All Chapters of THE CEO’S DIRTY SECRET: Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

JAMES The white walls of the hospital felt like they were starting to close in, slowly suffocating me. The smell of antiseptic filled my nose as I sat in my bloody shirt, both hands resting on my knees... but I didn’t care. My eyes stayed locked on her.Stella.She looked too still skin pale, bandages wrapped around her head as she lay unconscious on the hospital bed. Machines beeped steadily, reminding me she was still alive. She wasn't awake, but she was alive, and that was the only thing keeping me together.My hands found hers; they were cold but soft, and I held on like if I let go I would lose her forever.I leaned closer, my thumb brushing against her knuckles. “Baby… please. Just be fine for me, please,” my voice cracked, heavy from everything that had happened tonight.Minutes dragged into hours, but time didn't matter. The only thing I knew was the ache in my chest the fear clawing at me that maybe this was my punishment and I deserved it.Then... her fingers twitched.My h

STELLATwo days... that was how long had passed, and the doctors said I was healing faster than expected. I would soon be allowed to go home. The bruises on my body were slowly fading away, the stitches didn't ache as much as they used to, and the dizziness came less often now. Physically I was getting better fast, but inside? Not so much. I felt emptier than I'd ever admitted.Brad had been with me the entire time. He kept me company, made me laugh when the silence became unbearable, and distracted me with silly stories from when he and James were kids. Somehow we had bonded grown closer in those two days. It felt like I'd known him my entire life. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't fill the ache James had left behind.Because James wasn't here.He left me.The thought hunted me nonstop. Why would he leave when I was unconscious in the hospital? It still confused me, why vanish without a word, without even calling once in these two days? Was whatever he was doing more import

STELLAComing back home from the hospital felt strange. Everything looked the same, but at the same time, it felt not just weird but also strange.The little Christmas decorations I'd hung up before the car crash were as I had left them. I sat on the couch, a blanket wrapped around me.James had gone to work earlier this morning, leaving me all alone in the house. I didn’t know what that man did to me, but I missed him so, so much already. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought he was trying to run away from me.Slowly, I found myself drifting back into my thoughts when I saw Brad walk in, and he wasn’t empty-handed. His arms were full of bags that he dropped onto the dining table like we were preparing for some sort of holiday feast for an extended family.“Brad,” I groaned. “When I asked you to come over and keep me company, I didn’t think you’d actually show up and what the hell is all of these?” I pointed to the bags. “We already have so much stuff.”He shot me a grin,

STELLAThe mall was buzzing with Christmas spirit. Everyone was dressed in colorful sweaters, bright lights strung across the ceiling, holiday music filling the air. I couldn’t help but echo it underneath my breath as shoppers came in and out with their arms filled with bags. Damn, it felt like the entire city was here.Sheila and I walked side by side, her heels clicking on the polished floor, her eyes scanning me every second as if she was searching for something—or waiting for something to happen.“Stella, are you sure you’re okay?” she asked for the hundredth time. “You were in the hospital not long ago. I was there, you know. I came to see you.”I shifted the shopping bags up my arm and gave her a small smile. “I know, Sheila. Brad told me, and I’m really sorry I wasn’t awake to see you. But I’m fine now really, I am. Just a little sore, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.”Sheila just watched me like she didn’t fully believe what I was saying, but eventually she sighed and looped h

STELLAThe steam from my untouched cappuccino curled out of the cup and into the air, soft and fleeting as I sat at my usual spot by the window, trying to concentrate on people that passed by but it wasn’t working.My fingers tapped restlessly against the cup. The noise of the coffee shop was a little distracting, but it could only do so much to help with my anxiety.When the doors opened, I didn’t turn around to look, but I knew he was the one who walked in. My heart raced, and I tried to steady myself, but it felt like my body remembered him more than my mind did.Zade.He carried himself with quiet confidence. He looked like the boy I once knew, but now carved into a man. His blue eyes found mine, and I gripped my cup tighter like I was about to break it.“Thank you,” he said as he took a seat on the chair in front of me, his voice calm and genuine. “For agreeing to meet me.”I lifted my chin, composing myself before I spoke. “Don’t thank me, Zade. Please don’t. I’m only here for o