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A DOUBTFUL TRIP
Last Updated:
2025-03-25 23:38:50
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Giselle's POVNo sooner had the private plane touched down in Miami than I knew my life would never be the same again. There was that pounding thrill of excitement wherever you went, but of anything, it was that dazzling burst of bursts of flashbulb lights from photo crews that whirred round and round in my head.Stepping out of the plane, a storm of paparazzi and reporters engulfed the VIP terminal, their cameras clicking left and right like a turbulent storm."Giselle! Over here!""How does it feel to be finally free, Miss Von Howard?""Giselle, are you still engaged to Patrick?""Did you pay your ransom yourself?"The questions assaulted me, but I never so much as gave them a second glance. I smoothed my midnight-blue designer jumpsuit instead, the silk falling over my curves in stunning folds. My makeup was flawless, my hair falling in stunning waves. If they wanted to make an entrance, I'd enter.I saw my brother Nicholas walking beside me, his gaze sweeping the crowd. The bodygua
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Patrick's POVI sat in the train cabin, gazing out over the smeared landscape racing past, my mind weighed down with thoughts. This was not exactly how I had planned to arrive in Miami. I was supposed to fly in, first class, trouble-free. Now, I was jammed into a cramped train seat, my mom beside me, squirming uncomfortably.Ugh, Patrick, this is ridiculous," she muttered, pushing her designer suns up her nose. "How did you go and get us to miss our flight? Do you have any idea how humiliating it is for a Von Harrington to be seen on public transport?"I rubbed my temples. "Mother, we're almost there. Just relax." She snorted. "Relax? In this. Sheep's hell? Not in your lifetime.".I tuned out her whining, my mind still on Becky. When she'd come to my apartment that morning, she'd been gaunt, half-sagging over standing, lips pale, eyes sunken.I had pulled her into a room, cradling her in my arms, something I hadn't done in so long. I remembered how vulnerable she actually was behind a
Last Updated : 2025-03-28THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE THE TRAP TIGHTENS
Patrick's POVI set my phone down, my mind reeling. Sophia's message had not been a threat, but a warning. And I knew one thing about Sophia: she never uttered anything she did not mean.I took a deep breath, my fingers wrapping around the edge of the table. The Miami sunlight glinted off the silverware, but I was not in the mood to notice the view. My appetite had left.What was the wrong decision?Did she never intend on marrying Becky? Was it always Giselle from the start? Or was something more in the works?I was too confused, and too short on answers.A Familiar Face in MiamiI had bought lunch and stepped out of the restaurant into the sweltering Miami heat, settling on my sunglasses. My mother had headed off to her hotel, so I had a little respite from her badgering.I needed a drink, a strategy—a cover-up to explain this disaster.But I hadn't time to react when I caught sight of someone on the street.Victor.He stood by a black SUV, arms folded, sneer on his lips. He was acc
Last Updated : 2025-03-28THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE SHADOWS OF MIAMI
Giselle's POVI sat and watched Patrick grab hold of Victor and drag him off the dance floor, and I let out a breath, unclenching some of the tension in my chest. But I was shrewd enough to know that I wasn't yet safe.Victor was in Miami, and that didn't bode well. I needed to move on before he came for me again.My racing heart pounding within my ears, I ran off the dance floor, amidst the sharply attired witnesses, who looked upwards above as they raised cameras high to flash and grumbled in fearful distress. I must disappear.There was a hallway that led to the private lounges and I entered, quiet tapping of heels on marble floor. Another step or so, and I would be able to breathe.But just as I was about to turn away, a shrill squeal brought me to a halt in mid-stride."Oh my God, it's her!"I hadn't had time to think when a group of young women closed in on me, their faces lighting up with excitement."Giselle Von Howard!" one of them cried, waving her phone. "Can we have our ph
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Patrick's POVThe soothing clang of the train on the tracks was keeping me awake.I never expected to be like this—missed my flight, trapped inside a train car with my mother, and inundated with my thoughts.Victor was in Miami.Victor was in the Miss World Gala.And worst of all? Giselle saw us together.I leaned my head against the cold of the window, watching city lights flash past me. Cabin air was heavy, smothering, as if walls were shutting in on me."Patrick," my mother broke into my trance. "You've not uttered a word since we boarded."I sighed and turned to her. She had been staring at me worriedly, her flawless face creased with concern."Just tired," I grunted.She wasn't believing it. "This has nothing to do with getting on the flight, doesn't it?"I breathed in, rubbing my temple. "Victor's in Miami."My mom's face toughened. "That man's a disaster waiting to happen. What's he needing now?"That was the million-dollar question.I knew Victor needed something, at least hal
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Giselle's POVThe atmosphere was thick, heavy with foreboding. The shadow of the unsigned note still hung over us like a cloud of doom. Someone else was watching me. Someone even scarier than Victor.Nicholas sat opposite me, arms crossed, furrowed brows in intensity. Patrick leaned against the window, jaw tight as he scowled out the window into space, absorbed in thought."We need to have a good plan," Nicholas said, breaking the silence at last. "We can't just sit around and wait for them to make their move. We need to be the ones to make the first move."Patrick's eyes met mine. "Yeah. But we have to be smart about it. Victor's already made his move, but this other threat—whomever they are—is working in the background."I exhaled slowly, massaging my temples. "So what do I do? Hide out? Cancel my public engagements?"Nicholas shook his head. "No. That would be giving them the satisfaction. If they can bully you into withdrawal, they will realize that you are afraid. And that will g
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Giselle's POVThere was a sense of foreboding in the air as I stepped out of the hotel door, my stilettos clanging off the sidewalk. The click of the paparazzi cameras lit up the world in a rainbow of color. My green gown shone in the city lights, but I barely even noticed. My brain whirled in a maelstrom of fear and horror.Patrick beside me, his bodyguard ever-present within earshot, and Nicholas standing beside the car, watchful eyes scanning the distance. My bodyguards fell back behind me in a close half-circle, grim faces.Sliding into the limousine, Nicholas bent to address me. "Ready?"I was breathless. "Do I have a choice?"Patrick smiled, but tonight's customary arrogance had an overlay of something else—concern. "Just play by the rules, Gigi."An Unexpected GuestWe stepped into the hall, a beautiful space of golden chandeliers and velvet silk curtains. The Miss World evening was at full pitch—models, celebrities, and socialites mingling, laughter echoing off the high ceilin
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Giselle's POVMy lungs drew wheezing gasps as I struggled with the bindings that secured my wrists. The bite of cold metal chilled me to the bone, yet my head was too occupied with the terror screaming down my throat. Darkness churned down the chill grey walls in the faint light within the room, and the figure before me still had something in shadows.I made myself stay calm. Judge. Interpret. Survive."The one who's been watching you from the very beginning."The voice made my blood run cold. It wasn't Victor. No. This was worse than that.The woman stepped forward, and my blood froze.Amara.She wore a designer black silk dress, her dark eyes glinting with sadistic pleasure. A twisted smile played on her lips as she lounged against a table that was stacked with files—my files.I swallowed. "What in the devil are you doing here?"She moved in closer. "Did you really think Victor was your only issue, Giselle?"My stomach twisted. "You set me up."She smiled. "Oh, dear, I've done more
Last Updated : 2025-03-28
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THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE BY SHADOWS AND TRUTH
(Patrick's POV)The sun dipped low as I stood by the balcony door of the hotel suite, a wind in Miami's air brushing my face with whispers of destiny. I barely slept in the last two nights, and Giselle's silence was becoming too deafening. I checked my phone again, trying hard to call hers. Still busy.Becky had been quiet all morning. Too quiet. And I was too distracted to realize it. I just needed to hear Giselle, see her, know that she was alive."Patrick," my mother had tried to say a little while ago, trying to deflect the subject, "Becky's issue. she needs your help.""She needs my help because she fell trying to get my phone," I had answered, my voice colder than I intended it to be.Becky hadn't spoken to me since. And I hadn't spoken to her. I couldn't pretend, not with everything unraveling inside me.My ringing phone jolted me out of sleep. It was Debbie."Hey, Debbie," I said, already sensing the panic in her voice."Patrick, please. I need you to drive me to the contestan
THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE SHADOWS OF REALITIES
Giselle's POVMy silence and Patrick's lingered behind us once we'd spoken. Not the type that creeps up and skinnies and tickles with anxiety, but instead a dense variety, filled by both parties and left untouched due to neither wishing to add any more bulk into the world. I had plopped on the couch, wrapped my legs tightly into my center, soft light from the lamp in the room casting limp shadow on the ceiling.He hadn't pushed. He hadn't insisted. That alone was reassuring and unnerving. Patrick was the one who always stepped back when I stepped back, and for some reason that always made me feel safer with him. But tonight I had wished he would have insisted—wished he would have pushed me to tell him everything I had kept locked inside.Because the truth was choking me.Victor had called me again.I didn't reply. I couldn't. His final message he ever sent just lingered in my inbox, unread: "You'll never be safe without me."He was right, at least—everything had felt unreal. Because I
THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE FRACTURED REALITIES
Patrick's POVThe pounding waves on the beach was the raw, distant sound of the thunder. I was standing in front of the balcony of the suite, looking out over the ocean. The sky was a darker blue with an orange tint to it as the sun started to set. The peace of what I was seeing was such a contrast to the storm that raged inside of me.I had hoped that time would mend the gap between me and Giselle. But distance and silence could not remove the pain, the disillusion, or the deceptions that had built up between us. I had hoped that if I came here, if I was merely there, I could mend everything.But even then, after I'd made the reconciliation gesture, part of me was like walking on glass.I hadn't spoken to Giselle in reality since we'd talked on the beach. She'd retreated again into her silence, and this wall was there between us. One I wasn't sure I could climb.The ring of my phone reminded me of what was real. It was Grace on the phone."Patrick," her voice grated across the phone.
THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE WHISPERS OF FIRE
Giselle's POVThe ocean breeze swept over my hotel room floor-to-ceiling sheer flowing curtains, stroking my skin with the softness of silk. I was standing at the glass, arms crossed, looking out toward the horizon where the sky was dancing with the waves. Miami was another type of wildness—noisy and restive. But I was weary of twinkly lights and further cacophony of applause.My phone went quiet once more. No calls. No texts. Patrick hadn't called or texted me since that strange message he'd sent two nights before—the one where his voice broke, like he was holding something fragile and already letting it go.I wrapped my robe more securely around me and went to the dresser. My hair smelled of vanilla and gardenias, my skin still warm from the bath I'd indulged in a little while ago. Today was meant to be peaceful, but this ache was in my breast. As if something was waking up, something was moving. and I wasn't prepared."Ma'am," one of my guards knocked on the door, entering. "Miss G
THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE THE WEIGHT OF CROWNS
Giselle's POVI couldn't breathe.Not because my practice corset was too tight—though it was stuck to me like a vice—because the dressing room walls kept closing in with every untexted moment, every unspoken one, every time I blinked and Patrick's face flashed before me in the darkness.He was there for me.I knew the moment he walked into the lobby. My father had eyes and ears everywhere, but even if he hadn't, I would have known. The air around me shifted. My heart shifted. My phone was in off mode when Becky called me, crying, accusingly, bewildered. I did not need the explanations. Not yet. My world had swerved too far from its axis. I had wished for silence to put it on a straight axis once more.But silence was treacherous. It betrayed things into me I did not want to know."Giselle," my assistant Sarah had called at the door. "Five minutes before last rehearsal. Ready?" "Coming," I had replied, rising from the velvet couch and regarding myself in the mirror.The woman in th
THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE BENEATH THE SURFACE
Patrick's POVI couldn't sleep.I reclined on the hotel bed looking up at the ceiling fan, its soft whirring mingling with the hum in my head. I was in Miami but felt more distant from all I ever knew. The soft glow of the bedside lamp cast shadows with dance motions on the wall. My phone was silent, face down on the nightstand.Giselle had yet to call me back.I rolled over on my side, pulling the comforter up over my chest like it could shield me from the shame crawling all over my body. Why wasn't she answering? Why wasn't her number still open? Dozens of questions ran through my mind—had something happened to her? Or was she just. done with me?Becky's face remembered, scowling in anger when she pilfered my phone from off my person earlier. How she crumpled. The terror in the shriek she let out. The crying, the trembling of her hands laid over her belly. And I? I had taken a step back. Like a coward.I groaned and sat up straight, running my hand through my hair. I needed some air
THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE SHADOWS OF THE PAST
I woke up to the soothing whizz of sea waves on the windowpane, sea wind seeping through the almost-closed curtains. My body felt heavy, as if stuck with a sticky of laziness for days. I rolled over and threw my arm over to the bedside table where my phone rested. Missed calls and unread messages streamed before me.Patrick had been phoning me again.I cursed, sitting up and rubbing sleep from my eyes. I'd been staying away from him, not that I wasn't, but because my brain was in turmoil. My heart was a battleground, past and present, duty and desire.A knocking on the door to break me out of my trance."Come in," I roared, throwing the bed back.Nicholas came in, quieter than normal. "You did not call last night. I was frightened."I fabricated a small smile, attempting to bleed some of the tension from the moment. "I was tired. The party wore me out more than I anticipated."He crossed his arms, his eyes pinning me as he nailed me with them. "Or you were avoiding Patrick?"I winced
THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE UNRAVELING SHADOWS
I awoke to the quiet thrum of the air conditioner, cold blankets drawn high around me as if wrapping me in some kind of protection. Body had recovered and caught its breath, but mind was assailed with memories, questions, and theinine whine that somethings still hung over in the distance, threatening to unravel.I yawned, my whole body hurting from the strain of the last two days, and stretched out to grab my phone. No call from Patrick. That was not expected. Half of me had been expecting him to call a hundred times at least, but nothing. Perhaps he finally gave up. Or perhaps something else was preoccupying him.A gentle knock on my door brought me back to reality."Come on in," I said, shoulders propped against the headboard.Nicholas slid open the door and grinned, impossibly so, after all these years we'd spent living in secret. He placed a tray of breakfast on the nightstand and sat at the foot of my bed."How's it going?" he asked, never once looking away from mine."Good," I a
THE CEO'S SECRET WIFE WHISPERS IN THE DARK
Giselle's POVThe city sounds outside my hotel room window hummed like a distant lullaby as I shivered on the chaise lounge, staring at my phone. The screen was white, no call, no message. Patrick had called no one, nor did I call him. Half of me wanted to know where we were, but the other half didn't care.I breathed deeply and placed the phone on my side. Miss World was the following day, and I still had some of those last-minute things to sort out. However, my mind was preoccupied by a maelstrom of endless questions—Patrick, Victor, something somewhere in the background.As I was about to hoist myself up, there was a soft knock on the door of my suite. My throat was parched. Was it security? Had something occurred? I walked on my feet, clutching around me the silk robe that I had wrapped around my naked body, and crept up to the door."Who is it?" I asked."It's Nicholas," my brother's reassuringly familiar voice said over the telephone. I swung open the door at once and flung it w
