All Chapters of Fallen For Best Friend’s Daddy: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

46 Chapters

Standing

Rachael’s POV“If I called it off… what would you actually do?”The question had left my mouth before I fully understood the weight of it.And when he answeredI wouldn’t save you. I’d stand next to you.It didn’t feel romantic.It felt dangerous.Now I was alone in my room.He had left minutes ago. I heard the soft click of my door closing behind him. No rush. No dramatics. Just that steady way he moves when he’s certain of himself.I remained where I stood.Exactly where I had been when he said it.Standing.Next to you.Not for you.Not over you.Not instead of you.Next to you.My chest tightened.Why did that feel heavier than if he had said he’d burn the world down for me?I sank slowly onto the edge of my bed.Because burning the world down is fantasy.Standing is consequence.Standing means no escape route.Standing means if I jump, he jumps too.And suddenly my question felt less like curiosity… and more like temptation.I had asked him what he would do.But I never answered

Delivered?

Rachael’s POVThe door opened.And for a second, none of us reacted.Because our brains needed a moment to catch up to what our eyes were seeing.“Daddy?”My voice came out before I could stop it.And then everything broke.Bella gasped so loudly she nearly dropped the spoon in her hand.Capri actually laughed, a real, stunned laugh.“Mr Virgo?!”He stepped fully inside, arms slightly open like he hadn’t just walked out of the most tightly wound room in the city.“What?” he said lightly. “You all look like you’ve seen a ghost.”“This is shocking!” Bella blurted.“That was the plan.”My mother’s door flew open down the hall.“What is all that noise…”She froze.And then she ran.Actually ran.She reached him first, hands on his face, breath unsteady.“You didn’t call.”“I wanted to see your faces,” he replied calmly.Capri shook his head, smiling.“This is insane.”Bella was already talking over herself. “We thought… we were told… how are you here?”“Paperwork moves when it needs to,

Best For Us

Rachael’s POVMy father didn’t call me into his room.He sat in the living area, lights dimmed low, city humming beneath the glass.“Sit,” he said.I did.He studied me for a long moment before speaking. “I owe Clinton.”The words came calmly.Not emotional.Not grateful, but transactional.My brows pulled together slightly. “For what?”“For accelerating conversations that would have stalled.”He was talking politics and strategy.“He was instrumental in ensuring my transfer here instead of somewhere less… comfortable.”My stomach tightened.So it wasn't a coincidence.It wasn’t luck.It was influence.“He understands leverage,” my father continued. “And he understands timing.”Timing.Always timing.“He’s disciplined, reliable and predictable.”Predictable.Jonathan isn’t predictable.Jonathan disrupts.“And that matters,” my father said.I held his gaze. “To who?”“To us.”There it was.Not to me, but us.He leaned forward slightly.“You have always been selfless, Rachael. Which is

The Seat Across From Me

Rachael’s POVI stayed seated long after Clinton left.The plates were still on the table. The water in my glass barely disturbed.People came and went around me.Laughter.Cutlery.Soft music.Life continuing.I should have stood up.I should have gone home.Instead, I stared at the empty chair across from me.It was strange how a chair could still feel occupied.Clinton had been calm, Jessica had been comfortable and I had been… aligned.That word again.Aligned.My phone buzzed lightly.A message from Clinton.‘Text when you get home.’Not are you okay? Or did you eat?Just instruction.I locked my phone without replying.For once, I didn’t want to move on schedule.The waiter passed by slowly.“Would you like me to clear this out?”“In a minute,” I said.He nodded politely.I leaned back in my chair and let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding.The city looked different from this angle.Less sharp.Less demanding.“Is this seat taken?”The voice wasn’t loud.It wasn’t smooth e

The Ring

Rachael’s POV Daniel was mid sentence when my phone buzzed. “…so I told him if you hate your job that much, maybe it’s not the job,” he was saying lightly, stirring his coffee. “Maybe it’s the room.” “The room?” I asked. “Yeah. Some rooms shrink you. Some don’t.” My phone buzzed again in my hand. I glanced down. It was Clinton. ‘Home?’ The word sat there. Simple. Direct. Daniel noticed the shift in my expression but didn’t ask. I typed. ‘Yes.’ Sent. The lie didn’t shake me. It just… adjusted the air. Daniel leaned back slightly. “Everything okay?” “Yes,” I said smoothly. He studied me for half a second, then nodded. He didn’t push. Another buzz. I didn’t want to look. But I did. ‘Delivered?’ My brows pulled slightly. Delivered? My fingers paused over the screen. That word again. And with Clinton, ‘delivered’ was never random. I wasn’t home. There was nothing in my hands except my bag. I didn’t respond. Daniel was watching me now, not intensely, just

Mrs Brooks

Rachael’s POVI had just placed the velvet box back inside the larger one when my door opened.“Rach, do you have your charger? Mine’s acting stupid.”Bella walked in without waiting for an answer.Her words stopped mid air.Her eyes landed on the open box.Then the smaller case.Then my hand.She blinked.“Is that…”I didn’t move fast enough.Bella stepped closer. “No way.”“Bella,” I warned quietly.Too late.She picked up the box.“Aunty!”I closed my eyes briefly.Of course she would announce it.By the time I walked into the living room, everyone had turned.Mom.Dad.Jonathan.Capri.Bella stood in the center holding the box like breaking news.“Why didn’t you tell me?!” she gasped.My mother stood immediately.“Oh my God.”Dad remained seated, composed as always.Jonathan’s eyes went straight to my hand.He didn’t speak.Capri noticed that.I saw it.“Is that from Clinton?” Mom asked, already reaching for my fingers.“Yes,” I replied evenly.“When did this happen?”“It was deli

You’re Trapped

Rachael’s POVJonathan was already on a call when I walked into the living room.Not a polite business call.A controlled one.“I don’t care what Mr Hales says,” he said, voice low and precise. “Move the meeting forward. I’ll be in the air by noon.”Singapore.Right.Capri stood a few feet away with a tablet in hand, listening, occasionally stepping in with numbers. Calm. Efficient. Jonathan didn’t look at me.Not when I crossed the room.Not when I sat down.Not even when Bella plopped beside me and squeezed my arm like we were sharing a secret.He ended the call minutes later.“Car’s ready,” Capri informed him.Jonathan nodded once, then finally acknowledged the room as a whole.“Good morning.”General greeting.Corporate tone.My mother emerged from the hallway at the same time.“Jonathan,” she began smoothly, “before you leave… about London.”His attention shifted to her immediately.Of course it did.The London branch.The new expansion.The opportunity.I totally forgot about t

Suzu Café

Rachael’s POVBella talked about freedom like it was a door.Like all you had to do was turn the handle and step through.I’d spent most of my life learning how to stay in the room.“You’re not even listening to me,” she said, snapping her fingers lightly in front of my face.“I am.”“You’re deflecting.”I leaned back against the headboard, folding my arms. “You’re dramatizing.”Bella stared at me like she was trying to peel something back. “You had one night where you weren’t someone’s daughter or someone’s fiancée. And now you’re pretending it didn’t matter.”“It didn’t.”The lie tasted dry.She shook her head slowly. “You described him like he wasn’t just some mistake.”I forced a laugh. “Bella, it was France. Everyone romanticizes France.”“I’m serious.”“So am I.”Silence stretched between us.Bella moved from the foot of my bed and sat beside me again. Closer this time. Softer.“I don’t care about Clinton,” she said quietly. “And I don’t care about business alliances. I just don

Beautiful lies

Bella’s POVOkay.Before you judge me … yes.I know.This is poking.This is meddling.This is “Bella, mind your business.”But in my defense?Rachael is my best friend.And Rachael lied beautifully.You know the dangerous kind of lie?Not the messy one. Not the stuttering one.The calm one.The composed one.The kind where she looks you in the eye and hands you a polished version of the truth like a gift.Suzu Café. Late afternoon. We talked. He congratulated me. It’s done.See?Perfect.Almost convincing.Almost.I slid into the backseat of the car and shut the door softly.“Where are we going ma’am?” the driver asked.“Quick stop, Suzu Café” I replied.Because here’s the thing.I don’t dig because I don’t trust her.I dig because she buries things when they matter.And something about the way she said closure felt… rehearsed.So yes.Call me pokey.I’ll own it.The car stopped outside Suzu Café ten minutes later.I stepped out of the car and walked inside.The bell above the door c

Less Like The Bride

Rachael’s POVBella was taking too long.I tried not to look at the clock again, but my eyes kept drifting back to it anyway.Two hours.Bella didn’t disappear for two hours without a word unless she was doing something she knew I wouldn’t approve of.Or something she knew I’d try to stop.I sat on the edge of the sofa in the living room, my fingers loosely wrapped around a cup of tea that had gone cold nearly an hour ago.Bella only goes quiet when she’s planning something loud.The sound of the penthouse door unlocking made my head snap up.A second later, Bella walked in.And there it was.That grin.Not wide. Not dramatic.Just… satisfied.My stomach tightened.“You’re back,” I said carefully.Bella tossed her handbag onto the chair and slipped off her heels like she had just returned from the most ordinary outing in the world.“Clearly.”I studied her.“Where did you go?”“Coffee.”I blinked.“For two hours?”Bella shrugged, strolling toward the kitchen counter. “I was thinking.

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