جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 70

The call lasted three seconds, but it was enough to make me realize Ethan was no longer in control of what happened next. The abrupt click of the line dropping echoed in my ear, leaving behind a heavy, suffocating silence that made the walls of the penthouse feel like they were closing in. I paced the length of the hardwood floor, my phone gripped so tightly in my hand that my knuckles ached. He had only been gone an hour since he walked out the heavy oak doors to meet Victor face-to-face and put an end to this corporate nightmare once and for all. He promised he would be back before midnight. He promised we would finally have our peace. But the cold dread twisting in my stomach told me promises meant nothing tonight.Down the hall, the low murmur of voices abruptly spiked. I didn't wait; I strode out of the living room and headed straight for the security annex, where banks of monitors flickered with live feeds of the estate. Ethan’s head of security, Marcus, stood over the central

Victor wanted me frightened, but the moment I saw Ethan behind that locked door, fear stopped being the strongest thing inside me. I planted my feet firmly against the concrete floor, my back pressed against the cold steel of the cell door, and stared straight into Victor’s cold eyes. He took a slow, deliberate step forward, his expensive leather shoes clicking loudly against the grime."Hand over the tracker, Aria," Victor demanded, holding out an open palm with a harsh, impatient scowl. "You triggered the signal the moment you walked past the checkpoint. Do you honestly think a handful of corporate security guards can take down a perimeter I spent six months securing?""I'm not giving you anything, Victor," I snapped, keeping my voice level and sharp. "You lost the moment you decided to use physical force instead of boardrooms. It means your entire scheme is falling apart."Victor’s face twisted with ugly malice. He gestured toward the locked room behind me, his voice dropping into

"The votes have been verified and certified," the chairman announced, his voice carrying clearly across the quiet hall.My heart hammered hard against my ribs, a wild, breathless rhythm as I stared straight ahead at the podium. Beside me, Ethan did not flinch, his shoulders remaining square and his expression locked in a calm, impenetrable mask of absolute focus. Across the aisle, Victor’s lead attorney smirked openly, leaning in to whisper something smug to his associate as if the victory belonged to them.The silence in the auditorium stretched out, heavy and suffocating, waiting for the single sentence that would dictate our entire future. My thoughts raced back to the cold, distant billionaire who had first demanded a contract for my life months ago, a man who saw warmth as a weakness and emotion as a liability. Looking at the profile of his face now, etched with strength and hard-won resilience, I felt a deep, fierce shift inside my chest. I wasn't afraid of what the outcome m

"You don't have to answer tonight, Aria," Ethan murmured, his dark eyes reading every flicker of hesitation on my face as his thumb brushed my cheek."It's just..." I swallowed hard, my fingers twisting tightly into the fabric of my skirt. "Marriage is enormous, Ethan. Our lives are entirely different. You walk in a world of power and influence that I spent my whole life standing outside of. When you talk about forever, it feels like stepping off an edge without knowing if there is solid ground."He dropped his hand from my face back to the steering wheel, turning slightly toward me so he had my full attention. "I'm not asking for an immediate answer. I just need you to know where my head is. I see a future with you. Not an assistant, not a temporary distraction, but you."Hearing him say those words sent a sharp shiver down my spine, filling my chest with a fierce, blinding happiness right alongside a cold wave of absolute terror. I met his steady gaze through the dim cabin light.

I thought the hardest part of loving Ethan was surviving his enemies; I was wrong, the hardest part might be convincing the people who believed they knew who he should marry.Vanessa’s parting warning still echoed in my ears, but the real storm broke not long after when the corporate gossip mill shifted toward something far more personal. I stood near the office pantry, holding a cup of lukewarm coffee, when I overheard two senior analysts whispering near the window. They weren't talking about spreadsheets or market projections; they were discussing the intense pressure Ethan’s family had been facing from powerful, affluent dynasties eager to secure a high-society alliance.At first, I brushed it off as idle office chatter, the kind of baseless speculation that always surrounded a billionaire CEO. But the illusion shattered completely when I learned the truth behind the whispers. A wealthy, internationally educated heiress named Camille Laurent had shared a deeply entrenched history