All Chapters of HIS PAST: HIS BRIDE: Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

GOES DOWNHILL QUICK Derek’s POV “They seem to be having fun,” Elizabeth says, a smile evident in her tone as she watches the children and I follow her gaze, and she isn’t wrong. The backyard has been transformed into what can only be described as a six-year-old’s dream with bright balloons in every color imaginable are tied to chairs, railings, and even the low branches of the trees. A large inflatable slide dominates one corner, its glossy surface reflecting sunlight as children climb, squeal, and tumble down in endless cycles of joy. There’s a bouncy castle just beside it, already overcrowded, but somehow still accommodating more tiny bodies and right there in the middle of it all is Daren. He hasn’t even looked for me since we got here. That realization should sting more than it does, but instead, I find myself amused. It’s been over an hour since we arrived, an hour since he proudly marched up to the birthday girl earlier, clutching the gift I helped him pick out while I stood

CHAOS HAS BEEN LET LOOSE DEREK’S POV The sharp ringing of my phone drags my head up from where it had been resting against my palm, I don’t even register where I am, my neck protests immediately, a dull, throbbing ache shooting down into my shoulders as I straighten, oh, my office. Right. I exhale slowly, blinking at the dim glow of my laptop screen, the last thing I remember clearly is staring at endless reports, emails, and notifications flooding in like a storm that refuses to pass, damage control but at this point, it feels less like control and more like watching everything burn in slow motion. I don’t even know how long I’ve been sitting here, hours, definitely, social media has been ruthless, the bashing hasn’t stopped for a second, and what frustrates me the most is that it’s not even about the product anymore, it’s me, my name, my face and position as CEO. Every headlin

TROUBLED MANDerek’s POVThe past twenty-four hours since my demotion have been nothing short of chaotic.When I left the office, it was still in complete disarray, phones ringing nonstop, employees scrambling, tension thick enough to choke on. I wasn’t even allowed to take anything with me except my phone, just like that cut off.Everything is a fucking mess and right now, I need a drink, I tried coffee earlier, hoping it would steady me, wake me up or just do something, it didn’t do shit, if anything, it made the weight in my chest feel heavier.Since no one is home yet, I decide to head into town, maybe a bar, something stronger than alcohol cause at this point, I don’t even know what I’m looking for, just something that makes me feel  anything.Stepping into Stripped, it’s immediately obvious this isn’t just a bar, it’s a strip club.The place is surprisingly classy with dim lighting, expensive finishes but stil

Derek’s POVIt has been a rollercoaster of disasters for me these past few months, I’ve had to let go of most of the house staff because the investigations are still ongoing, and nearly all my assets remain frozen. The few people still working here only do so because they’ve been with me long enough to pity me.If someone had told me a month ago that my life would become this miserable, I would have laughed in their face.Me?Derek Addams, the man who once had control over everything around him, people feared disappointing, whose signature alone could move millions but now look at me.I haven’t spoken to my son in over a month because I still can’t meet Anastasia’s demands and every time I try to call, she either ignores me or sends another message listing conditions I can no longer afford.Sometimes I wonder if Daren even asks about me anymore and that thought alone is enough to make my chest tighten painfully.I wake up every morning smelling like shit, surrounded by empty bottles a

BELLA’S POVThe past few months at work had been tense ever since Tabitha called me into her office that day and I still didn’t know what came over me.One minute, I had been sitting across from her while she spoke calmly, and the next, it felt like the walls were closing in around me, my chest had tightened so badly that I couldn’t breathe properly. I only knew one thing in that moment, I needed to get out of there.So I ran.To this day, I still couldn’t fully remember how I ended up at the beach afterward and everything from that morning felt blurry and distorted, like a dream I couldn’t piece together no matter how hard I tried so since then, I had done everything in my power to avoid being alone with her not because she had done anything wrong.If anything, Tabitha had been kinder to me than most people ever were but that was the problem and every time I looked at her, I remembered who she was connected to, I remembered Derek, I reme