Semua Bab The Billionaire's Broken Bride: Bab 21 - Bab 30

The hours after Ethan left stretched on like years. I stayed in the villa, trying to tell myself he would be fine. That he would come back like he promised. But the longer the silence dragged, the harder it became to believe it. I sat on the bed, knees drawn to my chest, wrapped in one of Ethan's sweaters. It still smelled like him.. clean, expensive, familiar. It grounded me, barely. I had spent most of the day watching the waves roll in, replaying our last conversation on a loop. I should’ve said more. I should’ve told him not just that I wasn’t afraid of losing him, but that I loved him. Because I did. Somewhere between all the chaos, the danger, the sharp words and stolen moments, I had fallen in love with Ethan Navarro. And now he was out there walking back into a world that had already taken too much from both of us. My phone vibrated on the table. I lunged for it, hoping it was Ethan. Unknown Number: *Are you ready to lose him too?* The blood drained from my face. A se

The silence in the penthouse felt deafening. After last night, after everything he said… I still didn’t know what to make of Ethan Navarro. He hadn’t touched me since the moment he told me about Evelyn’s final moments. His voice had been raw, his eyes unreadable. But I had felt it beneath all his steel and guarded expressions, something inside him was breaking. And the terrifying part? Something inside me was breaking, too. I stood at the tall glass windows overlooking the city skyline. Manila shimmered in the golden morning light, but it felt like the world had cracked beneath my feet. I had come here to escape heartbreak, to build a version of myself untouched by betrayal. Instead, I found Ethan. And he… he unraveled me in ways Miguel never could. The floor creaked behind me. I turned. Ethan stood there~ still in his black dress shirt from last night, the top two buttons undone. He looked like he hadn’t slept. Neither did I. His gaze drifted over me, lingering. “You didn’

The rain poured endlessly that night, as if the sky had finally decided to weep with me. I stood by the window, watching droplets race down the glass. Each one a memory I couldn’t hold on to. Each one a lie I had once believed. Ethan hadn’t returned since that argument. No text. No call. Not even a shadow at the door. And maybe I deserved it. I crossed my arms, trying to suppress the cold that crept into my chest. Not from the storm outside but from the silence he left behind. A knock echoed through the hallway. I turned quickly. My heart leaped, praying it was him. That he had come back to tell me it wasn’t too late. But when I opened the door, it wasn’t Ethan standing there. It was Leo. “Ariana,” he said, eyes searching mine. His clothes were damp, his hair tousled. “I know it’s late. I just… I had to check on you.” I hesitated for a second before stepping aside. “Come in.” He entered slowly, glancing around the quiet house. “You’re alone?” I nodded. He didn’t ask why.

The words hit me harder than any storm I’d ever stood in. That girl… might be my daughter. For a moment, the world shrank. The ticking of the grandfather clock in the hallway became deafening. The folder in my hands felt like it weighed a hundred pounds, and the photographs blurred beneath the heat of my own unsteady breathing. I blinked once. Twice. Trying to process. “You’re… telling me you could have a child out there?” My voice trembled, but I wasn’t sure if it was from fear, jealousy, or something deeper—something I wasn’t ready to name. Ethan didn’t flinch. He stood there, in that shadow-lit study, hands in his pockets, shoulders taut. His jaw was clenched the way it always was when he carried the weight of an entire world on it. “I don’t know for sure,” he admitted quietly. “But everything I’ve uncovered points to that possibility.” I stared at the birth certificate again. Evelyn’s name was clear. The father’s section was… blank. My chest tightened. “And you nev

I didn’t let go of Isla’s hand. Not even when my lungs began to burn and the cold night air scraped against my throat like glass. We darted between narrow brick walls, the alley’s dim light stretching our shadows ahead of us. Ethan moved in front, every muscle in his body coiled and ready, his eyes scanning every corner. The woman...Isla’s guardian was behind us, glancing over her shoulder every few seconds like she expected someone to leap from the darkness. The sounds of pursuit were faint but unmistakable boots against concrete, the occasional metallic clink of a weapon shifting in its holster. Whoever they were, they weren’t rushing. They knew we’d run. They were just letting us wear ourselves down before they closed in. Ethan raised a hand sharply, signaling us to stop. We pressed against the rough wall, the cold seeping into my skin through my coat. His voice was barely a whisper. “They’re too close. We can’t go straight to the car.” The woman tensed. “Where then? You think