Semua Bab He Stole My Love, Heart and My Future—But I’m Taking It Back: Bab 1 - Bab 6

The mansion is quiet when I hear Carlos packing is Mercedes-Maybach Exelero at the garage, the front door creak open at 2 AM.Click. The lock turns. I’ve been sitting in the dark living room for hours. My tea is cold, untouched on the table beside me. I’ve been going over the questions in my head again and again.Thump. Thump. Carlos's heavy footsteps echo in the hall. They stop when he sees my shape sitting in the shadows.“Emily? Why are you still awake?” His voice is a little slurred, he’s been drinking, expensive whiskey by the smell of it.I reach out and turn on the lamp. Click. The warm light fills the room. I stare at him. My eyes are puffy, I cried, even though I promised myself I wouldn’t.“We need to talk,” I say.He sighs loudly and tugs at his silk tie, annoyed. “It’s late, Emily. Can’t this wait until morning?”“Like our anniversary dinner waited?” My voice comes out sharper than I expected. I’ve gotten good at hiding how I feel, playing the perfect wife. But tonight...

As I drove home, my head was full of mixed thoughts. What Alejandro told me about the money problems confirmed my worst fears about Carlos. And then there was Alejandro himself. I didn’t expect to feel a connection with him, but I did. He made me feel noticed and respected, something I hadn’t felt in years.When I got home that afternoon, the house was unusually quiet. I didn’t hear Mateo playing video games or Daniela talking on the phone like usual. It was so quiet it made the big house feel more like a museum than a home. I put my Louis Vuitton Petite Malle purse on the table, still thinking about my lunch with Sofia and meeting Alejandro Vega for the first time.I went straight upstairs. I needed a hot shower to relax. The water hit my back hard, Just the way I liked it. For a little while, it helped me forget about Carlos’s lies. After drying off, I remembered I still had errands to run for the fundraiser tonight. I had to pick up name cards from the printer and gift bags for our

The roses Carlos had tossed carelessly on my bed were making it hard to breathe with their strong sweet smell. Or maybe it was him being there, the way he acted like a loving husband now felt like ropes around my neck."The doctors said you had a bad head injury," Carlos told everyone in the room, speaking loud enough for the nurse checking my IV to hear. "And bleeding inside your body. My love, I was so scared when they called."His fingers touched mine gently, but it made my skin feel creepy. Every touch felt dirty now that I knew where those hands had been, what they had done. I kept my face calm, thankful that years of dealing with his sneaky mind games had taught me how to hide my feelings."Carlos," I said quietly, "you didn't need to leave your important meeting."His eyes flashed, a tiny look of annoyance quickly hidden by fake worry. We both knew there was no meeting. I wondered if the sheets on Daniela's bed still showed where he had been lying."Nothing is more important th