Years couldn't erase the love we shared, but will betrayal keep us apart forever? He seemed to me always as my forever-the one who saw, comprehended, and illuminated my life. But permanently broken the evening I came across his deception. I left behind a love as delicate as it was ferocious when I turned away Ethan Sinclair. I suppressed the hurts he left on my heart and lived without him for years. Fate now has brought us back together. He is colder, more forceful, and dangerously irresistible; he is no guy I once loved. But the same fire blazes in his eyes when he stares at me. Ethan claims he wants a second shot, but how can I believe the man who broke me? Love and hatred blurs when secrets fall apart and old betrayals surface. It is more difficult for me to recall why I left the deeper I slid back into his arms. But the truth has a way of undermining whatever we reconstruct. Are we meant to be split once more, this time permanently, or may we write another story?
Chapter 001
Olivia's POV
"Did you overlook me, Olivia?"
The same voice used to set my heart's flame stopped cold. It slithered over the large boardroom like a ghost from the past, softly rich and dangerously low, tightly enough to take my breath. As I turned, my professional armor threatened to break into a million fragments. My pulse flew.
Every inch the guy I had attempted to ignore for the previous four years, Ethan Sinclair stood at the front of the room. His cobalt-blue eyes jabbed through me with the fury of a thunderbolt, his crisp navy suit suited him like a second skin. The only thing holding me to reality was my fingers closing around the strap of my leather portfolio.
"Miss you?," Though my knees were not stable, my voice was ice. "I'm sorry, Mr. Sinclair; I don't hang around the past."
His mouth quitched, almost subtly, as though he were stifling a smile. It was so audacious that my blood boiled. "Is that so?" he said, his voice cool yet with a keen edge fit to cut through steel. "I suppose then entering my office today was merely a coincidence?"
I straightened my back, not wanting to give him the gratification of knowing how much he bothered me. Your office is not this one. Since your employer employed me, I am here at this employment site. That sums up all this is.
Ethan approached deliberately predatory, his movement near. The room appeared to shrink around us, the tension-charged air thick enough to suffocate. "Is it?" he said, his eyes fixed on me with a power that drove my well built defenses tumbling. "because it feels like fate to me."
I laughed bitterly, the sound loaded with every bit of hate I had been harboring. "Fate does not wipe off people, Ethan. You truly do.
The room's warmth plummeted, and for a second I watched something flutter in his eyes-perhaps regret? But it was gone, replaced by that impenetrable mask of his just as fast.
"You've always had a flair for dramatics, Olivia," he replied, his voice chilly. "I did not wipe you out." You become stronger thanks to me.
"And what exactly did you think leaving me would accomplish?" My voice broke, reflecting the tempest of feelings inside of me. I berated myself for allowing him to glimpse even a fraction of my sensitivity.
Ethan moved farther closer and stiffened his jaw, a muscle twitching. His fragrance, a terrible mix of cedarwood and spice, assaulted my senses and drove me back to evenings when his aroma was all I could hang onto.
"I never abandoned you," he continued, his voice kind but forceful, tinged with an edge suggesting deeper truths I wasn't sure I wanted to find. "You turned away."
And what option did I have? My words emerged like a whisper, a brittle fracture in the armor I had labored so hard to create. You let Ethan down, Ethan. You smashed me.
The air between us stopped momentarily, and I thought I saw his mask slide. Though he stopped himself, folding his fingers into a tight grip at his side, his hand jerked as though he wanted to reach out to me.
Quietly, he continued, "You don't know the whole story, Olivia," his voice bearing weight I didn't know how to interpret. "You just know what you observed."
"Don't," I snapped and stepped back. "Don't stand there and tell me I have no idea what I witnessed. Ethan, you choose what to do. Right now, live with it.
He opened his lips to answer, but before he could, the door sprung open like a hammer cracking glass. Wide-eyed and fluffed, a youthful assistant hurried in carrying a tablet.
"Mr. Sinclair, I apologize for interrupting; however, the system merging presents a critical problem. The press is already speculating on sabotage; the whole network is down.
Ethan turned to meet her, his face darkened and his jaw tightened. "Who is taking care of it?"
"IT is working on it; the merger talks run into danger. They are waiting for your comment.
Ethan ran a hand through his immaculate hair, grumbled under his breath, then turned back to me. With a low, firm voice, "This isn't over, Olivia," he said. Not quite by a long stretch.
He left me alone with my racing thoughts and the ghost of a guy I wasn't sure I would ever really know without waiting for a reply.
I tried to settle my quivering palms by exhaling forcefully. Seeing Ethan once more was like revisiting an old wound-one I had persuaded myself had closed. But standing there, in the aftermath of his presence, I sensed every sharp edge of the suffering I had suppressed.
His vitality still permeated the room, a seductive mix of bravado, risk, and something that seemed dangerously like desire. I hated that my heart deceived me by throbbing at the very sound of his voice, and hated that he still had this impact on me.
I looked at the portfolio in my hand, the one with the designs and ideas I had labored to create. This was meant to be my opportunity to show to the world and myself that I did not need Ethan Sinclair or anyone else to determine my value. I was meant to rebuild.
But destiny seems to have other ideas.
The harsh ring of my phone broke through my ideas. I drew it out, looking at the caller ID.
Vicente.
I responded with a sigh. Vic, right now is not a good moment.
"You'll make time," she responded sharply, her voice edged with desperation. "Have you seen the news?," said
"News?" I scowled, went to the window, and drew the curtain aside to allow the glaring lights of the city to flood in. "What are you speaking of?"
"There is a rumor going around Sinclair Tech. Something concerning an attack or takeover. Olivia, this may sour the union.
"Why are you showing me this?" Already afraid of the response, I inquired.
"Because you're in the middle of it, whether you like it or not," Victoria remarked, her voice stern. "And your project suffers as Sinclair declines."
Her comments sank in and my stomach turned upside down. "The project is not of interest to me. Let it break apart for all I am concerned about.
"Don't lie to me," she shot back. Whether or not you want to acknowledge it, you care for him too.
You don't know the full story, Olivia, Ethan's words rang in my head. You know just what you observed.
The conceit of it enraged me, but under the fury was a persistent curiosity. In what possible sense could he mean that? When I had seen everything with my own eyes-the treachery, the falsehoods, the devastation of what we had created together-what narrative was there to tell?
Shaking my head, I urged the memories to remain buried. I afford to let him reenter my heart. Not immediately. Never once.
My thoughts were disturbed by the faint chime of a new email. I opened it mechanically, staring at the screen.
Subject: URGENT FOR YOUR EYES ONLY.
The little message had terrifying words.
You are not knowing the complete narrative. See me tonight at nine thirty PM. Sinclair Tower's rooftop design.
As I went back over the note, my blood became ice. There was no sender, no signature-just a menacing invitation that made my spine quiver.
Was this Ethan? From his firm, someone asked Alternatively someone having more malevolent motivations?
Trapped between deleting the message and flinging caution to the wind, I gazed at the screen. When my phone buzzed once again, my finger stayed over the delete button. This time the work was a text.
Never trust anybody. Especially him.
I glanced at the mysterious phrase while my heart hammered against my ribs. Though the number was unknown, the writing clearly indicated. Someone watched me; they knew more than they were revealing.
And my reality felt less consistent suddenly.
Extension of Cliffhangers: Suspensive Confrontation
I watched the text on my phone, the words blurring as terror and uncertainty tore at the margins of my consciousness. What did they want from me, and who was forwarding these messages? Though my gut urged me to ignore them, the curiosity seething just below the surface refused to be quiet.
Once more my phone buzzed, the sound as piercing and intrusive as a gunshot. Shaking hands, I swiped to see the most recent message.
Olivia, Clock's ticking is under control. Tower. Nine o'clock. Alternatively everything you are attempting to preserve will burn.
My pulse thumping in my ears, I gasped and straggled. My breath slowed as questions shot across my head. Safety? Sort what? Someone? Amy? In terms of my work? Was this more of a bluff? a caution? Or something far more sinister?
Startled by a knock at the door, I almost dropped my phone. Turning toward the entrance of the suddenly vacant boardroom, my heart sprang into my throat. "Who's here?" I called, my voice faltering even with my best attempts to sound calm.
Ethan entered as the door cracked open, his face stormy and inscrutable. We should chat.
Ethan, this is not the time. My voice tightened. My hold on my phone tightened, naturally obscuring the screen from his view. "I have work to complete."
He squinted, his keen sight zeroing right on the stress emanating from me. "Something's incorrect." It was a pronouncement, not a question; it chilled me down from the top. He came closer, looking for responses on my face. "What is it?."
I lied, edging backward toward the window, "nothing." My brain ran for a way out, but Ethan's magnetic proximity and stifling all at once was unbearable.
With a low, menacing tone, he advised Olivia not to lie to me. "I see it in your eyes. There is something happening; if it affects you, I am not keeping out of it.
I bit my lip, my terror about to burst forth. "You're the last person I would trust to support me."
That really got to me. His eyes darkened with something between hurt and wrath as his jaw closed. His voice sharp, he replied, "Whether you like it or not, I'm already involved." "I have to know who is threatening you."
The air between us was charged, and for a minute I paused, stuck between the urgent threat of the present and the residual draw of the past. My phone buzzed once more before I could answer though.
A fresh message flashed on the screen, and this time it was not obscure.
He is not telling you truthfully. If you disagree with me, check the penthouse.
My blood flowed coldly. Ethan's eyes dropped to the phone in my grasp, and his posture changed to reflect doubt. With a harsh voice like a knife, he said, "Who's that?"
He grabbed for the phone before I could reply, or determine if I even wanted to. I yanked it back automatically, and when the tension reached a breaking point we both stopped.
"Olivia," he murmured, his voice low and lethal. Tell me what you are doing. just now.
Tucked between the truth and the lies, the dread and the rage, I peered into his angry eyes. But the structure trembled beneath the weight of a far-off, menacing boom before I could talk, with the lights in the boardroom flickering. Alarms shrieked in the hall, slicing through the thick quiet like a siren of catastrophe.
Ethan's face grew rigid, his defensive impulses firing right away. "Stay near me," he advised, his hand extending for mine. I did not, however, take it. My ideas were already whirling madly elsewhere.
Roof top. penthouse. The alert. The peril.
I had quick decisions to make.
Blurb: I never believed in fate-not until the night he rejected me. It wasn't intended to happen this way. As the daughter of the Alpha's right hand, I got all I wanted. But when I was claimed by my mate, I felt nothing could destroy us-until he tossed me aside. Now, months later, I'm not only a rejected mate, but a mother. My life was meant to end, but fate has a strange way of keeping things concealed in the shadows. When the reality comes tumbling down, and I realize I have three hidden triplets, the world I thought I knew starts to disintegrate. They are powerful, deadly, and more than I can manage. But so is he. I never anticipated the same man who abandoned me to pop up in my life again, wanting forgiveness for his treachery. But there's more at play than I could've guessed. Powerful foes are closing in, wanting my children and the power they carry. I'll have to pick whether to trust the one who rejected me or risk everything on my own.
Blurb: When Valentina Russo registered at university under a different name, she felt she had left the stifling world of her family's terrible past. She hides from the demons of her past by blending into university life as a quiet librarian assistant. Her delicate calm is destroyed, though, when she is drawn back into the world she so nervously sought to escape-one governed by secrets, power, and blood. Then meet Luca DeLuca, cold, merciless, and hiding his actual identity as the heir to one of the most strong mafia families. Luca, sometimes known on campus as the friendly but enigmatic transfer student, keeps his double life secret and acts as an average student by day and mafia prince by night. Valentina becomes the key to strengthening a weak partnership between their warring families when he learns her actual name. Luca suggests a deal-a flash marriage neither of which she can escape-to rescue his enterprise. Valentina finds herself caught in Luca's perilous world after being compelled into a transactional marriage with a man she hardly knows. But her uncovering of Luca's secret identities causes their illicit attraction to blossom, transcending obligation and risk. Secrets threaten to pull them apart; enemies from both their families show up; and the line between love from betrayal gets blurry. In a game when loyalty kills, can Valentina survive long enough to take back her life and her heart? And will Luca stay faithful to the empire that made him, or will he give all to guard the lady he is beginning to love? Stakes have never been more in a world where love and power coexist. And just one can emerge victorious.
A passionate meeting with Emma the gorgeous assistant of his toughest competitor, throws millionaire Wilson Sinclair's life upside down in the glittering centre of Las Vegas. One night of longing turns into a tale of secrets and treachery leading to Emma's return bearing twin sons she says are Wilson's. A great struggle results from Henry Carter's plot to use a contract marriage to manage the family secret. Emma tries to save her heart and her children as Wilson and Henry are embroiled in a high-stakes war for love, power and family. Can love overcome pride and dishonesty in a city where fortunes change quickly?
Katie was forced to marry Dillan, a notorious ruffian. Her younger sister mocked her, "You're just an adopted daughter. Count your blessings for marrying him!" The world anticipated Katie's tribulations, but her married life unfurled with unexpected serenity. She even snagged a lavish mansion in a raffle! Katie jumped into Dillan's arms, credited him as her lucky charm. "No, Katie, it's you who brings me all this luck," Dillan replied. Then, one fateful day, Dillan's childhood friend came to her. "You're not worthy of him. Take this 50 million and leave him!" Katie finally grasped Dillan's true stature—the wealthiest man on the planet. That night, trembling with trepidation, she broached the subject of divorce with Dillan. However, with a domineering embrace, he told her, "I'd give you everything I have. Divorce is off the table!"
Rumors claimed that Fernanda, newly back with her family, was nothing more than a violent country bumpkin. Fernanda just flashed a casual, dismissive grin in response. Another rumor suggested that the usually rational Cristian had lost all sense, madly in love with Fernanda. This frustrated her. She could tolerate gossip about herself, but slander against her beloved crossed the line! Gradually, as Fernanda's multiple identities as a celebrated designer, a savvy gamer, an acclaimed painter, and a successful business magnate came to light, everyone realized they were the ones who had been fooled.
In her previous life, Kimberly endured the betrayal of her husband, the cruel machinations of an evil woman, and the endless tyranny of her in-laws. It culminated in the bankruptcy of her family, and ultimately, her death. After being reborn, she resolved to seek retribution against those who had wronged her, and ensure her family's prosperity. To her shock, the most unattainable man from her past suddenly set his sights on her. "You may have overlooked me before, but I shall capture your heart this time around."
She thought she was the love of his life, and he became the love of her life that fateful day she had seen him at the pack's party. Selene Grace was only a replica of Alpha Leo's real mate, and when he spotted her, Leo immediately claimed her as his Luna in order to suppress the rumors of him being mateless. Being unable to conceive turns Selene's marriage into a nightmare, and as if that wasn't enough, Alpha Leo finally reunites with his long time lover and mate, rejecting a pregnant Selene as a result. 5 years later, Selene, a now successful doctor, receives an invitation to the moon shadow pack in order to rid the pack of a deadly disease which has struck it. Will Selene return back to the pack which had caused her so much pain, and what would she do when she realizes that she is mated to the Alpha who had betrayed her in the past?
Corinne devoted three years of her life to her boyfriend, only for it to all go to waste. He saw her as nothing more than a country bumpkin and left her at the altar to be with his true love. After getting jilted, Corinne reclaimed her identity as the granddaughter of the town’s richest man, inherited a billion-dollar fortune, and ultimately rose to the top. But her success attracted the envy of others, and people constantly tried to bring her down. As she dealt with these troublemakers one by one, Mr. Hopkins, notorious for his ruthlessness, stood by and cheered her on. “Way to go, honey!”
The day Raina gave birth should have been the happiest of her life. Instead, it became her worst nightmare. Moments after delivering their twins, Alexander shattered her heart-divorcing her and forcing her to sign away custody of their son, Liam. With nothing but betrayal and heartbreak to her name, Raina disappeared, raising their daughter, Ava, on her own.Years later, fate comes knocking when Liam falls gravely ill. Desperate to save his son, Alexander is forced to seek out the one person he once cast aside. Alexander finds himself face to face with the woman he underestimated, pleading for a second chance-not just for himself, but for their son. But Raina is no longer the same broken woman who once loved him.No longer the woman he left behind. She has carved out a new life-one built on strength, wealth, and a long-buried legacy she expected to uncover.Raina has spent years learning to live without him.The question is... Will she risk reopening old wounds to save the son she never got to love? or has Alexander lost her forever?