Novel-novel oleh Esmelda

Chapter 32With wine glass in hand, I stood at the floor to ceilling window of my penthouse and watched the storm preparing to strike. The city below was ignorant of the anarchy I had started, but everyone would know shortly. Dorian reasoned he could make it. His wealth, influence, and silver tongue would shield him. Today, though. The world of today would view him as the liar he really was. I focused on the television where the live broadcast of Dorian's frantic damage control effort was starting. Dressed in a neat black suit, Dorian stood behind the podium, his typical confidence contained in a controlled calm. As reporters watched for him to speak, cameras flashed. "Ladies and gentlemen," he said, clutching the podium's edges. His voice was consistent, but I could see his jaw was tight and his eyes flicked with anxiety. Superior. "There have been unwarranted accusations against me," he said. " Rumours aimed to damage my name, carried by people who want to see me fall

Chapter 31The morning air seemed different from usual. Perhaps it was the weight of everything at last catching up with Dorian. Alternatively, perhaps, it was the change in authority he was unprepared for. Watching him from the corner of my eye, I stood by the kitchen island stirring my tea with intentional slow motion. Though he hunched over his coffee at the dining table, his focus was not on it. He had not stirred his drink. Hadn't said much. Though I could tell it was eating away at him, I hadn't asked about the pregnancy again. Superior. I let the silence extend, savouring the strain. Then I spoke, lightly as though I were remarking on the temperature. "I was thinking." Dorian's head shot up, his keen eyes fixed on me. "About what?" I drank my tea slowly then responded. "Divorce". One word fits perfectly for this. Still, it exploded between us like a bomb. His hold strengthened around the mug. Tensing his whole body was his. His expression stayed still, but

Chapter 30 I stood on the balcony of Dorian’s penthouse, overlooking the city that had once bowed at his feet. Now, it was merely a backdrop to his downfall. The night sky stretched endlessly, but the world felt small—closing in on him, suffocating him. The news had broken earlier that morning. DORIAN TEMPEST UNDER FEDERAL INVESTIGATION – INVESTORS PULL OUT His empire was burning. And I was merely watching the flames. Behind me, I could hear the frantic pacing of his expensive Italian loafers against the marble floor. He was on yet another desperate phone call, his voice tight with frustration and barely concealed fear. "You don’t understand," he hissed into the phone. "If you pull out now, you’ll be making the biggest mistake of your career. I still have control over—" A pause. Then a strangled curse. I smirked. Another investor gone. I turned, stepping inside just as he threw his phone across the room. It shattered against the wall, the pieces clattering onto the floor. His hands

Chapter 29I watched the city lights dance across the large windows of my penthouse as I whirled the wine in my glass. The world outside was contentedly ignorant of the storm building inside locked doors. And Dorian also? He was unaware that the first genuine crack in his kingdom was about to break into something permanent. On the table, my phone buzzed with brightness cutting across the poorly lit room. I grabbed it, the slow, anticipating cadence of my heart hammering. Bianca: It's finished. The papers belong to the journalist. He will be destroyed from this. A smile twisted at my mouth, gratification heating from inside. Dorian had always felt himself untouchable, a monarch ruling over a nation founded on dishonesty, manipulation, and greed. The worst betrayals, however, did not originate from adversaries; this was something he did not grasp. They come from the people you used to know quite closely. Bianca too? Until today, she had been his most committed servant.

Chapter 28 I could feel Dorian watching me. His stare was piercing, scrutinising every movement, every flare of emotion across my face. He was unwinding, and I had just given him the final thread to pull. The dawn light put a cool glare across our bedroom. The covers were twisted from the night before—his desire, my control. Dorian hadn’t slept. He perched on the side of the bed, his fists steepled beneath his chin, his fingers burrowing into his skin. I stood near the vanity, brushing my hair with slow, methodical strokes. I didn’t need to look in the mirror to know his eyes were on me. The stillness between us was dense, weighted with something unspoken. Then, finally— “Why are you so quiet?” His voice was harsh, slanted with resentment. I let the break extend. Let him boil in the ambiguity. I sighed then, put down the brush and rested a hand on my stomach. Darian... I've to tell you something. His body stiffened all around. His knuckles went white as his hold o

Chapter 27Standing at the window, Dorian absentmindedly tilted a crystal tumbler of whisky, his fingers clasped around it whirling. His jaw was tight; the muscles tightened and relaxed as he gazed out at the metropolitan skyline. His disintegrating empire was weighing on him, and I could see the paranoia heavy in his eyes every time he thought I wasn't looking. He was breaking apart. And it was me dragging the threads. The media tsunami around his business had gotten more intense. Investors were withdrawing, the board was agitated, and rumours of his incapacity were getting stronger. Scandals—financial mismanagement, exposed intimate contacts, and rumours of adultery—were drowning him. Every action he took seemed to bring about his demise more slowly. Still, he thought he had me through all of it. Dorian thought that regardless of what happened, I would be at his side, the committed wife who would calm his ego and remind him of his strength. He was incorrect. I would se