Semua Bab THE COLD CEO UNKNOWN HEIR: Bab 1 - Bab 5

Piper’s POVThe sound of clinking champagne glasses echoed through the grand ballroom, mixing with the subtle jazz music humming in the background. Glittering chandeliers sparkled overhead, casting soft golden light on perfectly polished floors and people dressed in designer tuxedos and dresses worth more than my monthly allowance and I stood there, like a mannequin in a glass case—beautiful, untouchable, and completely hollow inside.Everyone looked at me like I had it all….. Ethan Miller’s wife, the queen of this castle but what they didn’t know was that my crown was made of thorns and my throne, cold marble.I adjusted the thin strap of my silver dress, the sequins scratching against my skin. I hated this dress. Ethan picked it out, he said it made me look “presentable.” That was the word he used for me these days. Presentable, like a vase or an antique or something expensive, dusted occasionally, and placed on display when needed.A waiter passed by with a tray of flutes. I grabb

Chapter Three Piper’s POVMy heart seized in my chest as Ethan’s voice echoed faintly from the hallway.No, shit, he wasn’t supposed to be here. He had a dinner meeting, in the up part of town and Cameron confirmed it. I double-checked it myself.So why—Why was he here?I froze, standing in the middle of his office like a thief caught red-handed. The only sound was my own ragged breathing, the quiet hum of the laptop still open behind me, and the unmistakable cadence of Ethan Miller’s voice growing closer.I had seconds or even maybe less.I yanked the flash drive free, shoved it into my pocket, and scanned the office in a blur of panic. There was no time to backtrack and no way I’d make it down the executive elevator without crossing him in the hall, I had only one option.The adjoining door leads to his private conference room. I bolted for it and slipped inside, closing the door gently but firmly behind me just as the main office door creaked open.My back was pressed to the cool

Chapter Five Piper’s POVThe dress fit like armor.The charcoal silk hugged my curves, the high slit daring but necessary—I needed freedom to move tonight. Not just in the literal sense, but in the emotional one too. If I had to wear a mask of elegance while playing chess with monsters, I’d at least do it on my terms.I stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the necklace Cameron insisted I wear. A single diamond teardrop. I was simple, understated and dangerous, because tucked into the clasp was a micro-transmitter barely the size of a fingernail.“Everything’s working,” Cameron’s voice crackled through the earpiece hidden behind a lock of hair. “Stay near the center of the gala floor. We lose signal if you go deeper into the wings.”“Got it,” I murmured, swiping on a final layer of lipstick— it was wine red.The gala was a benefit hosted by the Ashcroft Foundation—one of Ethan’s many foundations. The kind of event designed to launder reputations under chandeliers and charity smiles