His Heart, My Ultimate Betrayal

laceholder. I never believed them. He was the man who would delay a billion-dollar

nt, I overheard him on a call wit

only way to get close enoug

y tormented me, locking me in a panic room to trigger my deepest fears. Then, during

wasn't for me, but to keep my father emotionally stable so his "

complication I've now been

n unlikely ally in my father's surge

e a fake surgery. While everyone is distracte

pte

Bruc

, a temporary arrangement until Elias Odonnell' s true

udden craving for his truffle risotto, the one he' d learned to make just for me. They didn' t see him standing in our kitchen, slee

urmur, his voice a low rumble agai

blood to save my father, Garner Barnett, after a complicated surgery nearly took him from me. Elias had sat by my side

oment, our bond felt absolute, forged in something far d

about the return of Juli Duran-the brilliant scientist, his childhood sweetheart, his on

autiful, stupid beli

pink lines solidify into a clear, undeniable positive. A wave of giddiness washed over me, so potent it made my head spin

o tell

k door slightly ajar. I could hear his voice, smooth and confident, and I pa

door wasn't the one I knew. It was tender, yes, but

li. Garner trust

d. Juli. He was

piratorial murmur, "we'll use his unique liver tissue fo

hey were puzzle pieces from two different boxes, violent and wrong when jammed together. I p

face-ethereal and fragile, even through the pixelated video call. And Elias was smiling at he

a caress. "Marrying Gemma was just the only way

t clattered against the marble floor, the sound de

't just crack

lks. The way he held me after

ear, meticulous

on those pristine white walls. Elias had emerged from the smoke and chaos like a guardian angel, pulling me from the collapsing s

here again. He paid for the endless stream of specialists, the experime

aised the woman I love," he had vowed, his ey

s synonymous with power and wealth. We were from different universes. But he had been so persistent, so gentle, so utterly convincing. His unwavering supp

father. To harvest him like a crop. I wasn't h

ked it back, my hand flying to my mouth. I couldn'

l outside his study. The cold marble seeped through my clothes, a pe

, sharp command cutting through the f

king alerts, the social media notifications-the detritus of a life that no longer existed. I opene

les, wouldn't be much, but it had to be enough. A small cabin, a plot of la

. I had n

c cabin on five acres, solar-powered, well water. The listing said "cas

A confirmatio

number, my thumb hovering over the call button. I had to get

ing okay?" His warm, familiar

very carefully. Pack a bag. The most important things only. I'm c

going on? You

I'll explain everything later

ver me. The scent of expensive cologne and cold ambit

strange, unreadable expression on his face.

, Gemma?" he asked, his

one. Just... just a friend." My heart hammered so hard I th

picked up the pregnancy test. He stared at it for a long moment, his expression shi

ed into that familiar, gentle smile. Bu

ken trap. He reached out, his hand gently landing on my stomac

felt lik

I had just realized the