บททั้งหมดของ The CEO’s Replacement Bride: บทที่ 31 - บทที่ 40

Aria’s POVLiam really had no respect.Because tell me why this man just walked into the mansion like he paid rent here.No knocking.The nerve of this guy.Just opened the door and stepped in like, yeah, I belong here.By the look I caught Nathan giving him, I could tell he was beyond pissed.I blinked at him from where I stood near the stairs, my clutch halfway in my hand.“Do you usually enter people’s houses like a thief or is today special?” I asked, raising a brow.He grinned as I had just complimented him. “Relax, you permitted me. I’m here for you dumbass.”“That doesn’t mean you get to waltz in here.”“It was either that or stand outside and look like a lost boyfriend.”I choked a little. “You’re neither.”He smirked. “Debatable.”I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t stop the small smile tugging at my lips. Liam always had a way of talking nonsense like it actually made sense.And then I felt it.That shift in the air.The kind that makes your skin tighten before your brain even

Aria’s POVI should’ve known the second we stepped through those stupid white marble doors that this night was going to be a special kind of hell.Because the whole plan, the entire goddamn point of this dress and this attitude and bringing Liam like I was trying to start a war, was for Nathan’s family to take one look at me and decide I was unfit to be anywhere near their precious son. I wanted gasps and clutching pearls. I wanted Mrs Cross to stand up and say something like “young lady, this is a house of decency” so I could flip her off and finally have my grounds for a divorce.What I did not expect was for them to smile at me like I was a lost puppy they found on the side of the road.“Evening everyone!” I said, and my voice came out way louder than I meant it to, bouncing off the walls like I was hosting a damn party instead of walking into a family dinner. “Sorry we’re late, traffic was an absolute bitch.”Silence for half a second then Mrs Cross tilted her head, her pearl ne

Aria’s POV Sometimes life decides to play silly games on me. Today was one of those times. I tried my best to avoid making eye contact with Nathan but I could feel his eyes burning holes into the back of my head. I know I’m gorgeous and all but take your eyes off me, man. “Stop staring at me.” “You were staring at me earlier, I think it’s fair I get to stare at you too.” I gulped, Nathan came closer to me. Close enough that I could feel his breath fanning against my face. That rich intoxicating scent of his perfume filled my nostrils. “You can stare all you want, I won’t charge you.” A small smirk appeared on his face, my cheeks burned hot in embarrassment. Could this day get any worse? Just kill me already. “Why are you running?” His question threw me off guard, I stared at him silently. I had no idea how to answer that question, and he sure as hell won’t like my answer. How do I tell him that I’m scared of getting attached to him? I’m scared he is going to choose

Aria’s POV I couldn’t bring myself to sleep. No matter how hard I tried I couldn’t go to bed. Just go to bed Aria. Close your eyes. Come on, you got this. Yeah, easier said than done when the man I supposedly hate is spooning me like it’s the most natural thing in the world. I tried counting sheep, I tried counting anything actually but my mind kept circling back to the same infuriating question — what did he mean about my father? Businessmen lie a lot, he’d said. Ask your father, he knows a lot about that. What was that supposed to mean? Just when I wanted to press further, he grabbed me by my ass and basically hauled me off to bed. He was clearly avoiding my question. Nathan didn’t say things by accident. I’d figured that much out since the day my father shoved me down that aisle in my sister’s wedding dress like I was some kind of last-minute substitute. Alexa. God, where was she? Months of silence. Months of my father acting like his eldest daught

Aria’s POV Nathan flipped the folder open, and I practically lunged forward to get a better look, my heart hammering against my ribs like it wanted to escape my chest. Property listings? That’s what greeted me. Page after page of property listings, all stamped with names I recognized instantly. Hayes Industries and Cross Global Enterprise. Co-owned assets: buildings, warehouses, some kind of shipping port I didn’t even know my father had any involvement in. “What is this?” I asked, flipping through the pages of the folder. “Your father took out a loan,” Nathan said, watching me carefully. “Years ago. Before you were even old enough to understand what any of this meant.” “A loan? For what?” I asked giving him a confused look. “To keep Hayes Industries afloat. Your father’s business was drowning, Aria. Bad investments and bad decisions. My father bailed him out.” I stared at him, waiting for the part where this became the huge, earth-shattering secret everyone in