LOGINShare
Chapter 28: Forging a New Path
Last Updated:
2025-01-20 14:27:55
Related chapters
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 29: Strength in Unity
The morning sunlight filtered through the large windows of the Grey estate, casting a golden glow across the room. Maximilian sat at the edge of the bed, his back tense, his head resting in his hands. I stood across the room, leaning against the doorframe, watching him. He looked vulnerable—raw, even. The man who once seemed impenetrable now sat before me, his armor cracked.“You’re unusually quiet this morning,” I said softly, breaking the silence.He looked up, his piercing blue eyes locking with mine. “There’s a lot to think about.”I crossed the room and perched on the edge of the bed beside him, close but not too close. “Want to share? Or are you planning to brood all day?”A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. “Brooding is my specialty.”I nudged his shoulder lightly. “Well, you’re married to a woman who has a knack for making brooding men talk, so you might as well get used to it.”His smirk faded, replaced by something more serious. “Eliza… about yesterday—about ever
Last Updated : 2025-01-20A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 30: The Final Showdown
The email’s ominous words lingered in my mind, a shadow cast over the fragile harmony Maximilian and I had begun to build. You thought it was over? It’s only just begun. The message was unsigned, its sender anonymous, but the threat it carried was impossible to ignore.Maximilian hadn’t said much after reading it, his jaw clenched as he stared at the screen. I watched his fingers hover over the keyboard before closing the laptop with a decisive snap.“Max,” I said softly, breaking the tense silence. “What do we do?”He stood, his broad shoulders rigid with the weight of whatever storm this message had unleashed in him. “We prepare.” His voice was as cold and unyielding as it had been the day we met, but now, I could hear something else beneath it—fear. Not for himself, but for me. I reached out, touching his arm. “Tell me what’s going on. Please.”He turned to me, and for a moment, his icy facade cracked, revealing the man I’d glimpsed in rare, unguarded moments—the man who had begun
Last Updated : 2025-01-20A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 31: A Love Worth Fighting For
The air crackled with tension as I stood in the shadows, watching Maximilian square off against the man who had been the source of so much of our pain. My heart pounded, each beat echoing in my chest like a war drum. I clenched my hands, trying to steady the trembling that had overtaken me. This wasn’t just his fight—it was ours. “Max,” I whispered, but my voice was swallowed by the charged atmosphere. He didn’t look back at me, his focus locked on the man in front of him, but I knew he heard me. “Stay back, Eliza,” he said, his voice low and commanding, though I caught the faintest quiver of concern in it. I hated that command, hated the idea of standing on the sidelines when everything that mattered to me was on the line. But I could also see the strain in Maximilian’s posture, the weight of his resolve. He wasn’t doing this to push me away—he was doing it to protect me. The man facing him—Lucas Harland—smirked, his confidence sickeningly apparent. “You’re really willing to
Last Updated : 2025-01-22A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 32: Breaking the Chains
The morning sunlight filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows of Maximilian’s penthouse, illuminating the remnants of the previous night's storm. The confrontation with the unexpected figure had left me shaken, yet resolute. For the first time, I felt more than just a pawn in Maximilian’s world—I felt like his partner, his equal. “Are you all right?” Maximilian’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts. He stood by the coffee machine, his usually crisp suit replaced with a black T-shirt and dark jeans that somehow made him look even more formidable. I nodded, though the tightness in my chest betrayed me. “I’m fine. Just... processing everything.” His steel-gray eyes locked on mine, softening for a fraction of a second. “You were incredible last night, Eliza. The way you stood up to him—it wasn’t easy, but you did it.” I swallowed hard, remembering the venom in our adversary’s words. “I didn’t feel brave. I just... I couldn’t let him win. Not when everything we’ve fought for wa
Last Updated : 2025-01-22A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 33: Unveiling the Truth
I paced in the dimly lit hallway outside Maximilian's study, my heart pounding in sync with the ticking clock on the wall. The phone call had unsettled him, though he masked it well behind his usual stoic facade. But I knew him better now—his clenched jaw, the subtle tremor in his hand, and the way he avoided looking at me spoke volumes. The door creaked open, and he stepped out, his eyes shadowed with something I couldn't quite place. “Maximilian,” I said softly, taking a tentative step toward him. “What happened? Who was on the phone?” He hesitated, his gaze flickering between me and the floor. “It was…someone I haven’t spoken to in years.” “Your father.” It wasn’t a question. The weight of the air between us confirmed it. He nodded, his expression hardening. “He wants to meet. Says it’s urgent.” I reached out and placed a hand on his arm. “Are you okay?” His laugh was bitter, cold. “Am I okay? Eliza, my father isn’t the kind of man you sit down with for tea and pleasa
Last Updated : 2025-01-22A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 34: The Weight of Inheritance
I stood in the corner of the living room, my fingers curling around the smooth edge of the mantelpiece. Maximilian paced in front of me, his jaw tight, every step heavier than the last. The air between us buzzed with tension, but I didn’t dare break it. The arrival of his father earlier had turned the house into a pressure cooker, and I was just trying to keep from boiling over. “Max,” I said softly, testing the waters. “You’ve been pacing for ten minutes.” He stopped abruptly, turning toward me with those icy gray eyes that always made my stomach twist. But this time, there was something different—something raw. “What am I supposed to do, Eliza?” His voice was sharp, almost cutting. “He wants me to just step into his shoes like the past twenty years didn’t happen. Like he didn’t abandon me when I needed him most.” I walked closer, hesitant but determined. “You don’t have to make a decision right now. You can take time to think about it.” Maximilian’s laugh was bitter, almos
Last Updated : 2025-01-22A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 35: Trust Shattered
The cold draft of the study pressed against my skin, though it wasn’t the room that made me shiver. It was the silence—the kind that hung heavy in the air after a storm. Maximilian sat across from me, his shoulders rigid, his jaw clenched so tightly that the muscle ticked with every second of my waiting. The letter lay between us like a live grenade, its edges curling slightly under the weight of the truth it carried. “Why didn’t you tell me?” My voice barely rose above a whisper, but it carried every ounce of my disbelief, my anger, my hurt. His piercing gray eyes locked onto mine, void of the warmth I thought had begun to grow there. “Because it doesn’t concern you.” I flinched at his words. “Doesn’t concern me? Maximilian, I’m your wife—whether by contract or not. Do you honestly believe something this monumental wouldn’t affect me?” He stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the hardwood floor. “You don’t understand, Eliza. This... this is bigger than you or me. It’s ab
Last Updated : 2025-01-22A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 36: The Price of Secrets
The anonymous message played on repeat in my mind like a haunting melody I couldn’t silence. “You don’t know everything about him.” Who sent it? And what did they know that I didn’t? I barely slept that night. My thoughts were a mess of questions and half-formed fears. As much as I wanted to confront Maximilian, I couldn’t bring myself to face him—not yet. My trust in him was fragile, hanging by a thread, and I wasn’t ready for another confrontation that might tear it apart completely.By morning, I decided to focus on what I could control. I texted the number back, though I knew it was a long shot. Who is this? What do you mean? Hours passed without a response. Every time my phone buzzed, my heart leaped, but it was always something trivial—a notification, a call from my mother’s nurse, or a reminder about bills. The weight of the silence was suffocating.It wasn’t until late afternoon that I saw Maximilian again. I was in the garden, absently tending to the roses, when his shad
Last Updated : 2025-01-22
Latest chapter
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 80: Choosing Love
My heart was pounding in my chest, each beat echoing the fear and anticipation that gripped me. The decision that loomed before I felt impossible—yet here we were, standing in the silence that had stretched between us for too long.Maximilian’s gaze was intense, those piercing eyes of his searching my face, as though trying to gauge my every thought. I swallowed hard, trying to steady my nerves. He had laid himself bare, and now it was my turn."I’ve been trying to fix everything," Maximilian said, his voice strained, almost raw. "But I don’t know if I can. I don’t know if I’m even capable of it."I shook my head slowly, taking a deep breath. "You’re not the only one who’s struggling, Maximilian. I’ve had to face my own fears and my own weaknesses. I’m not the same person I was when we first met. But you… you’ve always been the hardest part to figure out."His lips twitched, and for a moment, I thought he might smile, but the sadness in his eyes crushed that hope."We’re both broken i
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 79: The Path to Forgiveness
I stood there, frozen, as Maximilian’s words sank in. My heart was a tangled mess of confusion, hurt, and an overwhelming sense of betrayal. How could he possibly think I could just forgive everything? How could I, after all the damage that had been done?He kneeled before me, his usual composed and powerful demeanor stripped away, leaving a raw vulnerability I had never seen in him. My breath caught in my throat, my eyes searching his face, trying to decipher what was real and what was just another ploy.“Eliza,” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion, “Please, give me a chance. I’ll prove to you that I can change. That I want to change—for you.”I felt a wave of frustration rise within me. “How can you expect me to believe that now, Maximilian?” I asked, my voice shaky. “After everything you’ve done? Everything you’ve put me through?”“I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he said, his eyes pleading. “I never meant for things to go this far. But I’ve been an idiot. I’ve let my pride and m
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 78: A Shattered Heart
The silence between us is suffocating. Maximilian stands at the doorway of our living room, his face unreadable. His eyes are shadowed, the weight of everything pressing on him, just as it presses on me. I want to speak, to scream at him, to ask how we got here, but the words get stuck in my throat.It feels like we're standing on the edge of a cliff, and neither of us knows if we should jump or turn back.“You don’t get it, do you?” I say finally, my voice shaking. “This... whatever this is between us, it's never been simple. I’ve never been just some pawn in your game. I didn’t ask for this, Maximilian. I didn’t want to fall in love with you.”The words come out harder than I meant. I regret them almost instantly. He looks at me, the flicker of something in his eyes — frustration, regret, anger, maybe even sadness — but he doesn’t say anything. I can’t decide if that’s worse or better.“I never wanted to hurt you,” he finally mutters, his voice tight. “But you knew what you were get
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 77: The Ultimate Test
I stood there, frozen, as Maximilian’s words sank in. My heart was a tangled mess of confusion, hurt, and an overwhelming sense of betrayal. How could he possibly think I could just forgive everything? How could I, after all the damage that had been done?He kneeled before me, his usual composed and powerful demeanor stripped away, leaving a raw vulnerability I had never seen in him. My breath caught in my throat, my eyes searching his face, trying to decipher what was real and what was just another ploy.“Eliza,” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion, “Please, give me a chance. I’ll prove to you that I can change. That I want to change—for you.”I felt a wave of frustration rise within me. “How can you expect me to believe that now, Maximilian?” I asked, my voice shaky. “After everything you’ve done? Everything you’ve put me through?”“I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he said, his eyes pleading. “I never meant for things to go this far. But I’ve been an idiot. I’ve let my pride and m
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 76: Secrets Unveiled
I sit on the edge of the bed, my hands folded tightly in my lap, my heart thundering in my chest. Maximilian is standing by the window, his back to me, the sharp lines of his silhouette bathed in the soft, dim light of the late evening. The silence between us is thick—more suffocating than comforting."Maximilian," I whisper, my voice shaky, "What aren't you telling me?"He doesn't move at first. His shoulders remain rigid, and his posture is as perfect as always, yet there's something about the way he holds himself tonight that feels different. It's as if he's been weighed down by a burden I don't understand. A burden I've never seen before."You should go to sleep, Eliza," he says, his voice betraying no hint of emotion. But I can tell he's trying to push me away, trying to keep me at arm’s length."No," I say, standing up quickly, my voice growing firmer. "I need to know the truth. I can’t stand this anymore—this feeling that you’re hiding something from me. Something important. Yo
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 75: All in or Nothing
I can feel my heart pounding in my chest as Maximilian stands across from me. His gaze is unwavering, but I can see the unease hidden beneath his composed exterior.I swallow, my throat dry, trying to find the right words.“We need to talk,” I say, the words coming out softer than I intend, but they carry the weight of everything I’m feeling.He stiffens but doesn’t move, his jaw clenched. “I know.”His response is brief, but I can tell that he’s been expecting this moment. And honestly, so have I. We’ve both been dancing around the truth for far too long.“Maximilian,” I start, taking a tentative step forward, “I need to know if this—if we—are worth it. Worth the risk. Worth the sacrifice.”He remains silent, his expression unreadable. I feel like I’m standing on the edge of a cliff, every word I speak pushing me closer to the abyss.“I don’t want to live like this anymore,” I continue, my voice shaking now, the vulnerability leaking through. “I don’t want to keep pretending like eve
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 74: The Weight of Lies
I sat on the edge of the bed, my heart racing as the air between Maximilian and me thickened with the weight of unspoken truths. His silence was unbearable, a ticking clock counting down to our implosion. My voice was hoarse when I finally broke the stillness."Are you going to tell me the truth, or do I have to keep living with lies?" I demanded, my gaze fixed on the floor to hide the storm brewing in my eyes.Maximilian paced across the room, his usual composure fraying at the edges. "Eliza, it's not that simple.""It never is with you, is it?" I stood up, the adrenaline giving me courage I didn't know I had. "Just once, I want the truth without your calculations or manipulations."His jaw clenched, and I could see the internal battle raging inside him. He wanted to control the narrative, but something told me this time was different—there was no salvaging his iron grip on the situation."I was protecting you," he finally said.I scoffed, my laugh bitter. "Protecting me? Is that wha
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 73: The Unforgivable
Maximilian paced the living room, his jaw clenched as his phone buzzed relentlessly on the coffee table. His broad shoulders were tense as if he carried the weight of a thousand unsaid words. I stood near the window, watching the city lights flicker below. The air between us crackled with unspoken tension.He finally grabbed the phone and silenced it, tossing it back onto the table with a frustrated grunt.“Another problem at the company?” I asked carefully, my voice breaking the heavy silence.He didn't meet my gaze. “It’s always a problem,” he muttered. “But this...this is different.”I stepped closer. “What is it?”He ran a hand through his dark hair, exhaling sharply. “An old associate is back in town. Someone I never wanted to see again.”“Who?” I pressed, sensing there was more to this than just a business issue.He looked at me then, his blue eyes colder than winter. “Julian Black.”The name didn’t mean much to me, but the way Maximilian said it made my chest tighten. There was
A Billionaire’s Hidden Affection Chapter 72: Old Demons
I sat across from Maximilian in the dim glow of the library. The fire crackled softly, casting shadows on the walls, but there was a tension in the room that was impossible to ignore. His jaw was clenched, his gaze distant. Whatever storm was brewing inside him, I knew it was darker than anything he had let me see before."Maximilian," I said gently, breaking the heavy silence. "Talk to me. Please."He didn't respond immediately. His fingers drummed against the armrest of his chair, a sure sign that he was fighting some internal battle."Eliza, you wouldn't understand," he finally muttered, his voice rough."Try me," I insisted, leaning forward. "You keep shutting me out, and it's tearing us apart. Whatever it is, I want to help."His eyes flickered to mine, and for a moment, I thought he would open up. But then he shook his head as if dismissing the thought."It's not that simple," he said. "Some things are better left buried."I stood up, my frustration bubbling to the surface. "You
