All Chapters of The Bet That Ruined Us : Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

"Ayven, you'll be late for school!" Shayla shouted from the kitchen, her hands moving swiftly as she packed her son's lunch box with practiced efficiency. Sandwiches cut into triangles because he insisted they tasted better that way, apple slices with a sprinkle of cinnamon, and the granola bars he'd been obsessed with for the past month."A minute, Momma!" Ayven's voice echoed from down the narrow hallway of their two-bedroom apartment.Shayla chuckled, shaking her head as she zipped the lunch box closed. A minute in Ayven's world could mean anything from thirty seconds to ten minutes, depending on what had captured his attention. Her son was seven years old, with a mind that never stopped racing and a maturity that sometimes unnerved her. He was tall for his age, all long limbs and boundless energy, with the kind of pouty lips that made strangers stop and comment on how adorable he was.What they didn't know—what they couldn't know—was that those lips were a carbon copy of his fathe

Tuesday morning felt like stepping into someone else's life.Shayla stood in front of her bathroom mirror, smoothing down the same black pencil skirt she'd worn to the interview yesterday—freshly pressed this time, paired with a cream-colored blouse and her black blazer. Professional. Put-together. The kind of woman who had her life figured out.Except she absolutely did not have her life figured out.She still couldn't believe it. Couldn't wrap her mind around the email that had arrived less than twenty-four hours after her interview, the words practically burning themselves into her memory:“Dear Ms. Hale, We are pleased to inform you that you have been selected for the position of Personal Assistant at GC Group of Companies. Your start date is Tuesday…”Employed.She'd been employed.After three months of applications that went nowhere, after countless rejections and dead-end interviews, after starting to believe that maybe she was destined to spend the rest of her life pouring cof

One week.Shayla had survived one full week working as Grayson Cross's personal assistant, and she'd done it with grace she didn't know she possessed.Every morning, she arrived at 7:45 AM sharp, fifteen minutes before she was required, coffee made exactly how he liked it, his schedule organized down to the minute, documents prepared and waiting on his desk. She selected his wardrobe changes with clinical efficiency, attended meetings at his side with perfect notes, answered emails with professional courtesy that revealed nothing personal.She was the model employee.Polite. Competent. Utterly untouchable.And it was killing her.Every interaction was a carefully choreographed performance. Every smile was practiced in the mirror until it looked natural. Every "Yes, Mr. Cross" and "Right away, sir" was delivered with a calm she absolutely did not feel.She avoided his eyes. Avoided standing too close. Avoided any situation that might lead to a conversation that wasn't strictly work-rel

Shayla stumbled back to her office, her heart hammering so hard she thought it might crack through her ribs.His hand on her wrist.That simple touch had detonated something inside her she'd spent seven years trying to bury.She pressed her back against her office door the moment it closed, her breathing ragged, her whole body trembling. Not from the fever—though that was still burning through her—but from the memory his touch had awakened.Her skin still tingled where his fingers had been. Gentle. Hesitant. Warm.The same hands that used to hold her like she was precious. The same hands that used to trace lazy patterns on her skin in the dark. The same hands she'd trusted completely before he shattered her."No," she whispered to the empty room. "No, no, no."But her body didn't listen. Her body remembered everything.The way he used to pull her close when she was stressed about exams. The way his thumb would brush across her cheekbone before he kissed her. The way she used to feel s

Saturday morning dawned bright and clear, and Shayla woke up with a smile already on her face.Her phone notification had pinged at 6:47 AM with the alert she'd been waiting for all week: **Direct Deposit Successful - GC Group of Companies.**Her first salary.She'd pulled up her banking app with trembling fingers, barely breathing as the numbers loaded on her screen.And then she'd screamed.Not a little scream. A full, unrestrained scream of pure joy that probably woke up half the apartment building.By 9:00 AM, she was in the living room, her laptop open on the coffee table, music blasting from her phone speakers, dancing around like she'd lost her mind.Ayven emerged from his bedroom, hair sleep-mussed, rubbing his eyes with confusion. "Momma, why are you screaming? Did something happen?""Something happened, baby!" Shayla grabbed his hands and spun him around, laughing so hard her stomach hurt. "Something wonderful happened! Momma got paid! Her first real salary from the new job!