All Chapters of DESIRED BY MY LYCAN EX AND THE BETA: Chapter 171 - Chapter 180

Bella's pov People often say love makes you fearless.I think love makes you vulnerable.Because when you care so deeply, every whisper, every shadow, every secret feels like it has the power to destroy you.And Cassandra knew that.---The note she left behind haunted me. Truth is coming soon.The words seemed to follow me everywhere—burning in my thoughts when I poured coffee, echoing in my ears when Adrian kissed me, lingering on my lips when I tried to smile.What truth was she talking about?I told myself not to believe her, not to let her poison seep into me, but it was useless. I could still see her eyes when she said it. Cold. Certain.And maybe the most dangerous part was…a small piece of me believed her.---Adrian noticed. Of course, he did. He always noticed.“You’re quiet,” he murmured one evening, his fingers brushing mine as we sat in the living room. The fireplace crackled softly, throwing shadows across his sharp features.“I’m tired,” I said automatically.But he di

Bella's pov I didn’t tell Adrian.I should have. Every fiber of my being screamed that keeping secrets in this world was a death sentence. But how could I? How could I admit that I’d agreed to meet the woman who wanted to destroy us, destroy him?So I lied.When Adrian kissed me goodbye that morning and told me he’d be home late from a meeting, I smiled, promised I’d wait up for him, and tucked the truth deep into my chest like a dangerous secret.---The day crawled by. Every tick of the clock pushed me closer to the moment my life might change forever. I busied myself with meaningless tasks—sorting through unread books, rearranging Margaret’s flowers, pacing the balcony—but nothing could still the storm inside me.By seven, I was pacing in front of the mirror, pulling at the hem of my dress. My hands shook as I applied lipstick, as though I were preparing for war instead of dinner. Maybe, in a way, I was.At 7:30, Margaret knocked softly on my door. “Do you need anything before din

Bella’s POVI couldn’t sleep that night.The anonymous message pulsed in my mind like a warning bell, echoing in the silence of the darkened bedroom. My phone lay on the nightstand, screen still lit faintly as if mocking me with its cruel words:“Did you really think he chose you? You’re just a distraction. Wait until you find out the truth about Adrian’s past.”Every time I closed my eyes, I imagined the sender smirking somewhere in the shadows, delighting in my confusion.Adrian lay beside me, already asleep—or at least pretending to be. His breaths were steady, his chest rising and falling rhythmically. Part of me wanted to shake him awake, shove the phone in his face, and demand answers. Another part of me hesitated, because what if the message was true? What if asking opened a door I wasn’t ready to walk through?I lay on my side, staring at his profile in the dim glow of the city lights filtering through the curtains. His jawline was sharp even in sleep, his features deceptively

Bella's pov The morning after the gala felt different. I woke up with the taste of champagne still lingering on my tongue and a heaviness in my chest that had nothing to do with the late-night drinks.Everything that had happened yesterday—Daniel’s protectiveness, Elena’s cold intrusion, the whispers of the crowd—it all swirled in my mind like smoke refusing to clear. I stared at the ceiling for a long time, unable to convince myself to get out of bed.Was this really the life I had walked into? A marriage built on impulse, tangled with secrets, and surrounded by shadows I didn’t fully understand?I rolled onto my side, my fingers brushing against the empty space beside me. Daniel had left early, probably to handle business. That was his world, a world of meetings and power plays, one I wasn’t entirely a part of yet. But yesterday proved that even if I wasn’t directly involved, I was still in the spotlight. People had seen me. They had judged me. And I couldn’t pretend their whispers

Bella's pov When I woke the next morning, the rooftop evening still lingered in my mind like a dream I didn’t want to end. Daniel and I had laughed—really laughed. He had looked at me like I was the only person in the world, and for the first time since our impulsive marriage, I had believed we might actually build something real.But reality doesn’t let you live in dreams for long.By the time I came downstairs, the mood in the house had shifted. The air felt charged, like a storm was gathering. Martha’s polite smile didn’t quite reach her eyes, and two unfamiliar men in dark suits stood near the entrance, their presence impossible to ignore.I frowned. “What’s going on?”Martha hesitated. “Mr. Lancaster had security doubled. Just a precaution.”“Precaution against what?” I pressed.She avoided my gaze, bowing her head slightly. “It’s not my place to say.”Which, in Martha’s language, meant something is wrong, but Daniel doesn’t want you to know yet.My heart thudded as I poured mys