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99: Meeting With Mateo
Last Updated:
2025-03-23 19:54:28
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Married To The Billionaire I Hate 100: The Death Of Richard Hart
Emily’s POVThe sound of the gunshot still rang in my ears, but my brain struggled to process what had just happened.My father…Richard Hart…lay sprawled on the cold concrete floor. Blood spread from his chest, soaking into his once-neat suit. His eyes were open, but there was no life left in them.He was dead.I stared at his body, my breath coming in short, sharp gasps. My chest felt tight, like something heavy had settled on top of it, making it impossible to breathe.A strange, choking noise left my throat before I realized it was me.Mateo chuckled, spinning the gun on his finger before handing it back to one of his men. "Well, that was dramatic," he muttered, wiping his hands on his pants like Richard’s death had somehow dirtied them.My head snapped up."You…" My voice cracked, raw with fury. "You son of a bitch!"Mateo barely spared me a glance. "Oh, don’t act like you cared, Emily. The man treated you like trash your whole life."I jerked forward, but the ropes held me back.
Last Updated : 2025-03-23Married To The Billionaire I Hate 101: To End It All
Cole’s POVFew hours earlier.The second my phone rang, I knew something was wrong.I was already on edge, my gut telling me that something didn’t sit right. Emily was supposed to be safe at the cabin. It wasn’t a permanent place, just a temporary stop while we figured out our next move. But the second I saw the name flashing on my screen…one of my men guarding her…something inside me tensed.I swiped to answer. “Talk.”Heavy breathing. Then a voice, rushed and strained. “Boss, we’ve got a problem.”My grip tightened around the phone. “What kind of problem?”A pause. Then, “Two of our guys are dead. Execution style. Emily was taken.”Everything around me blurred. The chatter in the car, the hum of the engine, even the weight of my gun resting on my thigh…it all faded.“What?” My voice was low, deadly.“We didn’t see them coming. It was clean, professional. They hit fast and hard. Emily’s gone, and we’ve got no idea where they took her.”I exhaled through my nose, trying to keep my ang
Last Updated : 2025-03-23Married To The Billionaire I Hate 102: The Cliff
Emily’s POVThe rain was everywhere. In my hair, in my eyes, soaking through my clothes like a second skin. The wind howled so loud it felt like the whole world was screaming, but nothing was louder than the storm inside me. My pulse pounded in my ears, my breathing was uneven, and my body ached from the bruises and cuts Mateo had left on me.But none of that mattered.Because right now, all I saw was my father’s blood on Mateo’s hands.His grip on my arm was tight, his fingers pressing into my already sore skin as he dragged me toward the edge of the cliff. My boots struggled against the wet ground, slipping on the mud, but he yanked me forward without care.“Fucking hell, you are the most difficult young woman I’ve ever dealt with,” Mateo growled, his voice strained with frustration. His grip tightened painfully, his breath ragged. “Never in my life have I gone through this much shit just for a pussy.”I saw red.I twisted in his grip, my free hand swinging up. Slap. The sound crack
Last Updated : 2025-03-23Married To The Billionaire I Hate 103: The Funeral
Cole’s POVThe church was packed.Rows of people, all dressed in black. The men in expensive suits, the women in elegant dresses that screamed wealth and power. It wasn’t just a funeral…it was an event. The kind only reserved for men like Richard Hart.Billionaire. Business mogul. Ruthless strategist.And now, a dead man.White lilies surrounded the altar, their scent thick in the air, almost suffocating. The coffin sat in the center, gleaming under the dim lights of the church. A masterpiece of craftsmanship, polished to perfection. Everything about this funeral was excessive, grand, like Richard had planned it himself.I kept my eyes on Emily.She stood at the front, beside her mother, her back straight, her jaw tight. She wasn’t crying. She hadn’t cried once since her father died. Not at the wake. Not today. Not in the days leading up to this.But I knew her.I knew what restraint looked like.She was holding it all in.She wore a long, black dress, the fabric hugging her figure in
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Cole’s POVThe post-funeral reception was held at Richard Hart’s estate…a massive, sprawling mansion that screamed wealth and power.The kind of place where every corner had been meticulously designed to impress.Expensive art lined the walls. Crystal chandeliers hung from high ceilings, their lights low to match the somber mood. Waiters in black suits moved silently through the crowd, offering glasses of aged whiskey and champagne.But no one was here to drink.They were here to watch.Richard Hart was dead. And now, the question that lingered in the air, unspoken but loud, was…what happens next?I kept my eyes on Emily.She stood near the grand staircase, her posture rigid, her hands clasped together. The funeral had drained the color from her face, but there was still a fire in her eyes. A sharp, unyielding fire that dared anyone to challenge her.She wasn’t grieving like a daughter who lost a father.She was calculating.Because Emily Hart knew better than anyone that grief wasn’t
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Emily's POV.It had been a good week, or at least, as good as things could be when you were trying to figure out how to be a big sister while still managing your life. Smith and I had started to settle into a rhythm. It wasn’t perfect…hell, half the time, I still had no idea what I was doing…but we were getting there. He talked a little more, asked me things, and even reached for my hand when we crossed the street. Small victories, but victories nonetheless.So when Lena showed up to take him back, I wasn’t ready.She stood at the door, her designer sunglasses perched on top of her head, arms crossed, watching as Smith clung to the hem of my jacket. There was something stiff in the way she held herself, like she was measuring her words, careful not to say the wrong thing. Her eyes flickered between me and Smith, hesitating before she spoke.“I told you I’d be back today,” she said, her voice smooth, but I caught the careful edge to it, like she was choosing her tone wisely.I knew she
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Cole's POV.I stood outside Emily’s bedroom door, one hand braced against the frame. I had knocked. I had called her name. I had waited. But all I got was silence.She was in there. I knew it. I could hear the occasional rustle, the shift of footsteps, the creak of the bed. But she wouldn’t answer me.Smith had clung to her the morning he left. He had turned back three times before Lena had finally ushered him into the car. And Emily? She had just stood by the window, watching. Her face was unreadable.I had expected her to break down afterward. Maybe cry. Maybe scream. Maybe throw something. But she didn’t. Instead, she shut down completely.Now, it had been two days. Two days of her not coming out. Two days of her refusing to eat.I exhaled sharply and leaned my forehead against the door. “Emily,” I said, my voice lower this time. “I know you’re in there. And I know you’re not okay.”Nothing.I raked a hand through my hair. Fine. If she needed space, I would give it to her. But that
Last Updated : 2025-04-04
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Married To The Billionaire I Hate 128: Deadlines And Dead Men
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Married To The Billionaire I Hate 127: Part 2
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Married To The Billionaire I Hate 126: Epilogue
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Married To The Billionaire I Hate 125: The Endgame
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Married To The Billionaire I Hate 124: Five Life Sentences
Vanessa's POV.They brought me in through the back. Shackled. Dressed in orange. I could feel every damn eye in that courtroom the moment the doors opened.Phones were out. Cameras. People whispering. Judging. Hating.I used to walk through halls with power in my step, people hanging onto my words, afraid to cross me. Now, the guards shoved me forward like I was nothing. Like I wasn’t the Vanessa Monroe.The courtroom was colder than I remembered. The lights too bright. Too many people. Too many eyes. My throat was dry, and not a soul here gave a damn.The judge didn’t look up as I was led to the defendant’s table. He was flipping through a file…my file…thicker than a Bible.I sat. Hands cuffed. Ankles chained. Heart racing. Face burning.And then I saw her.Emily.Sitting there in the front row like she owned the damn place. Like she wasn’t two months pregnant with the child I tried to erase along with her.Her head was high. Shoulders back. Lips painted blood red. Her arms crossed l
Married To The Billionaire I Hate 123: A Good Sign
Emily's POV.Hours passed. Again.The ICU lights didn’t dim. Nurses kept coming in and out. Adjusting tubes. Checking monitors. Writing things down without saying a word to me. One of them offered me a blanket. Another brought me water I didn’t touch. I couldn’t drink. Couldn’t eat. My stomach was twisted into a hundred knots.Cole hadn’t moved.Not even a twitch.I kept waiting for something. A flick of his fingers. A twitch of an eyelid. A miracle.But the machines kept beeping the same way. Monotonous. Cold. Consistent.My fingers stayed laced with his. Even though he couldn’t squeeze back.The door creaked open again.Footsteps. Not rushed. Not hesitant. Just... steady.I turned, and there she was.Lena.Smith's mom.She looked like she’d driven straight from hell to get here. Hair in a bun that had long since given up. Dark circles under her eyes. Clothes wrinkled, boots dusty. Her eyes locked on me, then flicked to Cole. Her jaw clenched."Is he…?" she didn’t finish the question
