All Chapters of She Writes Her Own Heartbeat : Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

The "penthouse" wasn’t an apartment. It was a territory. High up in a glass tower that probably had its own postcode. The elevator opened directly into it. Marble floors so shiny I could see my terrified reflection. Floor-to-ceiling windows showing a dizzying view of London sprawled beneath us like a toy city. Everything was sleek, minimalist, and colder than Cassandra’s smile. A guy in a butler outfit (an actual butler) materialized silently. "Welcome home, Mr. Hayes. Miss Myers. I’m Alistair. Your personal suite is prepared." Personal suite. Not "room." Suite. And how in the hell did he know my name?Benjamin finally let go of my hand. He walked further in, his steps echoing. He ran his fingers along the back of a white leather sofa that looked like it had never been sat on. His expression was unreadable. Was he remembering? Or just overwhelmed? "This is…" he started, then stopped. "Your primary residence, sir," Cassandra supplied smoothly. "Security is state-of-the-art. Al

Sophie’s smile widened. It didn’t touch her eyes. They were glaciers. "Ah, yes. The devoted rescuer the news is buzzing about." She extended a hand. Long, cool fingers. A diamond the size of a small planet glittered on her ring finger. "Sophie Delacroix. Benjamin’s fiancée." Fiancée. Past tense? Present? The way she said it, it felt like a claim. A challenge. I took her hand. Her grip was firm, brief, and utterly devoid of warmth. Like shaking hands with a marble statue. "Samantha. Nice to meet you." My voice sounded weird. Tinny. "Likewise," she murmured, her gaze sweeping over me again – the silk blouse, the tailored trousers, the stupidly expensive shoes. Assessing. Dismissing. "How… resourceful of you. Taking Benjamin in like that. So… charitable." Benjamin stiffened almost imperceptibly beside me. "Samantha saved my life, Sophie. Kept me safe when I was vulnerable. I owe her everything." His tone held a warning. Sophie heard it. Her smile sharpened. "Of course. And such

POV: Samantha ***Coffee soaked into cream carpet like a Rorschach test of doom. I stared at the stain, then at Benjamin’s white-knuckled grip on the desk, then back at the stain. Priorities. "Shit," I breathed. "Cassandra’s gonna murder me with her tablet." Benjamin didn’t seem to hear. His eyes were locked on the report, scanning lines with terrifying speed. The air in the room turned stiff, thick with the scent of expensive beans and attempted murder. "Benjamin." My voice sounded too loud. "Who…?" He slammed the folder shut. The sound made me jump. "Someone with access to my car. My schedule. My life." He pushed back from the desk, pacing like a caged tiger in his own kingdom. Three strides. Turn. Three strides. The rhythm felt familiar, desperate. "Someone who knew exactly where I’d be that night. Someone who benefits from me being gone." "Sebastian?" The name slipped out. His gaze snapped to me, sharp. "He’s the obvious choice. Interim CEO. Stands to inherit a signi

Samantha's POVThe faint burn of Benjamin’s knuckles lingered above my hipbone like a mark. I lay frozen on the stupidly soft leather sofa, the half-undone zipper of my designer trousers another reminder of what just happened. Rain streaked the floor-to-ceiling windows, turning the city lights below into blurry colours.Benjamin stood across the room, his back straight as he stared out at the storm, the untouched whiskey glass dangling from his fingers – as if he didn't just make my heart do somersaults for no reason.Right. Boundaries. Because crouching down to fix my bloody zipper and then practically setting my skin on fire with a knuckle-brush is totally within professional assistant boundaries. Executive Assistant my arse. More like Executive Tormentor.He didn’t turn. "Get some rest," he repeated, his voice tight, strained. He finally took a savage gulp of the whiskey, the amber liquid vanishing.Easy for you to say, Mr. Billionaire-with-a-death-wish-and-apparently-no-understand

Samantha's POVThe mechanical voice had made us pause. It was so cold, unfeeling and utterly terrifying.Next time… we won’t miss.My heart wasn’t just hammering; it was trying to punch its way out of my ribs. The large office suddenly felt like a small stuffy cubicle. Benjamin stood frozen by the window, I could see his hand gripping the window sill, bone white. The silence after the dial tone was worse than the distorted voice. They know where you are. They’re watching."Ben-jamin?" I said, my voice cracking midway.He didn't turn to me, instead he just continued to look outside the window, his back to me. Even though I couldn't see his face I knew that the playful Levi was no longer there and what remained was the CEO Benjamin, covered beneath anger and cold critical thinking.I kept quiet for a while, trying to let everything sink in and convince myself that it would all be fine. It wasn't working…Hayes enterprises was a Billion dollars company with subsidiaries around the countr