جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 1170

Before Khloe could speak, the phone was already taken from her hand by Barney."Trey, are you sure you want to talk to us like that?" His tone was calm, but the pressure behind it was unmistakable. "My sister has a good temper, but I'm not so easygoing. If you're insisting on dragging everyone down into hell, then it wouldn't be unfair if you were the first to die, would it?"The line went dead silent on the other end.Khloe exchanged a glance with Barney. Her lips moved slightly, and he immediately understood."All right then. Let's make this a choice between two options.""What are you talking about?" Trey snapped back."Literally what I said," Barney replied evenly. "Family or lover. You pick one first."Before the authenticity of that list is confirmed, I can help you deal with your family's debt collectors. I can also help you locate Ariana.""You're going back on your word! Despicable!" The moment he heard that, Trey lost control. A violent crash came through the receiver

"I don't care whether you kill me or cut me up as you please. But listen to me—if you dare touch even a single hair on my head, you and Khloe, and your Morrison family…"Ariana was already on the verge of tears. Her lashes fluttered rapidly, her eyes rimmed with red.Yet, she still forced herself to hold on to her pride, gritting out each word one by one.Ethan didn't bother responding at all. He rolled up his sleeves and stepped forward. Before he even reached her, Ariana collapsed onto the ground with a thud.Her words broke off mid-sentence. She curled into herself, hands clamping over her head as she sobbed uncontrollably.The arrogant heiress from earlier now looked utterly fragile, and for a brief moment, even Ethan felt a trace of reluctant sympathy.He crouched down, one hand slipping into his pocket.From the corner of her eye, Ariana caught the movement and screamed, scrambling to run.Ethan reacted instantly, grabbing her arm."Relax. I'm not going to do anything to

Trey took Ariana's hand and led her into his car, bringing her back home.He only asked one or two perfunctory questions about what she had been through these past few days. The rest of his words were devoted to blaming Khloe and insisting he would personally avenge Ariana's suffering.By the time Ariana fully came back to her senses, they had already arrived home.Trey's eyes were red-rimmed as he led her to the bed and sat her down, studying her face closely."Ariana… you've suffered so much these past few days. It's all my fault—I didn't protect you properly… I feel terrible about it. I'm so glad the heavens were watching and brought you back. Otherwise, I really would've gone mad.""Is that so?" Ariana finally spoke, her voice cold as she spat out those words.In the dim lighting, Trey didn't seem to notice the expression on her face. He wrapped an arm around her head and leaned in to kiss her.But the kiss lasted only a few seconds before Ariana turned her face away, breaki

The moment Trey left the room, Ariana picked up her phone and made a call.Early the next morning, Trey had breakfast prepared and personally came to wake Ariana.The instant he pushed open the door, he froze.The room had been cleaned spotless. Even the wardrobe had been emptied."Where is she?"He rushed out of the room and immediately demanded answers from the household maids. The servants exchanged bewildered looks. None of them even knew when Ariana had left.He quickly dialed her number. The call connected, but no one answered.Trey kept calling again and again. Just as he was on the verge of breaking down, her voice finally came through the receiver."Ariana, are you still angry with me? You're driving me crazy with worry. Tell me where you are, and I'll come pick you up right now, okay?"Hearing her voice at last, Trey clung to it like a drowning man grasping a lifeline, pleading desperately.Ariana's tone, however, remained calm."Trey, do you want to be with me bec

"What if he doesn't care?" Barney asked. "I think that, in his heart, you might be the most important thing of all...""But I can't forgive myself," Khloe said.No one understood better than she did how difficult forgiveness could be.Even if Nick were willing to forgive her, she couldn't bring herself to ask for it. She couldn't bear the thought of making him endure that kind of suffering all over again.Ever since he had been with her, he had done nothing but get hurt.And the members of Lacuna were like a ticking time bomb. No one knew when they might come after her again. As long as Nick remained by her side, he would throw himself in front of danger to protect her. She didn't want to keep living in constant fear of losing him.Knowing there was no changing Khloe's mind, Barney placed an invitation on the table."There's a business summit in Goldmont City tomorrow night. It's being held in conjunction with Hunt Group's charity fundraising campaign. I heard Nick will be atten