Semua Bab When love turns to ashes : Bab 11 - Bab 20

The suite was now thick with tension wrapped in fake smiles and theatrical laughter. Larry leaned back comfortably in his chair, one arm draped around Audrey, the other resting casually on the table. Every few minutes, he and Audrey would share a flirtatious whisper, a suggestive laugh, or a lingering touch all calculated, all cruel.It was a show, and June was the intended audience.She sat across from them, silent, the warmth of her wine fading fast. She was shivering slightly not just from the growing cold in the air-conditioned room, but from the emotional fatigue clawing at her spine. Her fingers fidgeted subtly with the stem of her wine glass, her stomach churned, and her face, though composed, was beginning to lose the battle against her trembling composure.Larry could see it. He knew her too well.And he was enjoying every minute of it.June wanted to leave. She longed to grab her purse, push her chair back, and vanish into the warm night air. But she couldn’t not like this.

The engine hummed softly beneath them, the warm yellow glow of the city lights weaving across the windshield as they glided down the near-empty road. The once-lively atmosphere of the restaurant had faded behind them, replaced by a thick silence that clung to the air like fog.June sat in the passenger seat, staring quietly out of the window, her fingers playing with the hem of Xander’s jacket still wrapped around her shoulders. Her mind was spinning, replaying the night in fragments Larry’s smirk, Audrey’s glares, the pain she tried so hard to conceal, and then…Xander.That unexpected moment. That kiss. That lie she had willingly leaned into—desperate for dignity, for escape, for revenge.He hadn’t said much since they got into the car. Neither had she. Both were wrapped in the tension of strangers pretending not to be strangers.But June couldn’t take it anymore.She cleared her throat gently and glanced sideways at him.“Thank you,” she said, her voice soft but sincere. “For that…

The door slammed shut with a loud bang, rattling the frame and making the paintings on the wall tremble slightly.Audrey stormed into the apartment like a hurricane in heels her lipstick smudged, her dress wrinkled from the night’s chaos, and her rage dangerously uncontained. She kicked off her stilettos with one violent flick, sending one flying across the room and the other thudding against the sofa leg. Her designer clutch hit the floor next.The apartment, once neatly arranged, now became her battleground.She yanked off her earrings, tossing them on the kitchen counter. Her hands trembled as she grabbed the nearest bottle of whiskey half full, a gift from one of Larry’s clients and unscrewed it with her teeth. She took a long, burning gulp straight from the bottle, wincing as the alcohol scorched her throat.“I need to act fast,” she muttered under her breath, pacing, almost speaking in tongues. “I need to fix this. I need to fix this before she ruins everything.”From the couch

The dinner invitation was simple, but for June, it felt monumental.She had wrestled with uncertainty for days—unsure whether it was too soon to open her heart again, whether her name, still smeared in half-truths by the media, could survive the spotlight of another public moment. But Xander’s presence had made things easier. His calm, his kindness, and the way he always listened without trying to fix her… it had slowly thawed the frost Larry left behind.So she said yes.And when she stepped out of her apartment that Saturday evening, dressed in a flowing emerald-green gown with a subtle shimmer that hugged her curves just enough, she felt like herself again. Maybe even better.Xander, waiting beside a sleek black sedan, could hardly hide his admiration.He stepped forward, lips parting slightly before a smirk curved across his face. “You look even more dashing than the moon tonight, my lady.”June blushed, rolling her eyes with a chuckle. “Oh, stop it, dear. You always have a way wi

The tension in the room was so thick it could be sliced with a knife.June sat at the head of the boardroom table, her hands clasped tightly in front of her. Her face was pale but poised, her usually composed eyes showing just a glint of distress beneath their surface. She had barely slept the night before, and the whirlwind of rumors and flashing camera lights still echoed in her memory like a bad dream. But this… this was worse.The long polished mahogany table was filled with a mix of shareholders, executives, and advisors. Almost all of them talking no, yelling over each other in outrage.“This is an embarrassment!” one board member shouted.“Our stock has dropped seven points since the scandal broke!” another added.“This is no longer about personal affairs, June, this is about our money!”Phones buzzed and fingers pointed. Charts were shoved forward. Social media backlash screenshots floated on the projector. Every whisper in the media had somehow made its way into this room, tw