Lahat ng Kabanata ng You Lost Me, Desmond Vaughn : Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

Isabella sat alone in her office, but the stack of documents spread neatly across her desk remained untouched. She couldn’t focus. Her thoughts kept drifting back to Olive — more specifically, to the threat Olive had made.If you tell Desmond the truth about Clara… I’ll tell him yours.The words echoed relentlessly inside her head. She slowly leaned back in her chair, her fingers tapping against the polished wood of her desk. For decades, she had protected that secret while carefully preserving the flawless image of the Vaughn family. Every sacrifice she had made, every lie she had told, and every decision she had taken had been for one purpose—to protect both of her sons from the kind of miserable life she had endured. She wanted them admired, respected, and untouchable in the eyes of the world. She wasn't about to let a cheap girl like Olive destroy everything she had spent a lifetime building.Her thoughts drifted back to the day she had first met Olive at the hospital, moments bef

The study door closed softly behind them.Olive remained standing near the entrance as Isabella turned to meet her eyes.“Do you know why I asked you to come here?”Olive shook her head.“No.”“Hm.”Isabella’s gaze lingered on her for a moment before she made her way back to the desk and sat down.“Come. Sit.”Olive obeyed without a word. Isabella opened one of the drawers and withdrew a familiar brown envelope. Without saying anything, she slid it across the polished surface of the desk.“Open it.”Olive picked it up, wondering what it contained. She carefully pulled out the documents inside. Confusion crossed her face. Divorce papers. Then she saw Genevieve’s name… along with her signature.“You disappoint me.”The words were spoken so calmly they carried far more weight than if Isabella had shouted.“My son was supposed to sign those papers. You were brought into this family to make him forget Genevieve.” She glanced at the envelope resting in Olive’s hands. “Instead… nothing has c

Victoria drew a slow breath before tearing her eyes away from the studio.“Come on,” she said quietly. “You have another meeting in fifteen minutes.”Alain gave one last glance toward the set before following beside her. Neither of them spoke at first. The hallway was lined with framed campaign photographs from previous Sterling Couture collections. Every image told the story of a different season, a different face, a different chapter in the company’s history. Their footsteps echoed softly against the marble floor.It was Victoria who finally broke the silence. Just outside Alain’s office, she stopped.“There was something else.”Alain looked at her expectantly. He waited and slipped his hands into his trouser pockets.“My mother called this morning.”He waited.“They think it’s time. They want us to announce our marriage during the Sterling Legacy Gala.”Alain’s expression remained unreadable. Victoria searched his face for a reaction. She found none.“The press will already be ther

Standing upright seemed to take far more effort than it should.Ethan frowned.“Are you okay?”His voice made Olive turn toward him. She forced a small smile.“It’s just morning sickness,” she said softly. “I’m pregnant. I’ll be fine.”As she spoke, Ethan’s eyes drifted to the glass of water in her hand. Her fingers were wrapped so tightly around it that her knuckles had turned white. She tried to take another step. Suddenly, the hallway seemed to tilt beneath her feet. The walls blurred together, and a wave of dizziness hit so hard she couldn’t tell which way was up. She froze, clutching the staircase railing with one hand while the other instinctively tightened around the glass.Ethan’s smile disappeared.“Olive?”He moved toward her immediately.“Are you sure you’re okay? Is it that bad? I can call Desmond or take you to the hospital.”She shook her head weakly.“No… I’m okay…”The words had barely left her mouth before her knees gave out. Her fingers loosened. The glass slipped fr

Auto Saved Word Count 12379/70“Mom, I already told you. I’m not announcing our marriage tonight.”Alain tightened his cufflink as he stood in front of the mirror, his phone pressed against his ear. He had been getting ready for the gala for nearly twenty minutes, but the conversation with his mother had turned into an argument he had no intention of losing.“You cannot be serious,” his mother replied. “Your father has already spoken to the Sterling board, and Victoria’s parents are expecting the announcement. What exactly do you want us to tell them when you walk into that ballroom and say nothing?”“Tell them I changed my mind.”“Alain.”He closed his eyes briefly.“I said I’m not doing it.”His mother’s voice hardened. “You and Victoria are married. You agreed to this arrangement, and tonight is simply the first time both families intended to acknowledge it publicly. Why are you suddenly acting as though something has changed?”Alain said nothing.There were some things he could