جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 120

❤️Sophie❤️After Adrian leaves, I remain by the window for a little while. I watch his car disappear through the gates until I can no longer see it. He said he would be right back. I believe him.Still, there is something about the way he left that stays with me. He had been distracted before, but this was different. His face looked harder, his movements more deliberate, as if something had pulled him away from the part of himself that had been sitting beside me only minutes earlier.I don’t know what happened. And maybe I don’t need to. If Adrian wants to tell me, he will.I turn away from the window and walk toward the living room, but halfway there, I stop.I suddenly think about him. About the question I asked him. About the way he looked at me when I asked if we could make our marriage real.A small smile touches my lips. I still don’t know what his answer will be. But he didn’t say no. That has to mean something.I walk upstairs slowly, still thinking about him. Maybe I should

☠️Adrian☠️The drive home feels longer than it should. I barely remember leaving the vault.Sergei’s voice is still in my head, dragging memories out of places I spent years burying. The basement. The beatings. The laughter. The humiliation. The scars I learned to live with because there was no other choice.But the closer I get to home, the quieter those memories become. Not because they disappear. Because Sophie replaces them.I picture her standing in the doorway this morning, watching me leave. The softness in her eyes. The trust. The way she had looked almost embarrassed when she asked me if we could make our marriage real.A real marriage. The words have followed me all the way home. I slow down as I turn into the driveway.The house is lit from inside. For some reason, that simple sight affects me more than it should. Home.I have had houses before. Apartments. Penthouses. Properties scattered across cities. Places built to protect me, places chosen because they were secure and

☠️Adrian☠️By the time I leave the house, the image of Sophie is still in my head. I sit behind the wheel for a moment before starting the engine.Her voice keeps replaying in my head. “I love you, Adrian.”I close my eyes. I should be thinking about Felix. I should be thinking about Sergei.I should be thinking about the companies waiting for my signature and the pieces of Harrison’s empire that are already slipping through Felix’s fingers.Instead, I am thinking about Sophie standing in the kitchen this morning, smiling at me like there is nowhere else she would rather be.That is becoming a problem. Not because I don’t want her. Because I want her too much. My phone vibrates on the console. I glance at the screen. Damien.I answer. “Talk.”“We have a problem.”My hand tightens around the steering wheel. “What kind?”“Felix.”I start the car. “What did he do?”“He moved faster than we expected.”I pull out of the driveway. “Explain.”“He’s been shifting money between three of his re

☠️Adrian☠️I don’t like surprises. Especially when they involve Sophie. So when I discovered Felix called her, everything inside me went still. I drop the phone and turn toward Damien, a part of me is grateful she hasn’t gone to meet him before I found out.I lean back in my chair. Felix has spent the entire morning moving money, restructuring ownership, and trying to protect what remains of his companies.Now he’s reaching for Sophie. I don’t know why. And I don’t intend to find out by letting her walk into the middle of something I haven’t assessed.I glance at the time. “Where the fuck is Felix?”“Still at the foundation.”I stand. “Cancel the next meeting.”Damien watches me. “You’re going to see him.”“I’m going to find out why he suddenly needs to speak to my wife.” I leave the office before he can say anything else.The drive to the foundation gives me too much time to think. Felix knows I’m buying his companies. He knows the acquisitions aren’t random.He has started moving m

❤️Sophie❤️The next morning feels strangely ordinary.By the time I come downstairs, the house is already awake. I hear the maids moving around the kitchen, the quiet clatter of dishes and the occasional murmur between them as they prepare breakfast. Sunlight stretches across the dining room floor, bright enough to make the whole house feel warmer than it actually is.Adrian is already there. He’s sitting at the head of the table with a cup of coffee in one hand, his attention on his phone. His shirt sleeves are rolled to his forearms, and there’s something about the way he sits so comfortably in his own house that makes me smile before he even notices me.He looks up. “Morning.”“Morning.” I walk over and take the chair beside him.He reaches for my hand beneath the table without looking away from his phone, giving my fingers a brief squeeze before returning his attention to whatever he’s reading.I smile to myself. A maid places breakfast in front of me, then another pours fresh c