Semua Bab Midnight Heat: Bab 71 - Bab 80

Maya’s POVThe rumor spread faster than I expected. By the next morning, my phone would not stop buzzing with notifications. Annabelle’s social media story reached many people in our circle. Whispers followed me when I walked into the office building. Two secretaries looked at me and stopped talking suddenly. I kept my head down and went straight to my small desk. Mr. Havisham was already there, typing on his laptop with a calm face.I sat down and tried to focus on my tasks. My cheeks felt hot. Everyone seemed to know something. Chloe had not replied to any message. The post tagged her, and now our broken friendship looked public. I checked my phone again. More comments appeared under the blurred photo. “Office secrets exposed,” one person wrote. “Powerful men always get what they want,” another added.Mr. Havisham looked up from his desk. “You seem distracted again, Maya,” he said in his low voice. “Is it the little social media noise? Ignore it. People talk but they forget fast.” I

Maya’s POVI held the tiny black device in my palm. The small blinking light made my stomach twist with fear. Liam stared at it too. His face changed from soft after our passionate moment to hard and alert. We stood in the quiet lounge. My clothes still felt messy from what we just did.“What is that?” Liam asked. His voice came out low and worried. “Maya, where did you find it?”I showed him the small tracker again. “It fell from under my collar,” I replied. “Someone put it on me. Maybe Julian during the kiss. Or earlier in the office. I feel sick, Liam. Someone is always watching me.”Liam took the device carefully. He turned it over in his fingers. “This is professional,” he said. “High quality. We need to destroy it but not here. They might have backup signals.” He crushed it under his shoe. The plastic cracked. The light went dead. “There. It is gone now. But you are right. Someone is always watching. We must be more careful from now on.”I nodded slowly. My

Maya’s POVThe news from Elena hit me like a heavy stone in my chest. I sat on my small bed early the next morning with my phone pressed to my ear. Tears already filled my eyes as I listened to her explain the situation again. The children. Sarah’s children. They were the only real family I had left and now the Cross family council wanted to take them away.“Elena, please tell me there is something we can do,” I said with a shaking voice. “I cannot lose them. They are all I have from Sarah. I promised to protect them.”Elena’s voice came through steady but worried. “I am working on an emergency filing, Maya,” she replied. “We have a hearing in two days. You need to show you are stable. The scandals are hurting your case. Victoria is pushing hard with evidence of your connection to Mr. Havisham. You must be careful at the office today.”I wiped my tears and stood up. “I will try,” I answered. “But I have to go back to work. He will get suspicious if I stay away. Thank you for fighting

Maya’s POVI stood there in my small apartment with my arms crossed tight over my chest. Liam’s words about reporting on Sarah still hung in the air like heavy smoke. My heart felt torn between the man in front of me and the memory of my sister. He looked at me with those sharp eyes full of regret. I wanted to believe him but doubt kept whispering in my head.“Liam, you reported on her,” I said slowly. “You watched my sister and told them where she was. How can I forgive that so easily?” Liam took one step closer but stopped when I did not move. “I know it sounds bad, Maya,” he replied gently. “It was early in my mission. I thought I was doing the right thing by gathering information. I did not understand how dangerous Mr. Havisham was back then. After I saw what happened, I tried to help her. I swear I did.”I wiped fresh tears from my warm brown skin. The pain from Chloe cutting contact still burned inside me. Now this. “I want to trust you,” I whispered. “You held me through my bre

Maya’s POVThe grand hall felt hotter now. Music played low around us while masked guests laughed and whispered. Julian pressed me harder against the wall in the dark corner. His fingers moved boldly under my dress. They touched me in ways that made my body react even as shame burned my cheeks. I moaned softly against his shoulder. People walked past and glanced at us. Some smiled behind their masks. The humiliation made my skin crawl.“Julian, please,” I whispered. My voice trembled. “Not here where everyone can see. This is too much.” He kissed my neck harder. His breath felt hot on my skin. “This is the game, Maya,” he replied. “Let them watch. It makes you look like mine. The man in the gold mask is still watching you. Get more from him after this.” His fingers pushed deeper. Pleasure mixed with embarrassment. I gripped his shoulders tight. “You are using me like Mr. Havisham does,” I said between gasps. “I hate this feeling.”Julian pulled back slightly. His eyes looked dark behi