บททั้งหมดของ Married to the cold CEO: บทที่ 231 - บทที่ 240

Pressure settled heavily over Cross Enterprises, thick as an unspoken accusation. Elena felt it the moment she stepped into the building, the air buzzing with whispers that stopped the instant she passed. Employees smiled too quickly, avoided her eyes, pretended nothing was wrong. Everyone knew something was coming. No one knew how bad it would be.She tightened her grip on her bag and walked on.Since the night Vivienne appeared in the study, sleep had become shallow and unreliable. Fears no longer waited politely in the dark. They followed her into daylight, into meetings, into every quiet moment where her thoughts had room to wander.Damian had barely spoken to her since.Not from anger. From distance.That hurt more.Elena reached the executive floor just as the elevator doors slid open again. Julian Crane stepped out, perfectly composed in a tailored suit, his smile sharp enough to cut glass. He looked pleased, which immediately told her this encounter was no coincidence.“Elena,

Whispers moved faster than truth.They slid through Cross Enterprises like invisible smoke, curling into offices, elevators, private lounges, and boardroom corners—soft voices that carried sharp edges. By midday, the rumor had found lungs strong enough to breathe it into life.Elena didn’t hear it directly at first. She felt it.A pause that lasted half a second too long when she stepped out of the private elevator. Conversations that dipped into silence, then resumed with forced brightness. Eyes that followed her—not curious, not admiring, but measuring, as if weighing something fragile that might shatter under scrutiny.She adjusted her grip on the folder in her hands and kept walking.The past weeks had trained her well. Suspicion had become part of the air she breathed, doubt a shadow that followed her down every hallway. Still, something about today felt different. Heavier. Sharper.By the time she reached the executive floor, her phone vibrated for the third time.Bella: Don’t p

Tension clung to every corner of Cross Enterprises like a stubborn shadow. Elena Harper felt it the moment she stepped off the elevator—silent gazes, whispers clipped mid-sentence, a sense of anticipation that made the air heavy enough to weigh on her chest. She had learned to navigate these subtle waves, but today’s current carried a sharpness that set her nerves on edge.An urgent email awaited her as she reached her office: “Meeting with Mr. Cross. Now.” No explanation, no preamble. Just a summons.Elena’s hand lingered on the sleek handle of her office door. Something in her gut tightened. Meetings with Damian rarely came with such abruptness.When she entered the boardroom, she found Damian standing at the head of the table, sleeves rolled up, eyes fixed on the city skyline beyond the glass. He didn’t turn immediately. Every inch of him radiated command, yet his posture betrayed restraint.“Elena,” he said, voice low, measured. “Sit.”Her heels clicked against the polished floor

Resolve hardened inside Elena Harper as she closed the door of the small apartment behind her. Silence rushed in, thick and heavy, broken only by the faint hum of the city outside. For weeks, fear had dictated her choices—fear of Marcus, fear of the lies swallowing Damian’s world, fear that loving him had become a liability instead of a strength. Tonight, that fear ended.She set her bag down slowly and leaned her forehead against the door, breathing once, deeply. Running had solved nothing. Hiding had only given their enemies more space to tighten the net. Chapter by chapter, piece by piece, she had been pushed into the shadows. Chapter 238 would not be about retreat.Elena straightened and crossed the room, pulling out the folder she had hidden beneath loose floorboards days ago. Inside were documents she had spent sleepless nights gathering—transaction trails, altered contracts, email chains Marcus believed were erased forever. Adrian’s secret warning echoed in her mind, cautious b

Stillness settled over the city in a way Elena Harper didn’t trust.Not silence—never silence—but a peculiar pause, as though the world had inhaled and was waiting to see what happened next. From the passenger seat of Adrian’s car, she watched glass towers slide past, their reflections fractured by speed and light. Her phone lay warm in her palm, Damian’s last message still open.We did it.Those three words should have felt like victory. Instead, they felt like the first quiet step onto unstable ground.“Are you sure this café is safe?” Adrian asked, eyes on the road.“Safe enough,” Elena replied. “Neutral places are louder than hiding spots. Marcus won’t expect calm after today.”Adrian nodded but didn’t look convinced. He turned into a narrow street lined with old bookstores and late-night cafés that survived on habit more than profit. Elena stepped out before he could circle the block again.“Don’t hover,” she said gently. “That draws attention.”He sighed. “I’ll be close.”Inside