All Chapters of THE WIFE WHO STOLE HIS HEART: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

The conference room at Lucas's firm felt super serious. Photos, records, and reports covered the table, showing a messed-up story.Lucas, usually calm, looked mad as he spoke to us: Bella, me, Elena, Detective Martinez, and two feds on the case."Guys," Lucas said, his voice low, "we messed up. We were after the wrong person."My gut twisted as he put a diagram on the screen, showing names and connections that went way back."Sophia Chen isn't running this. She's just a tool. A weapon that was made for this."Bella leaned in, looking shocked. "What do you mean?""For three years, someone's been feeding Sophia info, paying for her obsession, and telling her what to do to hurt your family."Detective Martinez grabbed her folder. "We found out who was paying for Sophia's spy gear, the fake news stories, even her apartment near your daughter's school. It all goes back to fake companies and offshore accounts.""And Thomas Romano controls those accounts," Lucas said, sounding grim.The room

The phone rang right at 6 AM, yanking me out of the first good sleep I'd had in weeks. Maya sounded like she was trying really hard not to freak out when she told me news that made my stomach drop."Bella, you need to turn on the news now. Thomas Romano had a press thing at sunrise."I was already grabbing the remote, my hands shaking as I switched on the TV. Mikel woke up next to me, and he knew something was wrong right away."What kind of press thing?" I asked, but I already knew I wasn't going to like it.Thomas was on the screen, standing at a podium. It looked like it was at the downtown Marriott. Even at 78, he had that Romano presence, the thing that built a whole empire. But his eyes looked really scary—like he was coolly planning something, but also super mad."Folks," Thomas started, his voice sounding like he had been talking in boardrooms for decades. "I'm not here as a businessman today, but as a worried family member trying to help a kid."Mikel sat straight up, his fac

The text message arrived at exactly midnight, just as Mikel and I were finally falling asleep after the longest day of our lives. My phone buzzed on the nightstand, and the sender's name made my blood turn to ice.*James Morrison.*I hadn't heard from him in five years. Not since he walked out of my life claiming he couldn't compete with a ghost—the ghost being Mikel, even when Mikel wasn't here."What's wrong?" Mikel asked, immediately alert. He'd gotten good at reading my panic.I showed him the screen, watching his face change as he read: *Bella, I know you don't want to hear from me, but this is about Emma. Meet me tomorrow at Pike Place, noon. Come alone. Trust me, you need to hear this.*"James Morrison," Mikel said slowly, his voice carefully controlled. "Your ex.""My biggest mistake," I corrected, sitting up. "He was... he was there when you were gone. When I was angry and hurt and stupid."Mikel was quiet for a long moment, processing. I could see him fighting between jealou

The words hung in the air between us like a death sentence. "Marry me." James Morrison, the man whose heart I'd broken five years ago, was asking me to be his wife. Not out of love, but to save my daughter."What?" I whispered, sure I'd misheard.Mikel's face had gone ashen. "James, you can't be serious."But James's expression was deadly serious as he leaned forward across the small cafe table. "Spousal privilege overrides attorney-client privilege in cases where there's a direct conflict of interest. If Bella becomes my wife, I can legally testify against Thomas and use all the evidence he shared with me."My hands started shaking so violently I had to set down my coffee cup. "You're asking me to marry you to break some legal technicality?""I'm asking you to marry me to save Emma." His voice was steady, but I could see the pain in his eyes. "It's the only way, Bella. The only legal way to access the evidence that will destroy Thomas's custody case."Mikel stood up so fast his chair

The headstone was simple granite, nothing fancy. *James Morrison Sr. - Loving Husband and Father.* I knelt in the wet Seattle grass at 6 AM, my suit pants getting soaked, holding the legal documents that would either save Emma Romano or destroy what was left of my soul."Dad," I whispered to the stone, "I'm about to do something that's either the most noble thing in my life or the most selfish. And I honestly can't tell which."The morning fog rolled through Lakeview Cemetery, making everything look ghostly. Appropriate, since I was here talking to a ghost about becoming one myself—at least, becoming a ghost in Bella Romano's love story.My phone buzzed with another message from my assistant: *Morrison, the Romano case files are ready for review. When do you want to meet with the team?*I stared at the text. My team. Three junior associates and two paralegals who thought they were working on a simple custody modification. They had no idea their boss was about to commit career suicide