บททั้งหมดของ I Slept With The Wrong Man: บทที่ 51 - บทที่ 60

~ Lucien ~ The engine of my SUV roared as I jerked the wheel, weaving through three lanes of midday traffic like a predator chasing a scent. My knuckles were white against the leather steering wheel. On the passenger seat, my phone was on speaker, Elias’s voice cutting through the hum of the engine. “Lucien, the signal at the penthouse just went flat,” Elias said. His voice was usually as cold and steady as an ice bath, but now there was a sharp edge to it. “Someone just dropped a professional-grade ‘kill zone’ dampener. It’s a complete blackout. No cameras, no comms, no alarms. It’s a professional setup.” I slammed my palm against the wheel, the horn blaring as I forced a taxi to swerve. “What about Marcus and the detail?” “Dark. I can’t reach them. The whole floor is a dead zone,” Elias replied. I could hear his fingers flying across his keyboard at the Blackwood Tower. “Lucien, you need to pull back. If you go in there now, you’re walking into a tactical nightmare. The board i

~ Seraphina ~“We are safe here,” Lucien said as the car slowed to a crawl. He reached for my hand, but his grip felt like a shackle.“You said that about the penthouse,” I replied. I pulled my hand away and tucked it under my arm. My voice was sharp, a blade I was finally learning how to use. “Safe just means I am in a different cage. This one just has thicker bars and more trees.”The estate appeared through the mist like a ghost. It was a massive stone house with small windows and heavy doors. It didn't look like a home. It looked like a castle built for a war. There were no warm lights in the windows to welcome us. Instead, men in dark suits stood on the lawn, their eyes scanning the thick woods.The car stopped. Lucien climbed out first and reached for me, but I ignored his hand. I stepped onto the cold ground myself. The air out here was different from the city. It was thin and smelled of wet pine and old stone.“Inside. Now,” Lucien ordered. He didn't look at me. He was looking

~ Seraphina ~ The bedroom in Lucien’s safe house felt more like a very expensive prison cell. I sat on the edge of the large bed, my fingers digging into the soft velvet spread. Outside, the wind rattled the window glass. I looked at the heavy wooden door. It was closed. It was always closed. The handle turned, and Lucien walked in. He looked tired. His dark suit was perfectly pressed, but his eyes were hard. He didn't look at me first. He looked at the tray of food on the table. It was untouched. "You need to eat," he said. His voice was flat, like he was reading a report. "I want to see my best friend , Mina," I said. I didn't move. I kept my back straight, the way my mother had taught me. "I’ve been here for days, Lucien. I need my best friend." Lucien finally looked at me. He crossed his arms over his chest. "It’s not safe. Adrian is desperate. He has people everywhere. Bringing your friend here is a risk I won't take." I stood up. My legs felt a little shaky, but I did

~ Seraphina ~ “I’m going, Lucien. Stop trying to move me like a chess piece.” I stood in the center of the guest suite at the Blackwood estate, my hands trembling as I buttoned my blazer. Outside the window, the dense forest that surrounded the property looked like a wall of emerald spears. It was beautiful, but today, it felt like a prison. Lucien stood by the door, his large frame blocking the only way out. He didn’t raise his voice, but the air around him felt heavy and hot. “It’s a trap, Seraphina. Richard Sterling isn't a lawyer; he’s a butcher. He doesn't want the truth. He wants to carve you up so the public can watch you bleed.” “Then let him try,” I said, stepping closer to him. I had spent years being the ‘perfect wife’ who stayed in the background. I was done hiding. “Naomi is on every news channel calling me a unfit. Adrian is pretending to be a victim. If I don't show up to this deposition, it looks like I’m afraid. It looks like they’re right.” Lucien’s jaw tightene

~ Seraphina ~“Do you really think I’m going to sit here and wait for permission to breathe?” I asked, talking to nobody but myself, my voice much steadier than I felt inside.I paced the length of the library in Lucien’s secret estate. The room smelled of old paper and expensive leather. Outside the tall windows, the morning mist clung to the trees, hiding this place from the rest of the world. It was a beautiful prison, tucked away where no map could find it.I touched my stomach. The baby—Lucien’s baby—gave a small stir. My mind kept drifting back to last night. The way Lucien had looked at me, the heat of his hand on my waist, and that kiss. It hadn't been a gentle kiss. It had been desperate. It made my heart race just thinking about it, and I had to force myself to stay calm. I was falling for him. It was a scary thought. Lucien was a man who planned everything like a game of chess. He was strategic to a fault, and I wasn't sure if I was a partner to him or just his most importa