"Turn around and face the mirror. What style name would suit our current appearance?"Giggling, Athena followed the instructions of the man still holding her close. She turned to face the mirror and observed the mess on both herself and Arthur. But that didn't last long, as a smile reflexively spread across her face when she realized just how sweet the scene before her was.Sweet? Yes, that’s how Athena saw it, even though she and Arthur still looked a mess, with traces of dust and paint smudging their bodies. She momentarily pushed aside that thought, as her focus suddenly shifted to the way Arthur was holding her, looking at her, and even kissing her shoulder.Ah… Athena just realized how close she had allowed herself to be with this man. Sure, they had kissed several times before, but somehow, this moment felt different—sweeter. To her, it was almost like they were husband and wife, standing in fron
Arthur murmured, reaching for the hem of her shirt. His fingertips brushed against her skin, sending another wave of warmth through her."Arthur…" Athena hesitated, her cheeks burning."What is it, baby?" He smiled, tilting his head. "Shy all of a sudden?" His fingers trailed along her waist, teasing. "After all this time, and after everything we’ve done, you still blush like this? Adorable!"Athena bit her lip, trying to find the words to respond, but all she could focus on was the heat pooling in her chest, the way her body was betraying her."Relax," he whispered and let out a soft chuckle before pressing a lingering kiss to her forehead. "I won’t push you." He pulled back slightly, reaching for a towel on the rack before gently wrapping it around her shoulders. "Tonight isn’t the right time for this.""W–what?"Arthur
"Huh!"Arthur stepped out of the shower, running a towel through his damp hair as he walked toward the bedroom. His lips curled into a smirk, thinking about Athena’s flustered expression earlier.He was about to call out to her when he noticed something odd. The room was eerily silent. Athena was nowhere to be seen. His smirk faded."Athena?" he called out in confusion as he looked in several directions. His chest tightened. Something was wrong.Arthur grabbed his phone and quickly dialed Athena’s number. The call connected, but there was no answer. His heart pounded harder as he tried again. This time, he heard it—her ringtone. It was faint, distant… coming from outside the room.That was when he noticed the open window.His blood ran cold.He strode toward it, his sharp gaze scanning the area below. Footpr
Leon’s smirk vanished. Athena let out a breath, watching his expression darken with irritation."So tell me, Leon," she whispered back with a sardonic smile. "Who's the real fool here?"Leon’s jaw tightened, his fists clenching at his sides. He hated being made to look like an idiot, and Athena could see the way his temper flared.But then, he suddenly laughed.A low, cold laugh."Three days, Athena," he said, his voice sharper now. He pulled the contract from his coat pocket and tossed it onto her lap. "You have three days to decide. Sign it, or you won’t be leaving here at all!"Athena glared at him, her breathing ragged. She refused to look away, refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing her break."Go to hell!" she hissed.Leon let out an amused chuckle. Then, with a shove, he pushed h
"You don’t get it, sir?" Edward hissed, pacing furiously. "Mr. James is already closing in! If we don’t move now, we’re done!""Running will only confirm his suspicions, Ed. If we stay put and act like nothing’s wrong, we might have a chance to slip away unnoticed!" Leon remained still, his expression unreadable."That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard, sir. Do you think Mr. James is stupid? He’s a damn predator! The second he senses blood, he won’t stop until we’re ripped apart!" Edward let out a frustrated growl, making Leon’s jaw tighten."You think I don’t know that?" He took a slow breath, his fingers twitching in irritation. "But moving her now is too dangerous. The moment we step out of here, we expose ourselves!""Then what’s your brilliant plan, sir?" Edward ran a hand through his hair, his patience weari
Athena’s heart pounded as she crouched behind the crates, her breath coming in shallow gasps. Every muscle in her body screamed in pain, but she refused to let it stop her. The warehouse door was only a few feet away. If she could just reach it.Slowly, she inched forward, her bound hands fumbling to grip a metal pipe lying on the ground. She barely had time to steel herself before a chilling voice cut through the silence."Going somewhere, darling?"A sharp gasp escaped her lips as the shadows shifted, revealing Leon standing just a few steps away. His dark eyes gleamed with amusement, but there was something far more sinister lurking beneath his smirk.Athena forced herself to stand tall, even as fear clawed at her throat. "Stay away from me, Leon!"He let out a low chuckle, stepping closer. "You still think you have control here? That’s adorable, really!" His gaze
Arthur barely had time to react before the air filled with chaos. Heavy wooden beams and metal rods clattered against metal crates as Leon’s mercenaries stormed the warehouse. Arthur and his men fought back, hurling whatever they could find—iron pipes, wooden planks—turning the space into a brutal melee."Hold your positions!" he barked at his men, gripping a thick wooden baton.A mercenary charged at him from the side. Arthur pivoted, slamming the baton into the man’s jaw, sending him sprawling. He didn’t hesitate before bringing it down hard on the man’s chest."Mr. James! Or should I call you Arthur the thug?" A mocking voice rang out above the chaos.Arthur turned just in time to see one of Leon’s top men smirking at him. The bastard held a crowbar, swinging it lazily in his grip."You should’ve just walked away," the man sneere
Athena clenched her teeth as she forced herself to sit up, ignoring the sharp pain radiating through her body. Leon stood a few feet away, watching her with that maddening smirk—the same one that made her want to claw his face off."You're enjoying this, aren't you?" she spat, her voice laced with venom."Oh, darling, don’t be so dramatic." Leon chuckled, slow and deliberate. "I’m simply ensuring you remember where you belong!""I don’t belong to you!" Athena hissed, her glare burning into him. "No matter how many times you drag me to these disgusting places, no matter how many times you try to break me, I will never be yours!"Leon tilted his head as if considering her words, then let out an exaggerated sigh. "And yet, here you are. Locked away, under my control, with nowhere to run. You’re in no position to be making demands, darling!""You think t
Time passed by without her realizing it. One day after another went by. The series of divorce trials between Athena and Leon had begun running smoothly without obstacles. Slowly, the negative gossip about her life started to fade away. The project to build a free music school with the Mayor was nearing its final stages, and her company’s collaboration with Caroline’s business was also progressing well.Everything was starting to fall into place for Athena, yet there was still an emptiness in her heart. To her, all these achievements still felt incomplete because the person who had been her source of strength—the one who kept her going—was not by her side.Arthur. Yes, his departure had left a void in Athena’s heart. Even though Arthur had told her beforehand that he would be too busy to return to his sister anytime soon, she couldn’t help but feel restless. That feeling only deepened with time, pulling her
Tingg!A sudden notification sound rang just as the initial meeting for her collaboration with Caroline's company concluded. Realizing that it was Arthur who had messaged her, Athena quickly glanced around to make sure no one was watching her at that moment.[I'm sorry, but I have to go abroad for a while due to an urgent matter. I didn't have the chance to inform you in person because everything happened so quickly.]Letting out a quiet sigh, Athena leaned back in her chair. Once again, a tightness gripped her chest. She felt that sense of loss creeping in again, so she quickly shifted her focus to her employees, who were preparing to leave the meeting room, and to Caroline, who seemed busy with her phone—to push away that feeling.[I'm sorry once again, dear. I never wanted to leave you, but I have no choice.]Staring blankly at her phone screen, Athena straightened her p
"E–enemy?"Athena stammered as both of her ears caught Caroline’s last word. Her eyes widened in tension, especially when the woman nodded in response, meeting her gaze without hesitation."Caroline... I think we've gone too far with this conversation. We should—""Don't be so tense, Athena. I haven't explained what I meant yet," Caroline said calmly once again, though her ever-changing gaze made her intentions difficult to read."Ah, I just...""What I mean is, we could become enemies if you were to take the man who has been a savior in my life. I absolutely despise it when something that should belong to me is taken or even disturbed by someone else. But surely, you wouldn’t do that to me, right?" Caroline chuckled again as if trying to lighten the mood, leaving Athena oblivious to the true meaning behind her words.Athena forced a s
Once he left, Athena sat still for a moment, staring at the empty space beside her. A strange feeling crept into her chest, was it disappointment? Worry? Or something else entirely?Shaking it off, she decided she couldn’t dwell on it. She needed to get back to her own life.Arriving at her office, she immediately instructed the security team to be cautious about accepting packages with no clear sender information. The last thing she needed was an unexpected threat slipping through the cracks like yesterday."Athena!""Caroline?"Athena waved her hand toward a woman who had just stepped out of a luxury car. Without hesitation, she gave her a warm hug as the woman in dark sunglasses approached, then slightly furrowed her brows when the woman handed her a rather large handbag with the label of a well-known brand."What is this?" she asked, still unsure.
Athena let out a soft sigh, staring at the ceiling.As she lay there, wrapped in the thick blanket Arthur had secured around her, she let out a small sigh. The lingering heat of their moment still clung to her skin, making her body tingle with anticipation. Yet, Arthur was gone now—at least for the moment.She waited. And waited. But Arthur never returned. Her fingers absently traced the fabric of Arthur’s bedsheets. She had expected him to return quickly, but the minutes stretched on, turning into an hour… and then another."Geez, why am I being like this?" she muttered worriedly to herself.She turned onto her side, curling up slightly as a strange sense of unease settled in her chest. He wouldn’t have just left without a word—not after what had happened between them tonight.At first, she thought he might have gotten caught up in something minor,
"Holding back?"Arthur couldn’t help but smile when he heard that. Deep down, he had to admit it was true. He had been holding back all this time—restraining himself from touching every inch of Athena’s smooth skin, even as his heart and body yearned for her more with each passing day.Tonight, after such a long wait, it was finally happening. This wasn’t just a fleeting desire; it was a dream he had held onto for so long, a hope for the future. He hoped to remain in this moment, in this intimacy, until the day he married her and spent the rest of his life by her side—until death did them part."Hmm... Why did you stop?" Athena’s soft voice broke the silence, laced with a hint of hesitation. "Isn’t this the best distraction from all the troubles drowning us?"Arthur nodded, then pressed a lingering kiss to the delicate skin beside him, his signature smirk ret
"Thank you! I'll confirm the arrival of both of us with the Mayor!"Before getting up from the lap of the man who always managed to capture her heart, Athena gave him a quick kiss on the corner of his lips. She smiled upon noticing his surprised expression. To her, Arthur always looked incredibly cute when he was like that, making it impossible for her to hold back a chuckle as she pulled away."The maid said you've already had dinner, right? In that case, get some rest. I’ve eaten too, so I just need to go back to my room to freshen up before resting."Smiling again, Athena adjusted Arthur’s blanket and bed before finally preparing to leave. She made sure he was completely comfortable before her eyes suddenly widened in shock—she was abruptly pulled back onto the bed.Who else could it be but Arthur? As if unwilling to let her go just yet, he pulled her back toward him before captu
Crystal’s growing curiosity as the mysterious woman walked away. A chill ran down her spine, her mind still spinning. She tapped her fingers against the cold, hard surface of her cell’s metal bed.The first letter of their names was the same? That meant her name started with C. But who? Charlotte? Cassandra?No. None of them matched the woman she had just seen. That poised smile, that air of confidence, it didn’t fit anyone she knew."Damn it!" she muttered under her breath. Her fingers curled into fists. "Who the hell was she?!"The woman’s words echoed in her mind, especially when she talks about Athena’s downfall. Something about this was different. This wasn’t just idle gossip or petty revenge. The woman had a plan, and she could feel it."Great!" she muttered bitterly. "Yet another person obsessed with that woman!"Cry
Athena’s fingers hovered over her phone screen, her mind racing. She needed—no, she wanted—to tell Arthur about this. Her heart was still pounding from the shock of what she had just seen.A blood-stained knife. A chilling note. A clear warning. Arthur needed to know. He always knew what to do. He would protect her. He would...."No, don’t do it!" Athena inhaled sharply and shook her head.Arthur was already drowning in problems. Reyna was still missing. He was barely sleeping, barely eating, spending every waking moment trying to track her down. If she called him now, she would only add to his burden."He doesn’t need another problem!" she muttered to herself, biting her lower lip. "I can handle this on my own!"With a sigh, she locked her phone and set it aside. Taking a deep breath, she pressed the intercom."Come