Alle Kapitel von Sweet Unhappy Heart: Kapitel 101 – Kapitel 110

"Here is what’s going to happen," Astor said, his voice low and cold. "I’m going to pay that settlement. You are going to make that public apology. You will finish the anger management sessions. And for the next six months, you’ll stay invisible. No social media, no paparazzi trails, no drama. Not even a shadow of you outside."Avery tilted her head, her eyes tired but still sharp enough to cut. "We don’t have to keep doing this stupid argument every time, Astor. You know it, and I know it. You don’t own me.""You’ve always been a rude, stupid bitch," he said. He didn’t raise his voice, but the words still hit her like a slap.Her lips twitched into a bitter smile. "You’re a father. Maybe act like it for once. Or is that too hard for the man who can’t even keep his own son close?"Astor’s jaw tightened. "My son isn’t your business, Avery.""He is," she said, her tone flattening. "He’s my fiancé."Astor’s eyes narrowed. "Oh, the one who doesn’t want you. The one who chose your brother

Third Person's POV"Liam, you need to stop thinking like a bitch," Astor Sinclair spat the words like poison. "I raised you to be a better son, not some gay failure.""I'm sorry, but you can't change who I am," Liam yelled back at his father, his voice echoing through his apartment. "You don't get to show up here after disowning me and tell me how to live my life."They stood in Liam's living room like two fighters in a ring, neither willing to back down. Astor's face was red with rage and something else. Desperation, maybe. Or fear."I'm still your father.""You stopped being my father the day you threw me out of the family." Liam's hands were clenched into fists at his sides. "You held a press conference and told the world I was a disgrace. You can't take that back now.""I can do whatever I want.""No, you can't. That's your problem. You think money and power mean you can control everything." Liam stepped closer. "But you can't control this. You can't control me."Astor's jaw tight

Third person's POV Astor Sinclair sat across from Barrister Lincoln in the private study of the Sinclair mansion. The room was all dark wood and leather, the kind of space designed to intimidate. He dropped the glass of wine in his hand onto the side table with more force than necessary and growled under his breath. He felt betrayed that even the man who had been his lawyer for over a decade could not fight harder for him. But he honestly understood that when things reached this point, he had to fight for himself."What do you want to know?" Astor asked, his voice tight with frustration.Barrister Lincoln leaned forward in his chair, his hands folded on the desk between them. "What do I want to know? Come on, I thought I told you everything already.""Okay. It was not something I would have willingly discussed, but I cannot state everything other than what I have already stated. You are the one being indecisive here. So tell me what you want and I will reply to you." Astor's tone was

Third person's POV The building stood on the corner of Fifth and Madison like a forgotten promise. Six stories of brick and grime, windows boarded up, graffiti crawling across the lower walls like urban ivy. But Jackson saw past all that. He always had been able to see potential where others saw problems."This is it?" Liam asked, stepping out of the car and staring up at the structure."This is it," Jackson confirmed, grinning like a kid on Christmas morning. "Our first official property."Janet was already at the entrance, clipboard in hand, talking to a man in a hard hat who looked like he had been renovating buildings since before any of them were born. She waved them over."Liam, Jackson, this is Marcus Hendricks. He is the lead contractor. Marcus, these are the owners."Marcus shook their hands with a grip that could crush stone. "Good to meet you both. I have been doing this for thirty years, and I have to say, this building has excellent bones. Someone built this right back i

Third person's POV The next morning came in hot as hell, and Avery was standing under the shower letting the water beat down on her like it could somehow wash away the clusterfuck her life had become. The steam filled the bathroom, and for just a few minutes, she could pretend she was somewhere else. Anywhere else.She was mid-shampoo when she heard Viviana's voice calling from the bedroom."Miss Avery! You have a visitor!""Tell them to fuck off!" Avery shouted back, rinsing soap from her hair.There was a pause, then Viviana's tentative voice again. "It is your father, miss."Avery's hands are still. Her father. Richard fucking Maddox. The man who had not bothered to check on her once since the recording went viral, since the entire goddamn world found out she was the one who released those sex tapes. The man who had publicly distanced himself from her like she was radioactive.Her first instinct was to tell Viviana to throw him out on his ass. But curiosity won out. What the hell