All Chapters of More than a billionaires contract : Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Zara I had done my eyeliner three times before I finally got the wing even. The curling iron sat warm in my hands as I worked through the last section of hair, twisting it loose around my shoulder the way I’d practiced a hundred times on ordinary nights for ordinary reasons. I swept a nude lipstick on my lips, checked it against my red dress, wiped it off and tried the red lipstick instead. “Better.” I said to myself. One last look in the mirror. Hair down, loose waves, makeup soft, except my eyes, which I lined dark and sharp on purpose. I barely recognized the woman staring back. A quiet knock came from my door with a voice. “Are you ready?” “Two minutes,” I called, picking up the necklace I had bought earlier. It is way more beautiful now on me than it was on the shelf.When I stepped out of my room, River was standing by the floor to ceiling window in a black tuxedo, one hand in his pocket, and something in his posture told me he’d been standing there for longer than two

RiverSleep refused to come. I had closed my laptop over an hour ago, yet I was still lying awake, staring at the ceiling. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Zara standing behind me, shaking. What happened at the gala still played in my head nonstop. I turned to my side and stared at my door. With a quiet sigh, I pushed the covers away and left my room. The apartment was silent. Only the city lights filtered, casting pale ribbons of silver across the marble floor. I headed towards the kitchen, deciding a glass of water might succeed where sleep had failed. I had barely reached the end of the hallway when I stopped. A sound was coming from Zara’s bedroom. A broken whisper. My head turned towards her door and for a moment I simply listened. And then I heard a muffled cry. “Please….”My chest tightened. I found myself walking before I consciously decided to move. Each step felt strangely heavy. By the time I reached her door, I couldn’t hear anything. I just stood there, starin

River Meetings had never exhausted me. People assume they did. They imagined hours of negotiations, presentations and endless discussions would wear anyone down. But they were wrong. Meetings were always predictable. People came in wanting one thing, but left with another, and somewhere in between, I made sure Cassian Holdings benefited the most. “Five percent is too aggressive.” One of the investors slid the proposal across the conference table. “The projected return doesn’t justify that level of expansion. “It does,” I replied evenly. I tapped the financial report in front of him. “You are looking at this quarter.” He frowned. “I’m looking three years ahead.” Silence settled over the room. Another investor adjusted his glasses before speaking. “The overseas market is volatile.” “So was this ten years ago.” I leaned back slightly. “We expanded anyway. And it even became one of our most profitable divisions.” No one argued. They just watched me. And for the next tw

River The file looked wrong before it was even placed on my desk. I had expected a lot of pages that contained names, addresses or something tangible. Instead, the folder looked like it had more questions than answers. The investigator sat across from me, his posture unusually stiff. He wasn’t always the type to look uncertain. That alone already gave me the impression that he had not found what I was looking for. “I’m sorry Mr Cassian, but I do not have anything solid. I was not able to uncover as much as I’d hoped. I rested my hands on the file and looked him dead in the eye. I had no intention of opening it. “What did you find?” He nodded once. “The first thing I found was that she was raised by her father when she was very little. Maybe five or six years old thereabout. Her mother passed. My expression did not change. I just waited for him to continue. “She spent most of her childhood in boarding school. Until she graduated high school.” He stopped speaking, as though

Zara I sat opposite the room River was in. The hospital corridor felt unbearably quiet. My hands were clasped tightly in my lap, while staring at the closed door in front of me. River had been there for hours, nurses just walked in and came out. None of them were saying anything. My mind went back to how I found River. He was on the floor unconscious. I was confused because he looked okay when we spoke. His body was frighteningly still. I hadn’t realized I was crying until a tear slipped down my cheeks. I wiped it off fast but another followed fast. I let that one go down to Jean. Oliver was sitting beside me. He was quiet. I called him when I found River on the floor. He was the only one that I could think of. He came very fast. I didn’t know what else I could have done because I couldn’t carry River all by myself. The thought of River dying made my chest tighten. I didn’t know when the thought became a desperate prayer. I lowered my head and rubbed my palm together. The d