Semua Bab My Fake Husband Wants A Threesome: Bab 41 - Bab 50

"Right. Because Adeline does not want you here. She wants to own you, and this whole plan is just her way of making you do exactly what she wants. That 'peace offering,' that changed contract… She knows precisely how to make it seem like you have a choice, when she is really just keeping you in a cage."I turn my face from him. He is not wrong; what Adeline is offering is not a rescue. It is a chain made to look like a key.Jerome breathes out, a long, tired sound, and folds his arms over his chest. "Look, if you mean it about leaving these people behind, then leave. Do not let them trick you into staying. They only want you here for what you can give them. It is not for you."I give a single nod. "But who is to say we cannot have it all?""What does that mean?" he asks.His eyes are thin slits. He is watching my face like he is looking for a lie. I know he does not trust Adeline, and he is right. But this is about more than Adeline, more than this room, more than any contract."Let m

BiancaBefore I can think twice, my thumb presses down and ends the call. I look at my phone. His name is still there on the screen, like something dirty I can not wipe away. I turn on the setting that blocks all his calls.I am having a better night than I have had in ages. There is no way I will let that man ruin it for me.My reflection stares back from the mirror. My cheeks are pink. My lips have color. My dress shows a good amount of my chest. I feel a rush, a little kick of pure energy. Julian is down there waiting for me. The way he watched me before told me exactly how this evening will go. I run my fingers through my hair one last time. I adjust my dress so it fits my body just the way I want it to. Then I go to meet him.The smell of Julian’s food is everywhere in the hallway, warm and good. I walk down the stairs and see him. He is already at the table with Javier. The moment Julian sees me, his whole face changes. It is like a light turns on inside him. He looks at me with

BiancaWhen they’ve gone and Javier’s laugh is finally gone from the hallway, the quiet that’s left feels heavier than before. It’s like the life he brought with him has been sucked right out, and all that’s left is the weight of everything Julian and I still haven’t said.Julian reaches across the table. His hand pauses in the air for a heartbeat before it settles over mine. “Bianca,” he says. “I just want you to be all right.”For a second, I let the warmth of his hand soothe me. But the anger is still there, just under the surface. I slide my hand out from under his and look right at him.“If you really wanted me to be all right, you would stop making my choices for me,” I tell him. “I don’t need a bodyguard, Julian. I need the truth. I need you standing with me.”“I am with you,” he says. “More than you know. And you can say I decided this for you, but that’s not what happened. I told Adeline to speak with you. If you agree, then I’m in. That’s why I stayed quiet, I wanted her to

BiancaThe air in the room was heavy and close. Julian was beside me, his arm still resting over my waist. I could feel the steady beat of his heart against my back, and it annoyed me, how calm his was when mine was racing.For a little while, he said nothing. The quiet pressed in on me, and I wanted to break it, to make him see why I had to do this.“I can’t stay here anymore,” I said, looking at the ceiling and trying to keep my voice even. “I can’t keep acting like everything is okay.”His hand pressed into my side. “No.”It was just one word, soft, but it landed so hard it stole my breath.“Julian…” I let out a long sigh and turned to face him, scrambling for the right thing to say. “I know you’re trying to help, but I have to face this. Every single day, there’s some new drama, some new lie. I can’t keep pulling you into it.”He shook his head. “Who says you can’t face it from right here?”“Be honest with yourself. This whole thing is a mess, and you’re stuck in it because of me.

I am parked outside Brandon’s gate. I lean on the horn and let the sound bounce off the high walls around his property. This was once a place I called home. Once, it felt familiar. Once, it was… safe. Now? It’s nothing but a warped monument to everything I want to forget.I am still sitting there when the realization comes to me: the gate isn’t opening on its own. This is the first time I have ever waited here. Before, it would always slide open, smooth and quiet, like it was welcoming me back. Every single time… before I walked out on Brandon. Before I left all of this behind.The little electric tag that tells the gate to open is still stuck to my Bentley, the car I left with Brandon when I walked out of his life. The sensor does not recognize Julian’s car.I press the horn again.A burst of static cuts the quiet, and a blurred voice comes through. “Hello? Could you… um, could you roll down your window, ma’am? Please look at the camera?”I pull the window down slowly, on purpose, an