Semua Bab REBIRTH OF THE SUBSTITUTE BRIDE : Bab 51 - Bab 60

Chapter 51"I swear, your PR inbox is where corporate optimism goes to die," Alex said, leaning his hip against the edge of my desk with a tablet tucked under his arm. A slight, amused grin played at the corner of his lips. "The legal team just flagged the latest update. Lannister Global sent over a revised buyout package this morning—twenty percent higher than the last one."I didn't even look up from the fabric swatches spread across my desk. "And?""And you rejected it in under forty seconds," he chuckling softly. "Without even opening the PDF attachment. Miller from acquisitions looked like he was about to cry when he called me."I tossed my fabric shears onto the desk with a dull metallic clatter. "They just don't seem to get the memo. Sterling isn't for sale.""Camille, it was a nine-figure offer," Alex said, his voice light, but his eyes searching mine. "Most people would at least read the cover letter.""I don't care if it's ten figures," I muttered, pulling a fresh swatch o

Chapter 53"If you don't get the chicken soup, I'm locking you out of the building," I said, cradling the phone between my shoulder and ear as I smoothed a piece of fabric over the dress form in front of me.Alex’s low, warm laugh buzzed against my eardrum. "Message received. One chicken soup, extra sides. Should I grab those little espresso tarts you pretend you’re only buying for the studio staff?""First of all, I do share them," I argued, a genuine smile pulling at my lips as I used my free hand to make a quick snip into the hem with my shears. "Clara gets at least two. But yes. Get eight. And don't be late, Maguire, I’m starving.""Yes, ma'am," Alex murmured, his tone dropping into that soft, playful lilt that always made my chest feel ridiculously light. "Anything else I can fetch for you, my lady?""Nothing at the moment, just—"A sudden, sharp commotion cut through the heavy oak doors of my private office."Sir! Wait! Sir, you can't just go in there!" Clara’s voice rang out, f

Chapter 55KADE LANNISTER The back of the Maybach was suffocating or was I just too confused to be comfortable?I leaned my head against the cold tinted glass, staring blankly as the city blurred past outside. My hands—resting flat against my knees—wouldn't stop shaking. It wasn't from anger. It wasn't even shock anymore. It was this hollow, dizzying vertigo, like the ground beneath my feet had split wide open and swallowed me whole.Up front, my driver caught my eye in the rearview mirror, his posture rigid. He didn't ask what had happened back inside that office building. He didn't ask why security had practically marched me out to the curb like a common intruder. He just kept his hands at ten-and-two, driving us back toward the hotel in dead silence.I closed my eyes, but the dark didn't help.All I could see was her face.“I’m not Aurora.”Her voice kept repeating in my head, a desperate, breathless lie. Because I knew that face better than I knew my own reflection. I knew the e

Chapter 57 I paced the perimeter of the penthouse suite, the floor-to-ceiling glass offering a sweeping view of the rain-drenched city skyline below. I didn't see the glittering skyscraper lights. I didn't see the storm streaking down the glass. All I saw was the phantom image of her face, burning into the dark reflection in front of me. “I’m not Aurora.” Her voice was still echoing in my ears, a breathless, terrified lie that hit like a physical punch every time it cycled through my brain. My chest felt suffocatingly tight. My hands were clenched so hard into fists that my knuckles burned white, the skin stretched taut over bone. She looked at me like she’d seen a ghost. But I was the one who had buried her, or what I thought was her. I was the one who had stood in the pouring rain five years ago, watching six feet of dirt cover a brass casket, believing my life was over. My mind was a chaotic war zone. Was I losing my mind? Had grief finally fractured my sanity? No. I rem

Chapter 59Alex turned to me, the easy smile vanishing from his face as his expression turned sharp, focused, and intensely serious. He stepped deeper into the space, leaning back against the edge of Ethan's dark oak desk, crossing his arms over his chest."I just got off the phone with my security team in the car," Alex said quietly, keeping his voice at a low, measured register so it wouldn't carry down the corridor. "They’ve wiped every trace. Ethan’s hospital records from abroad, his birth certificate cross-links, his pre-K registration—there’s zero paper trail connecting him to Sterling House, to Camille Sterling, or to me."A tight, suffocating knot right in the center of my chest loosened just a fraction, letting air back into my lungs. "And the school? What about their database?""Handled," Alex said firmly, his posture rigid. "I spoke directly with the head of security and the board director at his preschool at seven this morning. I gave them a high-res photo of Kade Lannis