT WOULDN'T QUIT

LOUIS'S POVToday was one of those days that refused to end... The kind that started with a headache and ended with a bigger one. I had five back-to-back interviews, endless meetings, and through it all, Emily’s voice... her damn voice... kept echoing in my head...That sultry, slow tone of hers. That teasing baby she had used like she had the right and that image of her at the beach were all a constant loop in my head all day long.God. I had tried to scrub it from my mind, but it lived rent-free all day ... That tiny turquoise bikini clinging to her body, those long legs glistening with saltwater, and that smirk that screamed trouble...By the time I got home and shut the door behind me... I exhaled like I had been holding my breath all day... It had taken every ounce of self-control not to drive to the Four Seasons like she had asked. I had been that close, very close to stopping by but I am glad I didn't.The moment I entered the room, I saw Flavia and if I hadn’t seen Flavia’s be

CHAPTER 69 ~ THE CALL THAT WOULDN'T STOP

FLAVIA'S POVThe first thing that woke me wasn’t the sun or my alarm... it was Louis’s phone ringing again...It was loud and persistent, like whoever was calling refused to give up...For a few seconds... I just lay there, staring at the vibrating phone on his nightstand. It wasn’t the first time it had rung like that ... The same unknown number had been haunting our nights for days now, and I was beginning to feel like I was sleeping beside a stranger...I reached over to silence it... just to stop the noise, but before my fingers touched the screen, Louis’s hand shot out and snatched the phone away.“What are you doing?” His voice was sharp... sleep was still rough in it.Startled, I blinked at him... “Sorry. I just wanted to silence it so it wouldn’t wake you...”He exhaled slowly... rubbing his face. “Thanks, but I am already up.”“Oh. My bad.”I stepped back, pretending not to care, but inside I was burning ... The way he guarded that phone… it was too much. Too careful... too g

CHAPTER 70 ~ THE MOUNTAIN CAME TO MOHAMMED

LOUIS'S POVI couldn’t shake the guilt sitting like a stone in my gut...The moment I pulled out of the driveway this morning, I already knew I had messed up... Canceling the trip without even giving Flavia a proper reason? That wasn’t me. At least, it wasn’t supposed to be but lately, I didn’t even recognize the man in my own reflection.Because ever since Emily came back, my head hadn’t known peace...Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her... half-smiling, half-naked, whispering things that once made my blood boil and my world stop and now she was everywhere. In my thoughts, in my veins, crawling under my skin like poison I couldn’t flush out...So, to ease the weight of everything I had said to Flavia...and everything I couldn’t say... I stopped at a flower shop on my way to work ... I got white lilies and soft pink roses. Then I grabbed her favorite Swiss chocolates from the mall... Maybe if I dropped them off at her office later, it would smooth things over. Maybe she would smile

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