Lahat ng Kabanata ng Craving The Enemy's Husband: Kabanata 171 - Kabanata 180

Chapter 172**Christiana’s POV**I looked at the phone that buzzed and made me jitter, I hesitated, thumb hovering over the screen, and then swiped. “Christiana Salazar speaking.”“Señorita Salazar,” a smooth, accented voice replied, low and deliberate, “I trust the hour is not inconvenient.”I straightened instinctively, even though no one could see me. “Not at all. To whom do I have the pleasure?”“My name is Alejandro Cortez.” He let the name rest there, heavy, as though he knew I would recognize it. And I did. A man who turned steel into cities, oil into dynasties. A man who never invested unless the return promised to rewrite economies.I swallowed, suddenly aware of my own heartbeat. “Señor Cortez. This is… unexpected.”“I don’t make casual calls, Miss Salazar. I’ve reviewed some of your recent work. Interesting projections. Ambitious, but not naive. I want to hear more from you directly.”For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. “Of course,” I managed, my tone steady though my finger

Chapter 174*Bella’s POV*From the balcony above the courtyard, I watched him pace under the light glow, shoulders tense, movements sharp like a cornered animal. My husband. My Bryan. Why was he stressing this whole thing and stressing me? Why couldn’t he just… play along? The actors downstairs were laughing, clinking glasses, playing their roles perfectly. Everything was going according to script. Everyone except him.He shouldn’t even be questioning anything. Why did he expect to recognize anyone at the wedding when his past was gone? I had done my part, given him a new story, a new beginning, a new life with me. And all he had to do was accept it.“Calm down, Bella,” I whispered under my breath, the wine glass trembling just slightly in my hand. The ruby liquid swirled like a hypnotic spell, catching the light as if mocking me. “No need to get paranoid. He is your husband. He belongs to you. Today is your happy day.”I tried to breathe the words in, to make them truth. Everything w

Chapter 176 *Bryan’s POV* “Bryan, you know… you know I could buy the whole of Mexico if I wanted…” She had been saying all manner of rubbish even before the weird guests left, she is so excited about this wedding, she drank to stupor and I don’t even feel a thing, in fact I feel like I had made the worse mistake of my life getting married to her. “… and the moon too, don’t forget the moon!” she announced, wobbling on her heels, then bursting into uncontrollable laughter. I tried to steady her, keep her from crashing into the wall, but she kept talking nonsense, words tumbling over each other as if they might prove her sobriety. “We should… we should call the President right now, tell him we’re married. Yes, yes, he’ll send us champagne!” Then, not two seconds later, she tripped over her own feet, clutching at me like a child, and insisted, “See? I can walk perfectly. Better than you, Bryan. Much better.” She mumbled once more, eyes half-closed, her words slurred. “Don’t… don’t

Chapter 178Bella’s POVI woke up in the middle of the night with a start, the kind that yanks you out of sleep without warning.My head throbbed dully, each pulse a reminder of the wine I’d carelessly drowned myself in earlier because of the excitement of getting married to Bryan again.The room spun faintly, shadows shifting whenever I tried to focus. My vision blurred, refusing to steady, and I pressed my hand against my temple, as though I could push the ache back into silence. My mouth was dry, my throat raw, and there was a sour taste at the back of my tongue.The silk sheets clung to my skin, heavy yet offering no warmth. A chill had settled into me, burrowing under my bones, leaving me shivering even as I pulled the fabric tighter. And then I felt what I hadn’t noticed immediately through the fog in my head.The space beside me was wrong. The absence of his breathing filled the room with a noise all its own. Bryan’s side of the bed was cold when I reached out, and the shock of

Chapter 180*Christiana’s POV*“Bryan…” My lips parted around his name before I could stop myself. The sound betrayed me, betrayed the anger I had fought to armor myself with, because the moment it slipped out, my chest fluttered in that humiliating, traitorous way. I hated it. I hated that my heart still remembered his rhythm.This was the same fucking man who had stood me up. The same man who had vanished, leaving me hollow and choking on questions. What….did he follow me here? Or had I walked in while he was already here, so consumed in thoughts of him that I hadn’t even noticed? God, I couldn’t even trust my own memory anymore. Had I arrived before him, or had he been sitting there all along, waiting, like a phantom materialized from the shadows I’d tried so hard to escape?I looked at him again and the sight dragged me backward through time, ripping open boxes I had buried under anger and grief, sealed tight, sworn never to touch again. My Bryan. My laughter, my nights, my comfor