บททั้งหมดของ THE BILLIONAIRE'S RELUCTANT BRIDE : บทที่ 151 - บทที่ 160

EVANGELINE“Gael, for the love of God, tell me where we’re going.”He’d been driving for more than an hour, and the city had long since disappeared behind us. Outside the window, the road unwound through endless green, with hills rising in the distance and patches of sunlight moving across the fields. Two days ago, he’d announced we were going somewhere and told me to pack for a short trip. Since then, I’d tried every method I knew to get the destination out of him, including direct questions, indirect questions, silence, and exaggerated suffering. None of them had worked.“You’ll know soon.”I turned toward the window with a groan. “You’ve been saying that for two days. You didn’t even tell me we’d be going this far.”He glanced at me briefly, his brows lifting. “You complain too much.”“If you’d told me where we were going, you could’ve spared yourself the tragedy of my annoying voice.”A small smile touched his mouth, deepening the dimple in his cheek. “I don’t mind your complaints

EVANGELINEThe evening could’ve stayed perfect if my mind had allowed it.We were still in the dining hall when I noticed movement near the far side of the room. It was brief, barely more than a shadow slipping behind one of the columns, but it made my attention sharpen. I looked around, scanning faces, tables, waiters, tourists, anything that might explain why the back of my neck had gone tense.Nothing looked wrong.People were eating, talking, laughing softly under the warm lights. A waiter refilled wine at a nearby table. A child leaned against his mother’s shoulder, half asleep. Everything was ordinary, which somehow made the unease harder to dismiss.Gael noticed the change in me. “Are you all right?”I turned back to him and forced a small smile. “I’m fine.”His eyes held mine for a moment longer than necessary, but he let it go. Maybe he didn’t want to ruin the evening either.After dinner, we headed toward the elevator. Just before the doors closed, a large man stepped inside.

EVANGELINEGael stayed above me without touching me, one hand braced beside my head and the other fisted in the blanket. The room had gone quiet except for our breathing. Mine was uneven from anger, his from the effort of holding himself back.“I’m grateful,” he said after a while, “that you stayed despite what I did.”The words unsettled me more than I wanted them to. “You know how hard that is to believe, right?”“I know.” His eyes moved over my face, lingering on every doubt he’d put there himself. “And I know I’m not the kind of man who deserves your trust.”“Then tell me why I should give it to you.”His jaw worked once. “Because I have no reason to lie about this now.”“That’s not enough.”“I’ve never slept with Seraphina.” He said it slowly, clearly, as if he wanted each word to settle where the old lie had lived. “Not once.”I wanted to believe him so badly that the want itself frightened me.“Then what was she to you?” I asked. “Why did she live under the same roof? Why did y

EVANGELINEFor a few seconds after Gael drove away, I couldn’t move.The park around me returned to its ordinary rhythm too quickly. A couple hurried past with shopping bags in their hands. A child cried somewhere near the swings. Someone laughed on a nearby path, too loud and too careless, as if nothing important had just happened.Behind me, Thaddeus shifted on the ground.The sound dragged me back.I turned toward him slowly, and whatever pity I might’ve felt for the blood at his mouth disappeared beneath the anger rising through me. “I won’t forgive you for this, Thaddeus.”I started to walk away, but his voice stopped me.“Don’t take another step before we finish our conversation.”I looked back at him in disbelief. He was standing now, wiping blood from his lip with the back of his hand. His face was bruised, but his eyes were far too clear, far too fixed on me.“I didn’t think you were this despicable.”His mouth curved. “Despicable because I told you the truth?”“You confessed

EVANGELINEI ran without thinking.The street blurred around me, but I kept calling Gael. Then Sebastian. Then Gael again. Each unanswered ring pressed harder against my chest until breathing became difficult. People turned as I pushed past them, but their faces barely registered. The only thing in my mind was Gael somewhere with Sebastian, Gael hurt, Gael silent.When Sebastian finally answered, I almost dropped the phone.“Sebastian, where are you?” The words came out too fast. “Where’s Gael? Listen to me before you do anything. Seraphina lied. Thaddeus lied. Please, just tell me where you are!”On the other end, his breathing was rough.“I’ll take revenge for both of us.”My steps slowed.“I’ll make them suffer the way we suffered.”“Sebastian, listen to me!”“I stabbed him.”The street noise seemed to fall away.For a moment, I couldn’t speak.“Just like he stabbed me in the back,” Sebastian continued, his voice shaking with something too close to laughter. “I returned it.”“No.”“