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A Substitute Bride for the Billionaire 42.
Luca immediately let go of his wife as they entered the penthouse and headed straight to his room, but she stopped him by holding onto the helm of his shirt. The incident that happened still pissed him and he needed to wash off the blood on his fist and maybe try to cool off in the shower before he ended up venting out on someone else.He got angry a lot, but he could count the number of times he was angry enough to result in physical violence. He wanted to say that he didn’t know what had come over him, but he did.It was the woman who was holding on to his shirt and looking at him with those vulnerable eyes. He had lost it when she cried in his arms, sounding so miserable that he could not stand another second to see her cry. He didn’t know when he had become fiercely protective of her. She had wormed her way into his heart and created a space for herself while he stayed unknowing. His fists clenched, and the anger roared to life once again as he remembered how lost and broken she
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Iris knew it was Luca without having to turn. Her body hummed with excitement and it was enough sign that her husband was the one in the room and no one else but he made her worried when he remained quiet.“Luca?” She asked again and made to turn but he pulled her to him and prevented her from turning to face him by using his hands to hold her shoulders in place.Her breath hitched when his hands slowly caressed her naked back before he zipped the dress. He did it so slowly, with his hands brushing over her skin as they moved. Her skin tingled under his touch.“Done” Luca whispered a second later and she turned to face him with a red face. “I like the dress on you” Luca said with a smirk. He leaned down to place a kiss on her cheeks and left the dressing room before she could say anything.Iris tried a couple more clothes before deciding on three more dresses she would like to buy. When she took them out, Luca told the attendant to wrap them up and place them in his car and they were
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Iris reached her room, her heart racing and her whole body shivering. She could still feel Luca’s touch all over her body like his hands were on her. The way he looked at her while they danced had set her on fire and she needed a shower to quench the fire in between her legs.She wasn’t supposed to feel this way after a dance but Luca had become more dangerous for her body and mind. All she could think about was him and he wasn’t helping with the way he constantly touched her and now he added kisses to the equation.She knew she should turn him down or turn her head to the side whenever he leaned down for a kiss but her traitorous body yearned for every touch it could get from the man.She rushed to the shower and lowered herself to the bath tub, pulling her legs to her chest so she was hugging her knees. She was drained and could not stop thinking about him. She wanted him to keep those eyes on her all night. Eyes that made her feel like she was the most special woman in that room a
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Iris woke up the next morning still wrapped around Luca. Their limbs were so entangled that she didn’t know where she started and where Luca ended. She snuck up a glance at him and saw that he was still asleep so she used that opportunity to get a close look at him. It was the first time she would see him this close.His usually perfect hair fell over his face almost hiding his closed eyes as he slept but she wished he could open his eyes so she could stare into them. He looked so peaceful as he slept that she didn’t want to disturb him so she was trying to remain as still as possible.She was nervous about what would happen when Luca woke up. The first time they had sex, Luca had left before she was awake and had warned her that it was a mistake but this time she was awake first and she didn’t think she would be able to stomach another rejection.She considered leaving the bed before he woke up but she was too comfortable in his arms. She didn’t know when she would experience somethi
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“James, arrange for Iris’s things to be moved to my room. She’ll be staying with me from now on” Luca announced as soon as they arrived home, startling not only Iris but the entire household who stood gaping at him like he had grown two heads.“Right away, sir” James replied with a nod, the only one not outwardly affected by Luca’s declaration.“What?” Berta and Iris said at the same time. The woman was just as startled as Iris. She kept glancing between the both of them. She could sense the change in the way they acted towards each other and she was happy.“Loren, let’s go and pack the young miss belongings. Get the maids, it’s going to be a lot of work” She mused and dragged a giddy Loren with her.“Luca? What’s all this? We didn’t discuss me moving into your room?” She turned to him with wide eyes after they were alone. She couldn’t say she didn’t hope for this but it was still surreal how Luca seemed to have changed overnight.Throughout the flight and even on the car ride back to
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Helen desperately tried to call Jace back but he didn’t pick up the call. She knew he was probably messing with her but the way he ended the call was too taunting for her to just let it slide. She cursed under her breath and frantically reached for her laptop to search for the next available flight to London.Luckily, there was one available to leave in an hour so he quickly dumped things she thought she would need and was hurrying out of the house.“Helen?” Her father’s deep and unhappy voice floated to her and she halted with wide eyes and turned to the living room where he sat with a scowl on his face.Ever since she almost messed up the deal with the Rutherfords, he always found one thing to complain about her which was not the case before and it was all Iris's fault and she was going to ruin her.She groaned mentally when she saw her mother was also in the living room. Her mother stood up and began to walk towards her to question her since her eyes stayed on the box she was dragg
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“Come on, Iris. Tell me what happened in Iris. I’ve seen the videos online and I’ve had them on repeat but I want the exclusives” Hailey squealed as she followed Iris around her office. She hung her coat and dropped her bag before she took a seat and pinned Hailey with an amused expression.“There is no exclusive. It was just a business trip and we happened to have a dance and there were other couples there too” She chuckled, amused by her friend’s antics.“Come on, girl. Help a friend here. Feed my imagination please and don’t tell me nothing happened. I saw that Kiss in the elevator” She accused, pointing an index finger at her face.“I’m not denying anything” Iris mused with a small smile. Luca had insisted she give him a goodbye kiss in the elevator and the door had opened when they were almost getting lost in each other’s arms and unfortunately, Hailey had been waiting there.“I’m going to feed my imagination myself if you won’t help me. The new author’s book has been on a delusi
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Iris didn’t know how long she sat there, staring into thin air as she recounted what had happened earlier at work that morning. She had come home without Luca after he insisted since he had a couple more meetings and documents to go through before coming home.Helen had found out about the private after-party event even though it had not been on the media. She wondered how she had found out and who had told her or shown her pictures. She also knew about the publishing house which meant someone was feeding her information and she didn’t know who.Maybe it was Jace. After all, there was no way for her to know if they still kept in touch. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and reached for her phone to check the time. It was almost time for Luca to be home and she was yet to change out of her office clothes.She jumped at the knock on the door “Come in” she answered and waited for Loren to stick her head through the door with a frown.“You haven’t come down since you came back from
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A Substitute Bride for the Billionaire EPILOGUE
Iris was still on her bed when she heard the bedroom door open. She didn't want to wake up yet because it was her birthday and she wanted to sleep in for once while Luca did what he did best, spoiling their children. They had three kids now. Autumn was seven now and was the exact copy of her mother. Sometimes, Iris would find herself lost in her thoughts, staring at her until she was called. Their boys, Axel and Kai were 4 and 1 respectively and perfect carbon copies of their father. Iris felt like a stranger in their house and even Autumn behaved just like Luca, it was scary sometimes. "Princess?" Luca called, climbing onto the bed. She stretched and felt her bones crack before turning to see him. A smile graced her face when she saw their youngest in his arms. Kai's eyes widened and a smile wider than Iris's own graced his face and he giggled while stretching his arms for her so she could take him. She pulled herself up and reached out to take him, wincing when his fingers cur
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Iris was so comfortable laying on Luca’s chest while his breath fanned her face and his hands traced meaningless patterns on her back which made her shiver every two seconds.She didn’t want to move because that was why bliss and perfection were to her. Luca had fucked her into oblivion that even when she woke up, her legs were still shaking even though she had yet to stand up.She didn’t hate it though. It was the best way for her to wake up but Luca had other plans. He said he had something she needed to see so they couldn’t stay in bed longer as she would have liked instead of being in the back seat of the car as they drove to their destination which he also wouldn’t tell her.“Are you sure you don’t want to tell me where we are going?” She asked again and Luca rolled his eyes, taking them off his phone to stare at her again.That was also part of the reason why she was mildly irritated. He had forced her out of his arms and still wouldn't give her any attention.“Sorry, Princess.
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Iris kept turning. It was very late and yet she couldn’t get herself to fall asleep. The sleeping pills Jasmine had given her did nothing to help and she was certain that it kept her awake instead of doing its job.Her eyes watched the moon and followed the owl that flew past it. She had left the window blinds open, hoping the calming view would make her fall asleep but all she had done was count the number of stars she could see and try to trace outlines with them.At the back of her mind, something nudged her. She knew what was keeping her awake and what she needed to do but something was holding her back, pinning her so she wouldn’t move towards what her body craved.She crossed her heart and made up her mind, sitting up and flinging the covers which felt heavy instead of comforting against her skin and threw her legs off the side of the bed, getting on her feet and making her way out of the room.She was sure her guts were strong but they failed her as she stood in front of their
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Iris laid her head against the window, mind fuzzy as the car raced towards the Taylor’s mansion. The loud blaring of the sirens from the police cars trailing behind and in front of their car prevented her from thinking. She thought she knew what exhaustion was but she didn’t until now. The past few days had been hectic with compiling all the evidence Selene had against Vera and pulling strings to make sure her arrest was sure and nothing would be done by anyone wanting to interfere.Since she couldn’t bury herself in her thoughts, she was aware of the heat teasing her fingers as they tingled in anticipation of touching Luca’s hands lying in the space between them.He was on the phone, typing away furiously and Iris wondered if she should just use the opportunity to brush her fingers across his hands while pretending it was a mistake.Her decision was made for her when Luca absentmindedly lifted his hand to trace his fingers lightly over her hands and she flinched away from his touch
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Iris sat in front of the mirror in her hotel room in a pensive mood. They had arrived in New York yesterday with Selene and were staying at the penthouse in the Rutherford’s latest hotel and it was a beauty to behold. It was a four-bedroom penthouse which Iris knew would cost a fortune for a night.A knock came on the door and she softly told the person to come in. Ace peeked his head through the tiny hole.“Are you ready? We have to leave soon. Luca is waiting for you” He told her before disappearing, closing the bedroom door behind him.Iris sighed again. Luca had given her the master suite while he took the bedroom opposite much to her disappointment. She knew he did it because of their recent sleeping arrangement but he should have asked her if she wanted to stay with him but he went ahead to softly tell her to get a good sleep while gesturing at the bedroom before he disappeared into the opposite room.Since they started sharing a bed, it was the first time she had slept in a new
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“Princess” Iris heard Luca call from behind her closed door. She peeked above her computer where she stayed working on some manuscripts that the new assistant had sent her. Iris had not yet gotten used to working with Lucy who took over Hailey’s position.To her, it felt weird seeing her instead of Hailey, but the girl was nice and knew how to give her space, space that Hailey had no problem invading. Iris missed Hailey sticking her nose in her every business but now, it was so quiet in the office because Hailey had been her only friend there.“Princess? Are you sleeping?” Iris hated the uncertainty in his voice but there was nothing she could do. Something was holding her back from telling him she wasn’t angry at him and just needed time to sort out her feelings.“There is someone you need to meet. I know you don’t want to see or talk to me at the moment, but you would really like to meet her” He spoke, this time grasping her interest.She frowned in surprise and racked her head to s
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“Are you okay?” Alanna asked from where she sat beside her while Luca sat opposite her. She could feel his eyes on her the past twenty minutes they had been sitting in the court’s waiting room but she kept her gaze on the floor, adamant not to meet his lingering eyes.She snapped her head up to meet Alanna’s worried gaze and she gave her a reassuring smile “As okay as my nerves would allow me to” She replied and dared to cast a glance towards Luca’s direction where she saw him looking at her as expected and she quickly looked away to meet Alanna’s knowing gaze.“You don’t have to do it if you are not okay with it. They can’t force you to testify and it won’t stop Helen from being locked up forever. They have solid proof against her” Alanna said, holding onto her arms.Iris shook her head in refusal “No, I have to. It’s going to be some sort of closure for me” Iris replied, her voice thick with so much emotion but she was glad the tears didn’t appear.She had finally been able to get a
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Iris never meant to keep standing by the door with her ears pressed against them after she disappeared behind them before Luca could get to her.She couldn’t find the courage to face him. She had not been able to sort out her emotions. They were conflicting and dangerous and it messed with her head and her thoughts.When she moved out of Luca’s room, she had hoped it would give her the room to fix her thoughts and decide where her head was.Iris wanted to leave the house altogether but she wasn’t stupid enough to think it would be possible.Luca may think she didn’t notice but she had. There was an increase in the guards around the house; sometimes she could hear footsteps parade the hallway in front of the room.She knew when Luca left, the familiar heavy steps fading away into the hallway and Ace’s own which never left.She sighed in defeat and removed the black dress she was wearing. She had said her final but was reluctant to one of her best friends today so her head was a mess.I
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The ride home was stifling. Iris kept her gaze on the road the entire ride and when the car rolled to a stop in front of the house, she was out of the car before anyone could say a word.Luca ran after her but her legs were faster. He hurried up the stairs just as she entered the hallway and opened the door.“Princess” Luca tried to stop her before she disappeared into the guest bedroom but failed. Maverick and Ace gave him that pitiful glance that he had come to hate but he waved them off.“Is she close?” He asked Maverick before the bulky man could step out of the room with Ace.“Yes. She should be here in a few minutes” Maverick replied and gave him a nod before they disappeared.Luca leaned on the wall across the guest bedroom and folded his hands over his chest as he stared at the closed doors.She was particularly more sensitive today since it was Hailey’s burial ceremony and he understood so he would give her the space she needed no matter how much it killed him to see her in
