Semua Bab Too Late To Love Me, Mr Billionaire : Bab 1 - Bab 10

KIRA POV - One Year Ago, A quick trip down memory lane. Kira woke up to her body on fire. Not actual fire. Just the kind of heat that came with fever. The kind that made her skin burn and her teeth chatter at the same time. She tried to sit up, but her head was spinning and she could hardly see anything. She was sick. Really sick. Kira forced herself out of bed and walked to the bathroom. Splashed cold water on her face, it kind of didn’t do anything. Her reflection in the mirror looked terrible. Pale skin. Dark circles under her eyes. Lips cracked and dry. She needed to see a doctor. Kira walked downstairs slowly. Each step felt like climbing a mountain. When she reached the living room, Adrian was sitting on the couch. Vanessa sat beside him, ohhh vanessa yes the famous assistant. They were looking at something on her laptop. “Adrian,” Kira said. Her voice came out weak. He looked up. “What?” “I need to go to the hospital. I don’t feel well.” Adrian glanced

Adrian came down the stairs at six in the morning, coffee in hand, already mentally sorting through his schedule.The front door was wide open.He stopped mid-step. Cold air poured into the foyer. The alarm wasn’t beeping. Someone had disarmed it.“Kira?”No answer.He walked to the doorway and looked out.The driveway was empty. But at the gate, taillights disappeared around the corner. Not one car. Multiple. Black SUVs in a neat line, like some kind of motorcade.What the hell?Adrian closed the door and locked it. Probably nothing. Maybe a neighbor’s security detail. Rich people and their paranoia.He climbed the stairs back to check on the kids. Ethan’s door was closed. He pushed it open quietly.His son was asleep, sprawled across the bed.Then he walked to Lily’s room.Empty.The bed was made. Her stuffed rabbit was gone. Her backpack. Her favorite books.His daughter was gone. His chest tightened.He walked quickly down the hall to Kira’s bedroom and pushed open the door.The s

Adrian stood in the school parking lot, staring at the sign.Parent-Teacher Conferences – THIS WEEK. Please check your email for your scheduled time slot.Shit.Email. Right.Which email? His? Kira’s? Did she have a separate school email he didn’t know about?How did she do this shit?He pulled out his phone and scrolled through his inbox. Nothing from Ethan’s school. He tried searching “conference” and got three thousand work emails about quarterly projections.A woman in yoga pants and oversized sunglasses approached, smiling bright and invasive. “Adrian! Haven’t seen you at pickup before. Where’s Kira?”“Visiting family.”“Oh, how nice! When will she be back?”He had no answer for that.The woman’s smile tightened. “Well, tell her Jennifer says hi.” She walked away, heels clicking on the pavement.Adrian looked back at the sign. Two days. It had been two days since Kira left, and already he was drowning in shit he didn’t even know existed.He got back in his car. Ethan sat in the

Elijah stood frozen in the doorway, staring at her like she might disappear if he blinked. Kira’s heart beat very fast. Nine years. Nine years since she’d seen that face, heard that voice, felt the weight of everything she’d walked away from. “Elijah,” she said again, quieter this time. He crossed the room in three long strides and pulled her into a hug. Kira stiffened at first. Physical touch from anyone who wasn’t Lily felt foreign now. But then his arms tightened around her, and she felt something inside her. He smelled like rosemary and burnt sugar. Like a kitchen at the end of a long shift. Like home used to feel. “I thought you were dead at first,” he whispered into her hair. “We all did. You just vanished.” Kira pulled back, wiping at her face. She hadn’t realized she was crying. “I’m sorry.” “Sorry?” His voice broke. “Kira, you disappeared for nine years. No goodbye. No explanation. Nothing.” He stepped back, running a hand through his flour-dusted hair. “Do you

Adrian sat in the living room, staring at his phone. The news article was still open. Mystery Ashford Heiress Returns After Nine Years. The photo of Kira getting out of the SUV. Calm. Composed. Free.Why was he even worried?He didn’t care or that was what he had convinced himself to believe.Women like Kira didn’t just walk away from their lives. From their children. From stability. She was probably scared right now, sitting in some hotel room, realizing she had no plan. No money. No future.Except she wasn’t in a hotel.She was at the Ashford Estate.With her family.Her billionaire family.Adrian’s jaw tightened.“What are you going to do about this?”He looked up. Catherine stood in the doorway, arms crossed, her expression sharp.“About what?”“Don’t play stupid with me, Adrian.” She walked into the room, her heels clicking against the hardwood floor. “Your wife is Kira Ashford. Do you understand what that means?”“She’s from a wealthy family. So what?”“So what?” Catherine’s voi