บททั้งหมดของ Champagne And Chaos: บทที่ 41 - บทที่ 50

Ethan's silence stayed with me long after the call ended.I sat in the back of the SUV with the phone still pressed against my ear even though the line had gone dead.Ruelle looked at me.Laura looked at me.Even the driver seemed to be waiting for whatever dramatic sentence was supposed to come next.Nothing came.Because what was I supposed to say?Ethan had just confirmed without confirming anything that someone had been watching me before the wedding.Before I became his wife.Before the champagne.Before tequila number nine.Before the ring.Before I had any idea that Ethan Bramhall was going to become the biggest complication of my life.And when I'd asked him directly if the threats started before our marriage, he hadn't answered.That wasn't an answer.It was worse.By the time we reached the safe location, I'd already made a decision.I was going to find out for myself.I didn't tell Ethan.Obviously.Because apparently every time I asked Ethan a question, I received three th

Ethan didn't move.Neither did I.The photograph of Adrian Vale sat between us on the table, looking far too innocent for something that had managed to turn the entire room into a battlefield.I waited.For once, I wasn't going to fill the silence.If Ethan wanted to keep his secrets, he could sit with them.If he wanted me to leave, he could say it.If he wanted to tell me the truth, I was going to make him do it with actual words instead of those irritating silences that somehow managed to say more than entire conversations.He looked at the photograph again.Then he exhaled."My father built Bramhall Holdings from nothing."I blinked.That wasn't what I expected.I pulled out the chair beside the table and sat.Ethan remained standing."My grandfather had money," he continued. "Not an empire. Not anything close to what people associate with the Bramhall name now. He had investments, property, a few businesses."He looked toward the shelves."My father wanted more."There was someth

I looked at the photograph of Adrian Vale one last time before closing the file.I didn't know whether that made me brave or stupid.Possibly both.With my luck, it was definitely both.By the time we arrived at the gala that evening, I had spent most of the car ride pretending I wasn't thinking about a man who had disappeared eleven years ago and somehow managed to crawl back into my life without even having the decency to send a postcard.The gala was being held at the Astor House, one of those Manhattan buildings that looked less like a venue and more like a historical landmark that had reluctantly agreed to host rich people.The entrance was lined with black cars, photographers, security personnel and women wearing enough diamonds to blind passing aircraft. The moment Ethan's car stopped, the atmosphere changed.Flashbulbs erupted.I took a breath.This was where I was supposed to smile.Not too much.Not too little.Don't look terrified.Don't trip.Don't accidentally insult a bi

The next morning, I woke up with one very inconvenient problem.I remembered the kiss.Not vaguely.Not in the way people remembered embarrassing things after drinking too much champagne and hoped their brains had been kind enough to delete the evidence.I remembered every second.Which was unfortunate.Because apparently my brain had decided that everything else from the previous night was optional information, but Ethan Bramhall kissing me without cameras, reporters, excuses, or an audience was a matter of national importance.I stared at the ceiling."No."The room remained silent.I nodded."Exactly."Still silent."Nothing happened."My own voice sounded unconvincing.I threw the blanket off and got out of bed.Nothing had happened.It had been a kiss.One kiss.A very long, very real, extremely unnecessary kiss that I had absolutely participated in with both enthusiasm and zero common sense.But it didn't change anything.We were still married because of a ridiculous drunken mis

By eight o'clock, I had changed my dress three times.Not because I cared.Obviously.I simply had a very strong opinion about not looking like I had spent the entire afternoon thinking about dinner with my husband.Which I hadn't.Not exclusively.I had also spent several hours thinking about the kiss.And Ruelle's irritating speech about being emotionally married.And Ethan's message.And the fact that I had smiled at my phone like an idiot after reading it.So, technically, the dress changes were justified.I was standing in front of the mirror deciding between black and deep blue when Laura appeared in the doorway.She looked at me.Then at the dresses scattered across the bed.Then back at me."You have changed three times.""Four."She glanced at the fourth dress."Why?""Because the first three offended me.""How?""They existed."Laura considered that."I'll add wardrobe instability to your security profile.""Please don't."She nodded."Understood."My phone rang.I picked it