Semua Bab The Chubby Wife's Revenge.: Bab 21 - Bab 30

Amelia.By the time Nathaniel’s car pulled beneath the grand entrance of the Vaughn Winter Gala, my hands were already cold again.Outside, camera flashes exploded so brightly they lit the tinted windows almost white.Crowds of reporters gathered behind velvet barricades.Luxury cars lined the entrance endlessly while elegantly dressed guests disappeared into the massive ballroom beyond the marble stairs.The entire hotel looked unreal.Too expensive.Too polished.Too important.And somewhere inside that building—Daniel was waiting.I swallowed carefully as the car came to a smooth stop.Nathaniel noticed my mood change.“You’re thinking too loudly again.”I looked toward him weakly.“What does that even mean?”“It means,” he said calmly while adjusting the cuff of his suit, “your face gives you away long before your mouth does.”Despite my nerves, a quiet breath of laughter escaped me.Nathaniel’s gaze softened slightly at the sound.Then he reached over and gently took one of my ha

Amelia.The ride home was quiet, though not uncomfortable. Just heavy in a way that made every sound inside the car feel a little louder somehow.I sat beside Nathaniel watching the city lights blur past the tinted windows while tension still lingered tightly beneath my ribs.Nathaniel hadn’t touched me since we left the gala. He hadn't even said a word. And somehow I felt his restraint more because of it.Beside me, his jaw remained tight enough that I noticed every time he exhaled slowly through his nose like he was forcing himself to stay calm.Finally, quietly, I asked:“Are you angry with me?”Nathaniel turned toward me instantly.The look in his eyes caught me off guard completely.Almost offended.“Not with you.”The answer came without hesitation.Firm enough that something inside my chest loosened immediately.Nathaniel looked away again briefly toward the passing lights outside before continuing more quietly.“I’m angry that he still thinks he’s allowed to speak to you that

Amelia.Ever had a good sleep that, even after waking up, you want to stay in bed a little longer?That was exactly how I felt.I woke up before I opened my eyes.For a few quiet seconds, I just lay there. Warm. Comfortable. Safe.There was a duvet draped across my waist.A familiar scent on the pillow beside me.And for the first time in a very long time, I could not remember what had made me sad before I fell asleep.Then memory caught up.The gala.The ride home.Nathaniel.My eyes flew open.Heat immediately rushed into my face."Oh, God."The words slipped out before I could stop them.A laugh sounded beside me.Deep.Sleep roughened.Mortifyingly amused.I slowly turned my head.Nathaniel was awake.Of course he was.He was propped against the headboard, one arm behind his head, watching me with entirely too much satisfaction for this early in the morning.I groaned and immediately buried my face in the pillow.The laugh came again."You know," he said, "most people usually say

Nathaniel.I stepped into my office and closed the door behind me. The morning had started so well.I had Amelia in my arms, my fingers bringing her to climax while she gasped my name. I was about to run her a warm bath when the call came through about the flowers. Just like that, the day shifted.The white roses stayed on my mind longer than they should have.Even though Amelia had thrown them out herself this morning, the whole thing still felt like Daniel trying to push his way back in. He wasn’t just sending flowers. He was reminding her — and me — that he thought he still had a claim.I had seen men like Daniel Carter before. Men who mistook control for love. Men who believed that as long as they could still reach her, she was still theirs.I had seen the look on her face when she read that card. Not loud anger. Just this quiet sadness that settled over her. And that quite unsettled me more than anything else.The thought made my jaw tighten as I sat at my desk. The city stretched

Daniel.Daniel stared at the financial report spread across his desk, hoping that a second look would somehow reveal a mistake. It didn't. The figures remained exactly where they had been ten minutes ago—bleeding red across the page like a wound that refused to close.Carter Industries was in trouble.Not the kind of trouble that made headlines overnight. Not the kind that sent investors running for the exits in a panic.This was worse.This was the slow kind.The kind that crept in quietly and settled into the foundation until one day the entire structure realized it could no longer support its own weight.Daniel leaned back in his chair and rubbed a hand over his face.For the last year, he had spent every waking hour trying to stop the damage.Every solution seemed to create two new problems.Every loan bought time but increased the pressure.Every sacrifice left another hole somewhere else.And somewhere in the middle of all that, someone had begun quietly acquiring shares in his