Semua Bab Silent Secrets Burning Love: Bab 21 - Bab 30

Bella’s POV.I wasn’t sure if Derek had seen the message, but my face lit up in a smile. It was the most sexiest texts I had received in a long time, and I couldn’t help but grin. My fingers lingered over my phone, unable to pull myself away from the words on the screen.“Who was that?” Derek’s voice echoed and the smile on my face quickly faded, and I felt a nervous flutter in my stomach. I was caught off guard and stammered as I responded.“Nothing serious... just work.” I hoped my voice didn’t sound as shaky as I felt.“Work?” Derek raised an eyebrow, his tone playful but tinged with concern. “At this time of night? I thought we agreed to stay off work during family time. I took care of all your pending tasks, so what’s come up that I don’t know about? Do you mind sharing? Maybe I can help you with it.”I panicked for a moment. “Nah! You’ve done too much already. I’ll handle this one.” I leaned in and kissed him on the lips, hoping the gesture would distract him, and it worked. As

Bella’s POV.“Ma, all the models are here for the general meetings. I canceled your meeting with the makeup artist from Chicago as you instructed, and I fixed a lunch date with Derek and your son. Finally, some time out.”My personal assistant was reading out my schedule for the day, but my mind was far from the tasks at hand. It drifted back to that unforgettable night with Lucas, three weeks ago. The passion we shared was intense, mind-blowing even. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. That night had changed everything — the way I saw Lucas, the way we interacted. It felt like everything had shifted inside me.Derek, on the other hand, wasn’t happy about my outing. When I returned home the next day by noon, there was no way to explain my absence. I decided to come clean with him, to tell him what happened. I told him I’d made out with Lucas, that it was a mistake and that I was drunk. Since then, Derek had barely spoken to me. He made breakfast, took our son to school, and left the ho

Bella’s POVI thought Derek had been joking about what he said the other night, but as I looked at him now, I realized he was serious. After saying his piece, he had passed out on the floor, completely wasted. I tried everything to get him into the bed, but he just wouldn’t budge. His shirt was covered in puke, and he was in no state to be moved easily. I struggled to take his shirt off, finally succeeding, and then I cleaned his body with a wet towel. He groaned at every touch, some meaningful, others just unintelligible mutterings like, “The baby is mine,” which seemed almost comical until the door swung open and my son walked in.“Mummy, are you expecting a baby?” he asked, his voice filled with innocent curiosity.At that moment, I didn’t know how to hide it anymore. If there was one thing I knew about my child, it was that he was inquisitive—nothing escaped his notice. If something was bothering him, he wouldn’t rest until he got the truth.“I thought you were sleeping,” I said, q

Lucas's POV.The music was blasting at full volume, and Derek, along with his crew, had taken over the entire space. They were drinking, spraying money around, and generally making a spectacle of themselves. It was nothing like the Derek I knew. He had always been calm, reserved—nothing like this loud, obnoxious version of him. He didn’t know I was in the same lounge, though. I was sitting at the bar, while he and his friends occupied the VIP section. I was bristling with frustration as I watched him soak up all the congratulatory messages that should have been directed at me. He was too busy having fun, making a mockery of my success. I needed to do something about it—quickly.I turned to my friend James.“Hey, buddy, you said this guy’s a regular here, right?”“Yeah, he’s one of my highest-spending customers,” James replied, wiping down the counter. “He drops so much on drinks and the ladies every time he’s here.”“I see,” I muttered. “But can you do me a favor?”James looked at me

Lucas's POVThe words hit me like a freight train. I was already trying to wrap my head around the situation, but now, after hearing them, it was as though the ground beneath me had disappeared. I stood frozen, trying to process everything, but nothing made sense.“How is this even possible? Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” I could barely keep my voice steady as I looked at my lawyer.He sighed, clearly frustrated. “You didn’t inform me when you signed the divorce papers, and by now, you’ve transferred everything you own to her. I’m sorry, Lucas, but you’re in deep trouble.”I swallowed hard, my throat tight. My father and I had spent years building everything I had—our company, the house I grew up in, everything. And now it was all gone. I clenched my jaw, trying to find some way to hold it together, but my mind kept spiraling out of control.“I will fight her,” I muttered, my voice low but determined. “I can’t believe Joan would do this to me. After everything I did for her, I gave h