Amber Trying to seduce Dan was a grave mistake, a humiliating misstep that only served to deepen the rift between us. If I’d ignored my mother’s misguided advice, maybe I wouldn’t feel this raw, exposed, and shattered. My self-esteem took a blow so severe that I’m not sure I can ever piece it back together.A week has passed, and Dan now treats me like I’m invisible, as though the sight of me is enough to sour his day. He comes home long past midnight, the sound of the front door creaking open is the only signal of his return. By the time I wake, he’s already gone, the faint scent of his cologne and the chaos left behind as proof he still lives here: shirts strewn across the couch, shoes left haphazardly at the entrance, an empty coffee mug on the kitchen counter.I move through the house like a ghost, cleaning up his trail and pretending that each act isn’t a painful reminder of how far we’ve fallen. I wipe down the countertops, pick up discarded socks, and straighten pillows with a
I quickly turn my face away from Liam, hoping he doesn’t see the tears that are threatening to spill. It’s stupid, really, crying over a simple compliment, but hearing those words—You did great—from him feels like a weight lifted off my chest. Since forever, all I’ve ever heard from Dan is that I’m not enough, that I never do anything right.I inhale deeply, and focus on the rain hitting the window, watching as the droplets streak down the glass, my thoughts drifting. I wish it were Dan sitting here beside me, telling me I did a good job, making me feel like I matter. The thought burns a little, ached deep in my chest. I can’t help but wish things could go back to how they were, before everything fell apart between us. I know I sound like a broken record but, I can’t seem to help it.Liam’s voice breaks the stillness. "Amber?" His tone is soft, concerned. "Are you okay? Did I say something wrong?"I force myself to nod, not trusting my voice. I turn back to face him, offering a smile
AmberMy heart is hammering in my chest as Dan stands up, his footsteps heavy and deliberate as he strides toward me. His eyes are blazing with fury, and his voice cuts through the silence like a knife. "I asked you a question. Where the hell have you been?"I stutter, trying to keep my composure, but the words won’t come out fast enough. "I—I was at the charity event we’ve been planning… it was today." My voice trails off, unsure of what will set him off next.His glare sharpens, and he crosses his arms, eyes narrowing. "What did I tell you about going out without my permission?"I swallow hard, panic rising in my throat. "I... I’m sorry. I completely forgot about it. I... I texted you about it." My voice wavers, desperate for him to understand. “When you didn’t reply, I decided to Uber my way there.”Dan scoffs, his anger escalating. "Oh, I’m sorry I didn’t respond to you on time Madam! You think I’m sitting around, waiting for your last-minute messages?" He takes a step closer, his
I stood frozen at her doorstep, staring at the closed door she’d just shut in my face. My jaw clenched as I replayed the sight of her bruise. That bastard hit her. I know it. I wanted to kick the damn door down, force her to tell me the truth, to stop lying for him. But I knew it wouldn’t work. She was too scared, too conditioned to defend him. But why? Why would she do that?I took a deep breath and stepped back, my fists curling tightly at my sides. For a moment, I couldn’t move, just stood there staring at the door. If I walked away now, what would happen to her? Would he hit her again? Worse? The thought made my blood boil.My boots hit the pavement harder than I intended as I walked back to my car, the rain drizzling starting to soak through my jacket. I slid into the driver’s seat and sat there, gripping the steering wheel.Calling the cops wouldn’t work. Amber would lie, just like she did to me. I know her. She’d protect him at her own expense, and that bastard would get away w
As I shut the door behind Liam, I leaned against the door, sliding to the floor as the tears I’d been holding back came rushing out. My chest heaved with every sob, and the guilt churned in my stomach like acid. He hadn’t deserved the way I spoke to him. He was only trying to help.Liam was right, God, he was so painfully right about not making excuses for Dan. And I hated that he was. My life was a mess, and I was stuck, drowning in it.Dragging myself off the floor, I shuffled to my ensuite bathroom. The harsh light from the mirror made me wince as it highlighted the bruise on my cheek. My fingers hovered over the purple blotch before I pressed gently against it, hissing in pain.I opened the cabinet above the sink, fumbling for the aloe vera gel I kept on hand for moments like this. I wiped my face clean before applying it. As I smoothed the cool gel over the tender skin, I couldn’t stop the wave of bitterness that hit me. Sometimes, when Dan was mad, he forgot himself and hit me so
Dinner at my parents’ house. Just the thought of it made me want to groan out loud, but skipping wasn’t an option. If I did, my mom would be calling me nonstop, guilt-tripping me into next week. So, here I was, sitting at the dining table, trying to focus on my plate but failing miserably.Amber was all I could think about. The way she looked at me earlier at the grocery store, so torn, so fragile. Played on a loop in my mind. Was she okay now? Did Dan say something hurtful to her? Or worse, did he hurt her again? My jaw tightened at the thought, my grip on the fork almost snapping it in half.I let out a relieved breath remembering my men were stationed near her house, ready to report if anything seemed off.And then there was the burner phone. I’d slipped it into the chocolates I gave her earlier, with a note explaining it was for emergencies. She’d probably be furious when she found it, but I didn’t care. I needed to know she had a way to contact me if she needed help.“Liam!” My m
I placed the burner phone on the nightstand and stared at it, a ghost of a smile tugging at my lips. Talking to Liam had stirred a strange comfort I hadn’t felt in a long time.He had a way of making me feel seen, like I wasn’t invisible. I hated that. Hated how my heart fluttered at his attention, hated the warmth his voice carried, and most of all, hated that I was still thinking about him long after the call ended.With a shake of my head, I forced myself to focus. I was a married woman. No matter how much Dan and I had drifted apart, I had made vows. I closed my eyes, imagining what life would be like if Dan could just be the man he had once been the charming man who brought me flowers, whispered sweet promises, and made me believe in forever.I tried to remember the man I married—the one who used to hold me close and make me feel like I was the only one in the world. But lately, all I could feel was his anger. His dismissiveness. His cold indifference.Sleep found me eventually,
He was cheating on me. I couldn’t believe it. I looked around me wondering if I was dreaming. Maybe it was a nightmare and soon I would wake up from it. But the proof was right there on his phone, staring me in the face.My hands shook as I wiped the tears streaming down my cheeks, willing them to stop, but I couldn’t stop myself. I picked up the phone again and scrolled further through the messages, hoping that maybe I saw wrong the first time.But the more I read the messages the more evident it was that Dan was truly cheating on me. The realization shattered my heart into a thousand pieces and It felt like a dagger was being twisted in my chest. How could he do this?Tears blurred my vision as the realization sank deeper. I had been such a fool. All this time, I had been playing the perfect housewife, cleaning up after him and his ungrateful family, bending over backward to make him happy. And while I was busy sacrificing myself for his approval, he was sneaking around with someon
The next day, I sat in a sleek conference room with Liam by my side, facing the PR team from his company. My hands were clasped together on the table, my fingers twisting anxiously as I listened to them go over the best course of action."We need to take control of the narrative," one of the PR representatives, a sharp-dressed woman named Claire, said. She folded her hands in front of her and gave me a calm but firm look. "Right now, the public is divided, but Dan has the upper hand. He got ahead of the story and made you look like the bad guy. We need to change that."I swallowed hard. "How?"Claire exchanged glances with one of her colleagues a guy named, Tom, before pulling out her tablet. "We’ve drafted a post for your social media. All you need to do is approve it and post it."She slid the tablet in my direction and I picked it up with shaky fingers and read it silently first, my eyes scanning the words they’d crafted:“I’ve stayed silent long enough. Everything Dan has said abo
After I dropped the bombshell about Dan hitting Amber, Dad was the first to pull himself together. He looked at me, shaking his head, and said he had no idea that guy used to lay a hand on her. “That’s bad. It’s a good thing Amber left,” he added. “No woman should have to endure a beating in a marriage.” I could tell he meant it. His voice had that steady, no-nonsense tone he gets when he’s pissed.Mom, though, she was still in shock. Her eyes were wide, and she spoke up before Dad could say anything else. “I had no idea,” she said, her voice soft, almost trembling. “Thank God Amber left. Poor Amber. I wonder why she pretended to be happy while he was hitting her.” Then she paused, and I could see her thoughts shifting. She turned to me, her expression tightening. “Even though what Dan did was awful, Liam, you don’t need to insert yourself into this situation. You can help Amber without dating her. This whole thing is messy and you shouldn’t let yourself get dragged into it.”I couldn
When I pulled up to my parent’s house, I barely had time to step inside before I heard my name.“Well, well, look who finally decided to show up,” Lilian drawled from the living room, a glass of wine in her hand. I already knew what her smirk was about and I wasn’t in the mood.I sighed. “Hey, Lils.”She smirked and walked over. “Your mom’s in the kitchen, and let me tell you, she is not happy.”I rubbed the back of my neck. “Yeah, I figured. She called me earlier.”Lilian raised a brow. “So, you and Amber, huh? No wonder you were so damn on edge the last time her name came up at dinner.”I shot her a look, but she just grinned and took a sip of her wine. “So tell me, when exactly did this start?”“We only started seeing each other after she left Dan,” I said firmly. “That marriage was a sham, Lils. And she already served him divorce papers, but he refused to sign them.”Lilian hummed, tilting her head. “Yeah, but Dan’s out here making it look like you two were sneaking around behind
Back at the office, I couldn’t focus. My mind kept drifting to Amber, her tear-streaked face, the way her voice cracked when she told me what Dan had done. The rage I felt earlier was still burning in my chest, a steady, unrelenting fire. And I felt like hitting something more, like I felt like hitting Dan.I wanted to hurt Dan. Badly.The bastard had always been a selfish prick, but this? Smearing Amber’s name, painting her as the villain just to salvage his fragile ego? That was something I wasn’t going to take, and I would make sure that he paid.I clenched my fists at the memory of her breaking down in my office, feeling powerless as she read the comments tearing her apart. If I had Dan in front of me right now, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to hold back.I had just wrapped up a meeting when my phone rang. Brian.I already knew what this was about. My phone had been ringing non-stop since that idiot released his ridiculous statement—media houses, bloggers, reporters, all wanting to co
Liam let out a curse as he read the statement Dan had released. “That bastard doesn’t just know when to stop,” he muttered.I couldn’t believe this. This was low, even for Dan. Then again, he had always been selfish. He had never cared about how his actions affected me as long as he came out looking like the perfect husband. I should have known he would go to any length to spite me. But I never thought he would drag me through the mud like this—turning me into a villain for the whole world to see.Liam placed my phone on his desk and reached for me, holding my face, his thumbs brushing away the last of my tears. “Amber,” he said, his voice calm but firm. “Don’t worry. Everything is going to be okay.”I let out a humorless laugh, shaking my head. “You don’t understand, Liam.” My voice wavered as I gestured helplessly toward my phone on the desk. “People are tearing me apart online. They’re calling me a cheating whore. A liar. Dan has made me out to be the villain, and they’re eating it
The moment those words left my mother’s mouth, my stomach clenched. "Are you sure?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper."It’s all over social media, Amber," she said, her tone laced with urgency.My fingers tightened around the phone as dread coiled in my chest. “I’ll call you back,” I muttered, ending the call before she could say anything else.My heart pounded as I tapped open Twitter. The trending section confirmed my worst fear. My marriage to Dan was making headlines.I clicked on the top post, and a video started playing. It was from the restaurant a few days ago. Dan sat across from me, his hand reaching out to grip mine, I jerked my hand away, my expression unreadable to an outsider, but I knew what was running through my mind in that moment. Disgust. Frustration. Resentment.The caption beneath the video made my throat tighten:“Is there trouble in Sullivan paradise?”The post went on to speculate about my absence from Dan’s recent luncheon, suggesting that we had sepa
I stirred awake to a sensation so blissful, so warm, that I thought I was still dreaming. Soft lips brushed along my bare shoulder, trailing a path of heat down my spine, sending tiny shivers racing across my bare skin. After making love into the early hours of the morning, we both slept naked in each other’s arms.I let out a sigh, somewhere between contentment and need, as the lips ventured lower, followed by the featherlight touch of his fingers gliding over my hip.A slow, indulgent kiss pressed against the dip of my back. Then another. My body arched instinctively, drawn to his touch, my skin buzzing with anticipation. A deep chuckle rumbled from behind me, sending another wave of warmth curling in my stomach."Liam," I whispered, my voice still thick with sleep.His lips brushed my ear as his hand slid up my thigh, his touch both possessive and reverent. "Morning, beautiful," he murmured, the huskiness in his voice making my stomach flutter.I barely had time to respond before h
Throughout the day, Liam and I tried our best to keep our hands to ourselves and act professional around each other. It was hard but we made it to the end of workdayThe ride back to the penthouse was quiet, but there was an unspoken tension crackling between us. As he drove, Liam's hand rested on my thigh, his thumb tracing slow, lazy circles against my skin. It was an absentminded touch, but it sent shivers down my spine. I placed my hand over his, feeling the warmth of his palm beneath mine. It was such a simple act, yet it felt so intimate.My mind kept drifting back to what he had said that morning. My girlfriend. He had called me his girlfriend. The words kept replaying in my head, twisting and turning in my thoughts. Should I bring it up? Should I ask him if he really meant it? It shouldn’t be a big deal, but for some reason, it was.Swallowing hard, I pushed the thought aside and turned to him. "How's your dad?" I asked, hoping to distract myself.Liam glanced at me briefly be
I padded out to the kitchen, the smell of something sweet filling the air. My eyes landed on Liam, standing by the stove, flipping pancakes with effortless ease. He was still shirtless, his toned back and strong arms flexing with every movement. The sight of him cooking, completely at ease in the kitchen, did something strange to my heart.Liam turned just then, catching me staring. A cute smile spread across his face, his dark eyes filled with warmth.“Coffee?” he asked.“Yes please.” I smiled, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear. "Need any help?"He shook his head, lowering the heat on the stove before reaching for a mug. "Nope, I got it." He poured me a cup of coffee, fixing it just the way I liked, before handing it to me. "You just sit there and relax."I took the mug, warmth spreading through my fingers as his fingers brushed mine. "Thank you."Liam leaned in and kissed my nose before turning back to the stove. I settled onto one of the barstools by the island, wrapping