Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 61 - Chapitre 70

Signed And Taken

Arielle I glanced back at his office as I walked carefully down the hallway, pretending I knew exactly where I was going. Joel followed behind me, slowing his steps. The second I turned the corner. I silently screamed. “Fuck!”No sound came out, but frustration tore through me. I shouldn’t have come. I really shouldn’t have. He could have given me time to think things through. But the truth was…I had delayed things long enough.There was no escaping it now. IT WAS TIME.I pulled my phone from my purse and dialed Tessa. She answered almost immediately. “Hey, girl–““Tessa, where are you?” I asked in a low voice. She paused. “Is everything okay? How did it go with Darius?”I couldn’t answer right away. Shame burned through me as I rubbed my forehead. “Did that son of a bitch do anything to you?” She asked, louder now. “I’m still at his office,” I said quietly. Just then, Joel found me. Our eyes met for a few seconds. Mine told him clearly that I needed privacy. Without saying

The Voice I Could Never Forget

Arielle “Can you just let me have this day?” I asked quietly. Darius looked at me, then smiled. “No.” My jaw tightened. Of course he wouldn’t let me. I stepped closer. “I’m sick, okay?” The lie came too easily. “I need to see a doctor.” Joel sensed the tension immediately and excused himself without a word. “I’m saying this because you can’t tell,” I added. “Don’t make this harder than it has to be,” Darius said. “I said I’m sick,” I repeated, forcing calm into my voice. “I need a doctor.” He hummed, unimpressed. “You’re not sick. You’re making up that excuse because of her.” I froze. “You’re not going anywhere,” he added. Tessa stepped in gently. “It’s okay, Arielle. We’ll talk on the phone.” My eyes never left Darius. Rage burned through me. “I don’t know why you’re staring at me like that. I saved your life.” Darius said. “Arielle,” Tessa said softly. “Can we talk outside?” I turned and followed her out. Behind the glass wall of his office, D

Ava’s Remembrance

Arielle I still couldn’t believe I was hearing her voice. They kept talking like people who hadn’t seen each other in years. “Where’s Amber?” My mother asked brightly. “Did she come with you?” Great. She knew about Amber, too. “Amber and I broke up weeks ago," Emris replied. “I’m so sorry to hear that.” I’d forgotten how much she adored him. Like the son she never had. I couldn’t listen anymore. I leaned back in Darius’s chair and ended the call. I had heard enough. I just hoped Emris wouldn’t tell her about me. I dropped my head into the desk, then banged my fist against the table in frustration. I hadn’t expected any of that. And Emris– He could easily tell her everything. Because he didn’t know what happened. He didn’t know why I left. I wasn’t safe anymore. Next thing I heard— The click of a door unlocking. I looked up sharply. Darius. I jumped out of this chair immediately. “What were you doing?” He asked, glancing at the desk. I lo

The Dress In The Box

Arielle “Ava died.” Those words kept echoing inside my skull. Memories crashed into me all at once. I never finished telling you about Ava DeLuca. She died when she was eight years old. Fifteen years ago. I saw it with my own eyes. I should have told Emris the truth long ago, but my father made me swear silence. I was terrified back then. Too terrified and little to know what to do. The day she died, I wished time could rewind, so I’d never met her. I would have stayed with Emris as my only friend. Because in my mind, Ava died because of me. I brought her into my life. And that guilt followed me ever since. Tears slid down my cheeks before I realized I was crying. “A–Ari–Arielle,” Emris’s voice cracked through the phone. “Are you there?” I ended the call. Then I crumpled to the floor. I hadn’t even noticed I was already in the house. Joel turned immediately, rushing toward me, but I couldn’t bear anyone touching me. I deserved worse than comfort. The sobs

Inside His World

Arielle And I promise, I wasn’t jealous. I just liked the dress. That’s all. Darius stepped out of the closet a few seconds later, his eyes fixed on me with that unreadable expression he wore when he was deciding whether to insult me or ignore me. “As you said,” he said calmly. “We need to set boundaries.” Then he walked out. “Shit,” I mumbled, rubbing my face in embarrassment. What a start to the morning. I wondered what the rest of the day would look like. Better than yesterday? Worse? At this point, both felt possible. I couldn’t go to class. I couldn’t meet with Emris. I couldn’t even call Tessa without wondering who might overhear. God, I wish she were here. This whole arrangement was suffocating already. And I absolutely could not stay trapped in this room. Darius had stepped out more than twice. I hadn’t. I opened the door and headed downstairs. Only then did I really take in the house. Yesterday had been chaos. Panic. Tears. Shock. No

Twenty Minutes To Escape

Arielle Since Darius had indirectly told me to shower, I decided I was wearing one of his shirts. Petty? Maybe. Deserved? Absolutely. I opened his closet, grabbed a crisp white shirt, and slipped it on. It hung loose over my body and stopped high on my thighs. Shorter than I expected. But good enough. I brushed my hair back with my fingers, took one look in the mirror, and headed upstairs. The third door on my right, as he said. I opened it and walked in. Joel was already seated with a file in front of him. He looked up and nearly choked. Darius…Well. He sat across from him. His expression was harder to read. Shock. Annoyance. Something else. I ignored both of them and pulled out a chair. The room looked like a private office, smaller than the downstairs spaces, quieter, arranged differently. Of course it was. I sat. Darius’s eyes stayed fixed on the shirt I was wearing. I lowered mine immediately. “Can we start?” I asked. Joel cleared his throat and reached for the

Old Habits; The Message He Saw

Arielle Emris kept glancing into the rearview mirror, his eyes narrowing as he tried to figure out which car had been tailing us. “Hold on,” he muttered. Without warning, he took a sharp turn and looped back into another lane. A second later, he spotted it. The same car Nathan had been driving. Emris let out a low breath. “I think it’s your boyfriend.” I turned sharply. “What?” He smirked. “Guess he doesn’t want to let you go.” I ignored the teasing and looked through the back window. Damn it. It really was Nathan. What was he thinking? Maybe he hadn’t believed me when I said I’d speak to Darius. Or maybe he’d already called Joel, and Joel had told him to follow me. “Can you lose him?” I asked. Emris glanced at me once. “You two fighting?” “Oh my God, stop with the boyfriend fantasy,” I snapped. “Just lose him.” He studied my face for a second, then nodded. “Okay.” Traffic was thick enough to help us. Cars poured through every lane, horns blaring, an

Tracked

Arielle Oh fuck. Shit. Damn. I blinked at the screen, disappointment sinking through me like cold water. “What home is he talking about?” Emris asked. I couldn’t answer. My mind was still trying to process the worst possible text arriving at the worst possible moment. “Darius,” he said again, slower this time. “As in Rothwell Darius?” My throat tightened. I should’ve taken my phone with me to the restroom. “The same guy, powerful enough to get his hands on your project? Your files? Your work?” My head snapped toward him. How did he know about that? “What do you mean?” His expression hardened. “I made my findings, and I heard he was always coming there.” Oh dear. I sat down slowly, as if the chair might collapse beneath me. “It’s not what you think,” I said weakly. “Things just got…messed up.” “What got messed up?” He asked. “What does he want from you exactly?” That was the same question I’d been asking myself for weeks. Darius could have anyone. Anyth

A Different Kind Of Power

Arielle “You belong to me,” he said coldly. His words hit harder than they should’ve. My mind spiraled. I shut my eyes, trying to block out the coldness, the heat of his breath–Then suddenly, he stepped back. I blinked. Darius dropped to one knee and reached for my leg. Without a word, he slipped off my heels. My breath caught…Okay. I wiped my tears quickly, watching him. He looked up at me for a few seconds. I held his gaze, blank, unsure what this version of him meant. “You don’t have to pretend you care,” I said quietly. “It’s just the two of us.”No response. He simply took my ankle again and began to massage it. I winced. Then the pressure increased. Pain shot up my leg. What was he even doing?“Okay. That’s enough,” I pulled my leg away sharply. He looked at me strangely, then he smiled. My brows furrowed. “What are you smiling for?”“Nothing.”And just like that, he stood and walked out. I stared after him. That smile…wasn’t normal. I reached for my phone. Almost

A Spitting Image

Arielle Could this be it? Could this be the only way to beat Darius? Through his mother. The last time at the office, he had tried to avoid her. I thought it meant fear. Weakness. Something I could use. Now…I wasn’t so sure. “There’s my son,” her voice rang through the house as she walked in like she owned every inch of it. Darius’s hand slipped away from mine instantly as if I’d burned him. I froze. She rushed forward and pulled him into a hug. I waited for tension or resistance. I waited for something. Turns out he was a mama’s boy. “Hey, mother,” he said calmly. Calmly. I stood by the stairs, watching. The staff had gone still again, like statues trained not to react. “Joel stopped me at the door,” she said, laughing lightly. “Imagine that. He wouldn’t let me in.”Darius chuckled along as he glanced at Joel behind her. Somehow, Joel understood him and walked outside. “How are you?” Darius asked. “I’m fine. And you?”“I’m living.”Darius chuckled again. Her eyes drif

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