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chapter twenty eight
Last Updated:
2025-02-18 00:34:27
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Love and deceit    Chapter twenty nine
🌹Aurora🌹The city streets stretched before me, illuminated by the golden glow of streetlights. The cold bit at my skin as I pulled my coat tighter around my body, my breath forming small clouds in the air. Each step I took toward the café felt heavier, as though my conscience itself was weighing me down.I shouldn’t be here.But I needed answers.The past few weeks had felt like a blur—Damien’s presence in my life had been suffocating, controlling, unpredictable. And yet, there was a dangerous pull between us, something I couldn't quite define but refused to acknowledge. That was why I had to do this.I had to see Ethan.One last time.My fingers curled into fists as I reached the café entrance. Through the glass window, I spotted him immediately—his dark hair slightly messier than I remembered, his navy-blue jacket zipped up against the cold. He sat at a corner booth, his fingers curled around a ceramic cup, his gaze lost in thought.Ethan.Memories of him came rushing back—his lau
Last Updated : 2025-02-18Love and deceit    Chapter thirty
🌹Ethan 🌹I sat frozen in the booth, my fingers curled around the warmth of my coffee cup, though I barely felt it anymore. My entire body was numb, my mind struggling to process what had just happened.Aurora had walked away.Again.Just like that night.The memory clawed at me, refusing to stay buried. I had stood there, waiting in the cold, heart pounding, gripping my old leather bag with white-knuckled hands. I had rehearsed everything I would say to her—how we would run away, how we would start over, how love would be enough.But she never came.I had been a fool back then, naive enough to believe that love alone could fight against the weight of expectation, duty, and wealth. I had convinced myself that she would choose me. That she would fight.But she hadn’t.And now, she had done it again.The soft chime of the café door closing behind her felt like a gunshot, shattering the last illusion I had clung to.She still loved me.I saw it in her eyes, in the way her breath caught
Last Updated : 2025-02-18Love and deceit    Chapter thirty-one
🌹Aurora🌹The cab’s interior was dimly lit by the streetlights that streamed through the window as we slowly made our way through the city’s quieter streets. I sat in the back, hugging my knees close, my thoughts swirling in a tumult I could neither calm nor control. Every bump on the road echoed in my mind like the pounding of my heart, reminding me of how fragile everything felt lately. I couldn’t shake the memories of the last few days—the relentless pressure of my engagement to Damien Sterling, his chilling, possessive words, and the disquieting remnants of his touch that still made my skin prickle. And then there was Ethan, whose voice had lingered in my ears long after our brief encounter, stirring up memories of a past I’d once believed was buried forever.I tried to focus on the rhythmic hum of the taxi’s engine and the passing blur of city lights, but my mind kept drifting back to the overwhelming feeling of being trapped. With every street I passed, I felt more distant from
Last Updated : 2025-02-18Love and deceit    Chapter thirty-two
🌹Damien🌹I woke before dawn, the cold, sterile light of early morning creeping through the heavy curtains of my study. The room was silent except for the steady hum of the air conditioner and the faint tick of the clock on the wall—each second a reminder that my wedding was only days away. My mind churned with thoughts I had meticulously tried to suppress the night before, when I swore to myself that I would never allow vulnerability to breach the fortress I had built around me. And yet, Aurora had managed to do just that.I dressed in my customary dark suit, each piece of clothing a uniform of control and precision. Every time I buttoned my shirt or adjusted my tie, I felt as if I were reinforcing the walls that separated me from the world. I could not afford even a hint of softness, not now. The engagement, forced upon me by circumstances I had no choice but to accept, demanded that I remain unyielding. I caught my reflection in the mirror—a pair of steely eyes, a firm set jaw, an
Last Updated : 2025-02-18Love and deceit    Chapter thirty-three
🌹Aurora🌹I woke in the soft darkness of my own apartment, not in the cold, impersonal halls of the Sterling estate. The gentle hum of the city outside mixed with the quiet murmur of my old heater, a comforting contrast to the chaos of the past few days. Last night, for one fleeting, forbidden moment, I had reclaimed a piece of the life I once thought was lost—a night with Ethan, a night when I allowed myself to believe in the possibility of a different future.The morning light crept through the thin curtains, painting my modest living room in soft hues of gold and amber. I lay still for a long while, my thoughts drifting between the lingering warmth of Ethan’s embrace and the bitter reality of my impending fate. The sheets, cool and rumpled from the night’s sleep, seemed to hold the memory of our shared moments, a quiet testament to the intimacy we’d once known.Ethan had come to my apartment under cover of darkness. I remember how my heart had pounded when I heard his knock at my
Last Updated : 2025-02-18Love and deceit    Chapter thirty-four
🌹Damien🌹I remember the first time I realized that love was a rare commodity in our home. I was barely six years old, sitting at the long mahogany table in our grand dining room, the clatter of fine china echoing in a silence that spoke louder than any conversation. My father, Bryan Reynolds, sat at the head of the table—always impeccably dressed, his face set in a mask of stern authority—and my mother, whose laughter I once hoped would fill our home, was absent that day. I later learned that her presence was like a gentle warmth, something that made even the coldest mornings bearable. But in those early years, all I felt was the chill of my father’s disapproval, the heavy expectation that nothing less than perfection was acceptable.I would watch him for hours, the way his eyes would narrow ever so slightly when he reviewed the day’s work or when I made a mistake that, to him, was unforgivable. His presence was like a looming storm cloud that never dissipated—a constant reminder th
Last Updated : 2025-02-18Love and deceit    Chapter thirty five
🌹Damien 🌹The earliest memories I have of my mother are soft and warm, like the scent of lavender that always lingered around her. She was the only person in our house who ever truly smiled—who ever looked at me as if I were something more than just an extension of my father’s legacy.In the grand estate where silence was a rule and discipline an unspoken law, she was the one who broke through the cold. She would sit by the grand piano, her delicate fingers dancing across the keys, humming soft melodies while I sat by her feet, absorbing her presence like a parched desert absorbing rain.“Damien,” she would say, tucking a stray lock of my hair behind my ear, “you don’t have to be like him.”At the time, I didn’t understand what she meant. I was only a child, desperate for my father’s approval but unable to escape the magnetic pull of my mother’s gentleness. In a house where perfection was demanded and failure was unacceptable, she was the only one who made me feel as though I was en
Last Updated : 2025-02-18Love and deceit    Chapter thirty six
🌹Damien🌹I was twelve when I first saw her. I still remember the day vividly, though the details have blurred over time like an old photograph fading at the edges. It was a cold winter afternoon, the kind when the sky was a relentless gray and the wind whispered secrets through the halls of our vast, impersonal mansion. I had just come home from school, my uniform still crisp despite the chill, when I found myself drawn to the drawing room. I had no inkling then that my life was about to change, that a woman would step into my world and claim a place that I never knew existed.There she was, sitting in the armchair that once belonged to my mother—a chair that had always been a silent reminder of her warmth and kindness. In that moment, the room seemed to hold its breath. I watched as she sipped a glass of red wine, her dark hair pulled back into an elegant chignon, her eyes cool and assessing. Her presence was commanding in a way that felt both alien and enthralling. I remember the
Last Updated : 2025-02-19
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Love and deceit    Chapter fifty three
🌹Aurora 🌹I felt as though I were suspended in time when Damien’s quiet knock on the door of his private study broke through the haze of my thoughts. Ever since that fateful conversation with him in the private booth—where he laid bare the dark secrets of my father—I had been caught in a whirlwind of anger, confusion, and reluctant hope. Now, alone in the soft twilight of the estate, I knew that I had to face not only the revelations but the man who had so carefully guarded his own heart.I took a deep breath before opening the door. There, in the subdued light of his study, Damien stood near a large window, his dark eyes fixed on the city beyond. The atmosphere was heavy with unspoken tension. His expression was unreadable, yet as soon as he saw me, his eyes softened ever so slightly—a small admission of vulnerability that I wasn’t sure I wanted to believe.“Aurora,” he said softly, his voice low and measured. “I’m glad you came.”I stepped inside cautiously. The room was intimate—
Love and deceit    Chapter fifty two
🌹Damien 🌹The morning sun filtered through the tall windows of my office, casting precise lines of light across my desk. I sat there, staring blankly at the scattered documents, but my thoughts were not on quarterly figures or merger strategies—they were on Aurora and, more pressingly, on the secrets surrounding her father. Something about the Sinclair legacy had always unsettled me, and now I knew there were darker truths lurking beneath the surface.After the wedding, a nagging suspicion had taken root in my mind. Aurora spoke little of her father, yet every time his name was mentioned, I sensed a depth of pain and reluctance in her voice. I couldn’t ignore that any longer. There was something in his past that might be influencing events—something that could have grave implications for both Aurora and our families.Determined to uncover the truth, I reached for my phone and called Nathaniel, my trusted ally in matters of sensitive information. After a brief pause, his steady voice
Love and deceit    Chapter fifty one
🌹Aurora 🌹I woke to a dim, unfamiliar light—not in the safety of my own apartment, but in a room that belonged to Damien Sterling. The space was imposing yet sterile, decorated with dark, sleek furnishings and cold, calculated precision. I lay there for a long moment, feeling the weight of the previous night still pressing against me. The sheets, cool against my skin, bore the faint scent of his aftershave—a constant reminder of the forced intimacy that had taken place in this very room.My heart pounded, and my mind swirled with conflicting emotions. I had slept here with Damien, his arms around me, his presence both intimidating and strangely intimate. The memory of that night was a mosaic of reluctant surrender, heated tension, and the brief flicker of something that might have been genuine connection—if only for a moment. Yet now, as the soft glow of dawn crept through the heavy curtains, I felt exposed and vulnerable in a way I never imagined.I sat up slowly, the coolness of t
Love and deceit    Chapter fifty
🌹Damien 🌹After the reception, I couldn’t shake the persistent disquiet that gnawed at me. Every forced smile and hollow congratulation still echoed in my mind as I made my way through the silent corridors of the estate. I had maintained my composed façade throughout the day, yet in the solitude of the night, vulnerability crept in like a thief in the dark. It was time to face it—time to reclaim control before the weight of everything became unbearable.I left the boardroom and wandered down the long hall until I reached my private chamber—a room I had long guarded as my sanctuary. Tonight, however, it was to become a place where I would force resolution between us. I wasn’t prepared to show weakness, but I had no choice: the tension between Aurora and me had reached a breaking point. I had to confront the raw emotions that threatened to unravel my carefully constructed armor.I paused at the door of my room. Its polished wood and sturdy lock had always promised security, but tonigh
Love and deceit    Chapter Forty nine
🌹Damien 🌹I walked through the echoing corridors of the estate after the reception, my mind a tempest of calculated resolve and a disturbing, unwelcome vulnerability. The celebration had ended hours ago, yet every step I took felt weighted by the events of the day—each forced smile, every rehearsed gesture, and the hollow promises I’d recited as if reciting a business contract rather than a marriage vow. Now, alone in the vast, empty halls, I had nothing but my thoughts for company.The grandeur of the estate, designed to project unyielding power and perfection, now felt like an elaborate mask covering a raw, untended truth. I had maintained my control all day—the steely detachment, the cold precision of every word I spoke. But there was a moment at the altar, when our lips met in that charged, almost tender kiss, that had shattered my carefully constructed armor. For a heartbeat, I had felt something that I quickly buried under layers of ambition and duty. I had to remind myself th
Love and deceit    Chapter Forty eight
🌹Aurora 🌹The reception was over, and the once-bustling ballroom had quieted to a soft murmur of departing guests. I found myself alone in a secluded corner near a large window. Outside, the city’s lights twinkled in the distance, a reminder that life continued beyond the walls of the estate. Here, in the stillness after the celebration, I allowed myself to face the truth of my heart.I sat in a plush armchair, staring out at the darkened cityscape, the events of the day swirling in my mind. The ceremony—filled with meticulously recited vows and the final, hollow kiss—had sealed my fate as Mrs. Sterling. Every word I spoke felt empty, each gesture preordained by expectations I never chose. Damien’s distant gaze during the ceremony still haunted me; even as his hand brushed mine, it was as if an invisible barrier stood between us. I felt both numb and overwhelmed by the loss of the person I once hoped to become.In the quiet of this empty hall, I recalled Ethan’s gentle voice, the so
Love and deceit    Chapter Forty seven
🌹Aurora 🌹The reception had ended, and with it, the dazzling façade of celebration began to crumble into a hushed, somber silence. I found myself alone in a quiet corner of the grand ballroom, away from the lingering chatter and the soft clink of departing glasses. The ornate chandeliers cast a gentle, flickering light over the empty chairs and polished marble floors, and in that quiet moment, the weight of the day settled on me like a shroud.I sank into a plush armchair near a large window, gazing out at the city lights that twinkled distantly in the night. They seemed almost unreachable—tiny beacons of freedom in a vast, dark expanse. My mind wandered through the events of the day, each memory a mixture of vivid emotions and hollow formalities. I had walked down the aisle with a heavy heart, recited vows that felt more like a surrender than a promise, and exchanged rings that now felt like chains. Every moment of that day, despite its glittering perfection, had marked another ste
Love and deceit    Chapter Forty six
🌹Aurora🌹The reception hall was a dazzling arena of opulence, where every detail was meticulously arranged to project perfection. I moved through the crowd as if in a daze, a reluctant participant in a performance that felt both surreal and suffocating. The ballroom’s high, vaulted ceilings were draped in shimmering lights, and the air was thick with the scent of expensive perfume and fresh flowers. Yet beneath the glitz and glamour, I sensed a pervasive emptiness—a facade that masked a world of expectations and unspoken agendas.Every face I encountered wore a smile that seemed rehearsed, as if each guest were an actor following a script. I saw relatives and business associates alike, each nodding and offering polite congratulations, their eyes betraying nothing more than a detached acknowledgment of the day’s proceedings. Their praise felt hollow, as if I were nothing more than an accessory in a grand display of power and legacy.I drifted toward the refreshment table, my steps sl
Love and deceit    Chapter forty-five
🌹Aurora 🌹The ceremony was over, yet the echoes of every word, every whispered promise, clung to me like a second skin. I stood at the edge of the altar long after the minister’s final pronouncement, my heart pounding in a rhythm that seemed to mock the emptiness I felt inside. I was now Mrs. Sterling—a title that felt like a heavy shackle rather than a crown of honor. As the guests erupted in polite applause, the noise of their celebration only deepened my own isolation. I felt like I had just signed a contract rather than exchanged vows with a partner. Every syllable of the ritual, every glimmer of a smile from the attendees, was part of a performance that I was forced to play.My eyes instinctively searched for Damien across the room. He stood, quiet and composed, a mask of impenetrable detachment. His gaze, when it met mine, was distant and calculating—a cold, unyielding reminder that our union was not built on tenderness or shared dreams, but on duty and expectation. I tried to
