All Chapters of The Billionaire's Secret Marriage To His Enemy: Chapter 1 - Chapter 7

"There's nothing I can do."Maya Reed heard those six words and felt the floor go out from under her."You told me yesterday it was approved." Her voice cracked. "You said the paperwork was signed. I have the email.""The lender withdrew the offer this morning. I don't have the authority to override that."The call ended with a soft click. Almost polite. Somehow, that made it worse.Maya lowered the phone and stared at the dark screen, waiting for it to light up again, for the woman to call back and say it had all been a mistake.It didn't.Down the hall, a cart wheel squeaked against the linoleum. A vending machine dropped a can somewhere with a hollow metallic thud, and the hospital kept moving around her as if her entire world hadn't just collapsed in one phone call.Through the glass behind her, Danny lay beneath a thin white blanket.Seventeen years old.Her little brother.A monitor tracked the slow rhythm of his heart while a line ran into the back of his hand. His condition ha

The smell hit her first—antiseptic, cold and sharp, cutting beneath the steady beep of a heart monitor.For a few seconds, Maya didn't know where she was. All she knew was that her body ached in a way that felt unfamiliar and wrong. Then the memory returned in fragments: the crack of glass, the floor rushing up to meet her, Julian's weight over her back.She sat up too quickly.Pain lanced through her shoulder, stealing her breath.“Easy. Don't move too fast.”The nurse didn't even look up immediately. She said it with the casual efficiency of someone who had probably repeated the same warning a hundred times that week, her eyes still fixed on the computer at the foot of the bed.Maya blinked until the room came into focus—pale walls, blinds drawn against the morning light, an IV stand beside her bed.Hospital.Not Voss Tower.Her hand went to her chest before her mind had caught up with why. When it found nothing there, panic took over.“Where's my bag?”The nurse glanced over. “On t

Maya looked down at the brass key in her palm.It was small and ordinary, yet somehow it felt heavier than anything she'd ever held.She raised her eyes to Julian.“You knew about the storage unit.”His jaw tightened. A muscle moved once near his cheek before he answered.“Yes.”“And you had it cleared before we came here.”“Yes.”“Why?”Julian looked at the key instead of her.That told her more than his answer could have.“Because I suspected someone was using the unit to hide something,” he said. “Not before your father died. After. Someone had been going back.”Maya closed her fingers around the key. Its edges pressed into her skin, giving her something solid to focus on while everything else seemed to shift beneath her.“You suspected. You didn't know.”“I didn't have proof.”“When did that change?”“Just under two days ago.”Her head snapped up.“You could have told me.”“I could have.”He didn't defend himself. He didn't offer an excuse.He simply accepted the accusation.Someh

“Whatever was inside that box,” Whitfield said, “is already gone.”The call disconnected.Maya stared at the burner phone in her hand.“What the hell does that mean?”Julian reached for the phone.Maya caught his wrist.“Wait.”He looked at her hand, then at her face.“Maybe he'll call back.”“He won't.”“How do you know?”“Because he said exactly what he wanted us to hear.”Julian gently pulled his wrist free and took the phone from her.He examined it from every angle before removing the battery.“No identification. No SIM information we can trace easily.”Maya stared at him.“You sound like you've dealt with this before.”“I've dealt with people who don't want to be found.”“Is Whitfield one of them?”Julian looked at her.“I don't know.”“He knew we'd find Box 317.”“Yes.”“He knew I'd be here.”“Yes.”“Then how can you say you don't know?”“Because suspicion isn't proof.”Maya folded her arms.“You trusted him.”“So did you.”The answer silenced her.For three years, Whitfield ha