The illusion Of Happily Ever After のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 11 - チャプター 20

Aria’s POV:The lady left and Liam walked away with some men who approached him, I wore my shade and cap before descending from my car.Found my way past the paparazzi and headed to the courtroom; it was a little crowded, but luckily I found a seat beside a man dressed in a brown suit. He kept trying to peek past my disguise, and it was really irritating.“Aria?” he muttered. I cleared my throat and took off my sunglasses.“Who are you?” I asked with raised brow.“Julian, a friend of Liam.” He extended his hand to me, and I saw no reason to accept it because, just like him, Liam was a stranger to me as well.But just to be polite, I accepted his handshake. “Hello.”The case finally began; the accused Salmon was brought to court, and he had a smile once he spotted Liam.Then my gaze diverted to Caleb, who was busy going through some files.“Who do you want to win?” Julian questioned, and I shrugged my shoulder; I really just wanted to see Liam in action.“How about we make a bet?” Juli

Aria’s POV:I stopped by a restaurant and bought pizza and a cocktail before driving back home; I walked in and was welcomed with quietness.I always loved living alone, as I had no distractions when writing, but now I wasn’t writing anymore. Luckily, I had invested in schools and hospitals; otherwise, what was I going to do without a career?Spent the day cleaning the house, getting rid of every photo of me and Caleb, every flower or gift he ever got for me… I locked it up in the storage room before eating my pizza with my hair tied up.My phone rang; it was Ava.“Hello.”“Why did you keep ignoring my calls?” she asked.I just didn’t want to talk to anyone because I knew they were all just calling to sympathize with me. “Can I spend the night at your place?” I asked instead; her house had a homely warmth.Now her dad and older brother were out of town; they were law enforcement, just like my dad, so only Ava and Sam were at home. It was better to join them than sulk here alone.“Of c

Liam’s POV:The garage had just one yellow bulb; it wasn’t enough to light up the entire garage, but it was focused on Aria’s face. She looked cute under the yellow light.She looked away and focused on the meat. I was pretty sure she had no idea of its source; if only she knew it was chevon… I am sure she would spit it all out.“Hey,” I waved at my little man, who hurried to me with a bottle of the homemade corn beer. I filled a glass and shoved it to Aria.“This is really good,” she muttered, and I nodded.“I drank the finest wine back in Italy, but nothing tastes like this,” I said, and she turned her attention to me.“Why did you have to go there?”I shrugged my shoulder. “To make my mom happy,” I answered, and she laughed; her laugh was so beautiful… Damn, she is so pretty.“I didn’t take you for the mommy type,” she said between her laughs. I reached out and shoved some strings of hair from her face; she was staring at me with a smile.“What is it you love?” I asked, and she rai

Aria’s POV:I know who a prostitute is—someone you spend a night with once, and that’s it… Everything ends that night, and no one talks about it ever again because it was just a job.No feelings attached, no commitments. It was just an exchange that took place over a couple of hours, and no one is to mention it ever again.That’s what Liam took me for; he never mentioned that night, and I didn’t even dare mention it because I feel so ashamed of myself.And last night he was all kind and attentive to me; I thought I got the signals right, but he was leaving, and everything we shared was just supposed to be a memory.“Stupid,” I muttered. How could I expect a man like him to even consider me…?I mean, I was just a divorced woman with a stupid disaster that has nothing to do with me.And most importantly, I was a broken soul… Ever since that night a few years ago, I've felt like I lost myself that day.Right now I didn’t want to go back to an empty home, so I drove to the Martins’, parked

Aria’s POV:I returned home, freshened up, and sat by the window with my draft book in hand; I had no idea what I should write about.My gaze moved to the clock, and it was 8pm; maybe I should go to bed and try to come up with something.Wait, my brows furrowed when a bright light illuminated from outside like a car light; someone had just driven in.I waited for a while, and my doorbell rang. I wasn’t expecting anybody, and Ava knew my password.The doorbell rang again, and I sighed heavily, walked to the door, and pulled it open.My eyes widened in shock, and the knot in my stomach loosened when I found Liam standing there.He was dressed in black jeans and a black jacket. “Umm…you,” I leaned by the doorway. Was he here to finally make things clear to me?Liam shoved a bag to my face. “What is this?” I questioned.“Yours,” he answered. I held the bag and checked the content… It was the jacket I wore yesterday. “You forgot this.”“Oh,” I felt really down; I thought he had come here s