All Chapters of Breaking the Billionaire Code: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

Aria gazed upward toward the ceiling; the stillness of the room weighing on her like a heap of blankets. Gossip, breaking news, and muttered digital talks she tried not to read through filled the outside world. But here, wrapped in the neutral peace of Mia's guest bedroom, the silence was loud.On the nightstand, her phone vibrated.Killian.She watched it buzz. The screen lit up with his name and dimmed again when she didn’t reach for it.The silence returned.Mia came out from the bathroom, wiping her hair with a towel in a huge T-shirt. She caught the look on Aria’s face, and the phone now still on the bed.“Still not picking his calls, huh?”Aria sat up, pulling her knees to her chest. “I can’t. Not yet.”Mia sighed and walked toward her. “You know he’s been trying, right? Lucy said he stopped by the studio again. Ethan’s been asking me about you, and Killian’s been to your apartment too.” She paused. "It's hard to keep up the lie that I have not seen you."Aria held her sleeves t

Killian sat behind the wheel of his parked car, staring down at the small slip of paper in his hand - Mia’s address, scribbled quickly by Lucy, now slightly creased from how tightly he’d been holding it. He’d been sitting outside the studio’s building for nearly twenty minutes, engine running, mind spiraling.He knew showing up unannounced wasn’t exactly the smartest move. He wasn’t even sure Aria was there. But something in him - it wasn’t logic, it wasn’t reason, it was her - was telling him to go.His hands held the wheel tightly, and he moved the gears. As he moved onto the road, his phone lit up the dashboard. Ethan.Killian tapped his earpiece. “Yeah?”“Where are you?” Ethan’s voice came through steady but serious.“I was just about to head to Mia’s,” Killian said, voice low. “Why?”A pause.“Change of plans. Meet me first,” Ethan said. "I need to talk to you. It won’t take long.”Killian didn’t argue. Whatever it was, Ethan rarely spoke like this unless it was important.Fift

By the time Killian and Ethan were done at the bar, the sun had dipped below the horizon, casting the city in deep amber and softening shadows. It was late evening now, and Killian had been checking his phone obsessively - even while driving - waiting, hoping for a reply from Aria.Nothing.He shut off the car, parked in the driveway, and settled into his car. But he stayed in. He slid the windows down and let the cold night air touch his skin. His phone had been in his hand for an hour now. He’d replayed his voice note at least three times in his head, wondering if it had come across the way he wanted - honest, raw, vulnerable. Not desperate. Just real.Yet, no word from over there hurt a lot. Looking out the window, his pulse shot, and he was overcome with worry. Just as he started to open the car door, his phone came on.Her name glowing on the screen made his breath catch. Relief, hope, fear - it all hit him at once, too tangled to separate. He answered before he could even blin

The VIP room had soft jazz and low lights. Chloe settled in style, her designer shoe swinging just a bit as she sipped her drink. Andrew sat across from her, laid back but sharp, with a neat scotch in his hand. He raised his glass. “To a job well done,” he said smoothly. "You performed nicely, Chloe."She grinned as she tilted her head. “Please, you gave me the gasoline. I just lit the match.”Andrew offered a faint grin. He didn’t mention the satisfaction curling in his chest—seeing Killian dragged as well into the spotlight, seeing the whispers swell around his name and company. That part wasn’t for Chloe. She didn’t need to know how far he wanted to push this. Or why."And all I needed to do was let go of the file, just as we talked about," she went on, twirling her drink, her red lips forming a pleased smile, “the rest was pure journalism—or what they call it these days.”Andrew sat back, his lips slowly curving into a cool smile. “People love secrets,” he said evenly. “Especiall

A bright, old diner sign met Aria as her taxi moved down the broken road of the place she once knew as home. Miami's air felt more full than she recalled—thick, not just with wet air, but with old times. As the cab drove off, she stood still for a bit, looking at the old front of a cheap motel wedged between a pawn shop and a left-behind wash place. She checked in quietly under the name Aria Blake. The space was tiny, the light low, but it was spotless and private—just as she wanted. Her bag hit the floor, and she fell onto the bed, tight all over, even though it was soft under her. It was a long trip, and what followed would be much more so.With her legs crossed, she sat on the bed with her laptop open after grabbing a sandwich from a neighboring store. She barely looked over some client emails with deadlines, questions, and the usual stuff—but just glanced over them. Her fingers stopped above the keyboard, yet she felt no words to type. She picked up her phone. Still off.She ex