Semua Bab The Proxy Contract: Bab 1 - Bab 10

EVIEMy head throbbed as if a hundred soldiers were marching around it, and a low groan escaped my lips as I turned to the left. The movement made the world tilt, and before I could stop myself —Thud!A sharp pain shot through my body as I hit the floor. I groaned again, this time from the ache. The door opened, and slow, deliberate footsteps echoed across the room.“How clumsy can you get,” a deep voice murmured.His presence came closer, marked by the suffocating scent of his cologne; rich, dark, and powerful. I tried to open my eyes to see who he was, but the lights were too bright, and my head pulsed in agony.“Shut the blinds,” the man ordered. The sound of footsteps obeyed him, and the room dimmed.“Leave,” he said again, and the door closed softly behind whoever had entered.Finally, my eyes felt comfortable enough to open. The first thing I saw was his jaw, covered with a beard. His eyes were on me, and his expression was unreadable.Who is this man?I struggled to free mysel

EVIEI was still standing by the window until early evening when I saw his car drive back into the manor.It’s been a week of being here, ignored. I haven’t set eyes on him except when he’s leaving in the morning or at night. Margaret came every morning by 9 to drop my breakfast, by 1 p.m. to drop my lunch, and by 9 p.m. to drop my dinner.It had become a norm for me that once the clock struck that hour, I opened the door, waiting for her.Our conversation had always been the same — drop the meal, take the previous dish, me saying thank you, and her offering a warm smile.Is this the punishment for the crime? It would be relieving if I had the freedom to even roam the house, not to mention step out. I missed Patricia so much, and I know she’d be dying to reach out to me.Today was different anyway, because even while I stood by the window, my door opened and I turned quickly. Nobody ever did that.It was him.“Evie,” he called with a gentle smile. The way he called my name, it felt so

EVIEI woke with a violent gasp, my fingers instantly knotting into the thick silk duvet. The room was vast, cold, and entirely unfamiliar. For a terrifying ten seconds, my mind was a blank slate of white noise until the chaotic events of the previous night rushed back with the force of a physical blow. The contract, the violent storm in my head, and him.I pressed the back of my hand against my lips, my skin tingling. They still felt slightly swollen, vibrating as a result of the kiss that had felt less like an assault and more like an unexpected lifeline. "You let him kiss you," I scolded myself fiercely, my cheeks burning with an intense, sudden heat that made my breath hitch. "You let a man who locked you up, a man who threatened an innocent child’s life, touch you like that. And worse... you leaned into it."A soft, rhythmic chime cut through my spiral of self-loathing.My eyes darted toward the bedside table. A sleek, black smartphone sat on the polished marble surface next to

GAMMONI stood at the base of the floating glass staircase, my hand resting flat against the cold steel railing, watching her descend. The fabric shifted with every step she took, the thousands of microscopic glass beads caught the dim, recessed spotlights above and fractured the light into sharp, icy splinters. She looked like a winter night carved into a weapon. Her dark hair had been pulled back into a sleek, elegant twist, exposing the pale, fragile line of her throat and the faint, fading yellowish shadow of a bruise near her collarbone.My chest tightened, a sudden, heavy pressure arresting my lungs. For a split second, the glittering glass tower vanished, replaced by the suffocating scent of ash and the memory of a little girl with a fierce, gap-toothed smile who used to hold my hand in the dark."Get a grip, Blackwell," the voice inside my head snarled, colder than the marble beneath my feet. "She is a Fulham trade. A tool for retribution. Nothing more.""You're staring," she

EVIEBLACKWELL’S BLOODY DEBUT: BILLIONAIRE RECLUSIVE SLAMS HEIR AT L’ÉTOILE.WHO IS EVIE? THE SECRET FIANCÉE WORTH RUINING A LOGISTICS EMPIRE FOR.CROFT LOGISTICS STOCK PLUMMETS 14% FOLLOWING BARROOM ALTERCATION."A business calculation," I whispered to the empty room, my voice flat, echoing mockingly in my own ears.A sharp, synchronized double-knock rattled the heavy oak door before it swung open. I braced myself for Gammon's towering, suffocating presence, but instead, Margaret stepped into the room. She was carrying a silver tray with a porcelain teapot, a single cup, and a stack of printed morning broadsheets. Her usually unshakeable, maternal composure was frayed around the edges; her eyes were wide, darting anxiously toward me as she set the tray on the bedside table."Good morning, madam," she said, her voice tight, lacking its usual smooth rhythm. "Mr. Blackwell requested I bring you chamomile tea. He... he also explicitly instructed that you read the press coverage before he