Dirty Little Secrets
"Why are you so damn gullible and stupid?!" I screamed, the harsh words tearing from my throat before I could even attempt to filter them. I stepped right into his space, poking a trembling finger hard against his chest. "Are you completely brain-dead, Kingsley? What part of stay out of my business do you not understand?"
"I was only trying to help out," he whispered, the sheer venom in his quiet tone cutting deeper than any scream. He took a step forward, towering over me, his eyes flashing with a dangerous blend of hurt and irritation. "But I guess someone is very independent. Too independent to realize when they're drowning."
---
Summer Walker had dreams—simple, ordinary dreams, just like any other young adult.
She wanted to go to school, laugh with friends, fall in love… and someday, become a musician.
But life didn’t give her the chance.
Everything she hoped for was shattered the night her parents died—tragically, mysteriously, and without answers. No one knew what really happened. No one ever explained.
And just like that, Summer’s world changed.
Now, her only focus is survival, and taking care of her younger brother, Clyde.
Her dreams? Buried.
Her heart? Guarded.
Her future? Uncertain.
Until the day she met him- Kingsley Roberts; cold, untouchable and different.
That was when everything changed again.
Now caught in a web of obsession, betrayal, and revenge, Summer must decide:
Will she finally choose love… Or become the very darkness that destroys her life?
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Chapter: CHAPTER 28.CLYDE'S POVThe streetlights flickered like they were running out of battery. I walked beside Gabrielle, our steps slow after the long group study session. Her house was just two blocks away, but I always made sure she got home safe. She’d saved my life during that asthma attack. The least I could do was walk her back.“You sure you’re okay?” Gabrielle asked, glancing at me sideways. “You’ve been quiet since we left the library.”I forced a smile, shoving my hands deeper into my pockets. “Yeah. Just thinking about the project. And… other stuff.”The truth was, I’d been on edge for days. Summer hadn’t come home. George said she was “staying with a friend,” but his voice had that tight edge it gets when he’s lying to protect me. My sister was hiding something big. She always did. After our parents died, she became this unbreakable wall between me and the world. But walls crack eventually.A shadow moved behind us. I caught it in the corner of my eye—someone keeping pace, staying just fa
Last Updated: 2026-06-30
Chapter: CHAPTER 27.SUMMER'S POV. I woke up to the familiar scent of George’s apartment—clean laundry, faint coffee, and safety. My body felt like it had been run over by a truck. Every breath pulled at the bruises along my ribs, and my face throbbed in time with my heartbeat. I tried to sit up on the couch and immediately regretted it, a sharp hiss escaping through clenched teeth. “Easy,” a deep voice said from across the room. It was Kingsley. He sat in the armchair, elbows on his knees, watching me with an intensity that made my stomach twist. His eyes were shadowed, jaw tight. He looked like he hadn’t slept. “How did I get here?” I whispered, voice hoarse. “I found you collapsing in the club hallway, after our discussion.” he said quietly. “ So I brought you to George's house.” Before I could respond, George stormed in from the kitchen, a glass of water in his hand. The moment his eyes landed on my face— the swollen eye, split lip, the bruises peeking from my collar—he froze. Then fury took ov
Last Updated: 2026-06-29
Chapter: CHAPTER 26.SUMMER'S POVThe club’s neon sign buzzed like an angry wasp above the staff entrance. Every step toward it sent fresh fire through my ribs and down my swollen leg. I limped badly, favoring my right side, the bruises from the beating pulsing with my heartbeat. My hoodie hid most of the damage, but nothing could mask the way I moved—like a broken doll held together by sheer stubbornness.Mr. Noel was waiting just inside, arms crossed, face carved from stone. There was no greeting nor sympathy at all. His eyes flicked over me once. It was cold and calculating, like one who sees everything as an instrument of money.“You’re late,” he said flatly. “And you look like shit. Clean yourself up. There’s a private meeting in VIP Room 7. Mr. Robert’s orders. Don’t keep him waiting.”I swallowed the bile rising in my throat. “I’m not in any condition to—”“Condition?” He stepped closer, voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. “You signed the contract, Dark Bird. You don’t get to have conditions an
Last Updated: 2026-06-29
Chapter: CHAPTER 25.SUMMER'S POVPain greeted me before consciousness fully returned.Every breath felt like knives twisting between my ribs. My face throbbed where the bruises had bloomed overnight. I cracked open my good eye and stared at Amanda’s cracked ceiling, the faint glow of a streetlight bleeding through the thin curtains. Her small apartment smelled like instant noodles and cheap lavender air freshener—familiar and safe. For a moment, I wished I could just stay here, buried under the blanket she’d tucked around me.“Summer?” Amanda’s voice was soft but alert. She sat on the edge of the couch, a damp cloth in her hand. “You’ve been out for a while. I changed the bandages twice. You look like hell, girl.”I tried to sit up and immediately regretted it. A sharp gasp escaped me. “What time is it?”“Almost nine. You were supposed to rest.” She pressed the cloth gently against my swollen cheek. Her touch was careful, but her eyes were stormy. “I thought about calling George. Or that Kingsley guy. Yo
Last Updated: 2026-06-26
Chapter: CHAPTER 24.SUMMER'S POVThe walk back to the apartment felt like trudging through quicksand. Every step echoed with the Dean’s cold words. My phone stayed silent after that last menacing text, but its ghost lingered like a blade at my throat: Come to the club tonight, alone. As if I had any choice.I pushed open the creaky door to our apartment. The silence hit harder than usual. Clyde was still at George’s—thank God. I didn’t want him seeing me like this: eyes swollen from unshed tears, hoodie reeking of club smoke and failure. I locked the door, slid the chain into place, and collapsed onto the worn couch.Just a few minutes. That’s all I needed. I closed my eyes, breathe, then get ready for whatever fresh hell Mr. Robert—or whoever was pulling this strings—had planned for me tonight.Sleep claimed me before I could fight it.---A sharp knock shattered the darkness.I jolted upright, heart slamming against my ribs. The room was dim, the evening light filtering weakly through the curtains. My
Last Updated: 2026-06-25
Chapter: CHAPTER 23SUMMER'S POVThe students in the hall were all closing in on me.Dira was still on her knees, sobbing dramatically, her cheek bright red from the slaps she’d given herself. Phones were everywhere now—pointed at us like weapons. The livestream counter on her propped-up phone kept climbing. 800… 1,200… 1,900 viewers. My heart hammered against my ribs so hard I could barely breathe.“I’m not doing this!” I shouted, voice cracking as I faced the growing crowd. “I didn’t force her to do anything! This is a setup—someone is playing both of us!”But my words drowned in the sea of murmurs and gasps. A girl in the front row whispered loudly enough for everyone to hear, “She’s threatening her right now. Look at her face.”Dira looked up at me with wide, tear-filled eyes, perfectly playing the broken victim. “Summer, please… I said I was sorry. Don’t make this worse for me. I’ll delete the video, I swear.”“Stop it!” I snapped, panic clawing up my throat. The livestream numbers were exploding. T
Last Updated: 2026-06-25
Chapter: CHAPTER 7.ISLA'S POVThe morning after my sleepless night felt like walking into a battlefield already rigged against me. My eyes burned from exhaustion as I stepped off the private elevator, but I kept my chin high. The tablet in my hands held Dare’s impossible schedule, now slightly less chaotic thanks to my all-nighter. Still, the list of errands attached was designed to humiliate.Dare didn’t even glance up when I entered his office to confirm the day’s agenda. “Dry cleaning first. Then the whiskey. Documents for the Tokyo team by ten. Don’t disappoint me, Harlow.”I swallowed my retort and got to work, immediately.The dry cleaning was ruined before I even reached the office. The Mayfair shop handed me the wrong suit—Serena’s doing, I suspected, when I caught her smirking from the car she’d “borrowed” me for errands. The whiskey bottle slipped from my trembling hands in the lobby, shattering across marble. Wrong documents? I delivered the merger files to the wrong floor, triggering a chain
Last Updated: 2026-06-26
Chapter: CHAPTER 6.ISLA'S POVThe air in Dare’s office thickened the second Julian burst through the door. My heart slammed against my ribs as I watched the two cousins face each other. Julian’s face twisted with fury, Dare’s expression carved from ice and arrogance.“Get your hands off her, Dare,” Julian snarled again, stepping closer. His eyes flicked to where Dare still loomed over my chair, one hand braced on the leather back, caging me without touching.Dare didn’t move. A slow, dangerous smile curved his lips. “This is my office, cousin. My company. My employee. You’re the one trespassing.”Julian’s gaze dropped to me, softening with that familiar concern that now felt suffocating. “Isla, come with me. You don’t have to do this. I told you I’d take care of everything.”I stood on shaky legs, the weight of their stares pinning me in place. The impossible schedule on the tablet burned in my mind—meetings that couldn’t possibly be made, errands designed to break me. And behind it all, Mum’s restauran
Last Updated: 2026-06-26
Chapter: CHAPTER 5.ISLA'S POV I stood up slowly, the earlier humiliation fueling my own fire. “Working, Julian. Something I desperately needed to do.”He crossed the distance in three long strides, grabbing my arm and pulling me toward a quieter corner near the massive windows overlooking London’s skyline. “I told you I’d take care of you. That I’d protect you from whatever danger Dare represents. You didn’t need to come crawling to him!”“Protect me?” I laughed bitterly, wrenching my arm free. “If you really wanted to help me, Julian, you would have done all that you could to stop Victor from laying me off - instead of dangling security like a prize while I stressed over our bills. All I got were vague warnings and empty promises. You wanted me dependent. Weak and easy to control.”His jaw clenched, a flash of something dark crossing his features—anger, yes, but also panic. “You don’t understand the full picture. Dare isn’t who you think he is. He’ll destroy you.”“And what about you?” I shot back, my
Last Updated: 2026-06-15
Chapter: CHAPTER 4.ISLA'S POV I stared at the imposing glass tower of the Blackthorne Group, my stomach twisting into knots. The morning sun glinted off the building like a mocking smile, reminding me exactly where I stood—far below the people inside. Swallowing my pride tasted like ash. Yesterday, after the disaster at the restaurant, I’d gone home ready to burn every bridge. But reality hit harder than Dare’s cruel words. Mum’s health had worsened overnight, and I'm broke. Mom's business hasn't been going smoothly, recently. Mum had taken my hands in hers, her voice soft despite her fatigue. "“Isla, love, pride won’t pay the bills. If Darian is offering a job, take it. For us.”" Thea had been even blunter over the phone. “Girl, you’re drowning. Go to the office. Work for the devil if you have to—just don’t let Julian or Dare own you completely." So here I was. At eight o’clock sharp, like Dare had commanded. The lobby screamed cutting-edge power—marble floors, sleek black accents, and the
Last Updated: 2026-06-15
Chapter: CHAPTER 3.ISLA'S POV The ring on my finger felt like ice. I stared down at it, my heart hammering so loudly I was sure everyone could hear it over the low hum of the restaurant. My mouth had opened, the word “yes” balancing on my tongue like a white flag. I was tired of fighting. I was jobless, terrified for my mother’s future, and drowning in the crushing realization that Victor Blackthorne had just thrown me away. Julian offered safety. He offered an escape from the constant, aching ghost of what could have been. But just as I was about to surrender, the wooden doors of our private alcove didn’t just open—the entire illusion of my safe future shattered. Darian Blackthorne walked into the room like he owned the very air we breathed. He was taller than I remembered, his shoulders broader, the boyish vulnerability completely replaced by sharp, ruthless edges. His dark suit was tailored to perfection, emphasizing the cold power radiating from his frame. But it wasn't just his transfor
Last Updated: 2026-06-15
Chapter: CHAPTER 2.ISLA'S POVThe morning sun filtered through my bedroom curtains, but I couldn't bring myself to face it.I hadn’t told my mother about losing my job yet. When she had called me early this morning, her voice bright with the bustling sounds of her restaurant kitchen in the background, the truth choked me. Instead, I lied. I told her the company had granted me a sudden, well-deserved free day. She had cheered, insisting I stay in bed and rest.So, I did. I slept in, buried beneath my duvet, trying to outrun the crushing weight of reality. For six years, my identity had been anchored to the Blackthorne Group. Now, I was adrift.By the late afternoon, my phone buzzed on the nightstand. It was Thea."Get out of bed, Harlow," her voice commanded gently the moment I answered. "I’m not letting you wallow in a dark room. Meet me at The Glasshouse restaurant in an hour. No excuses. Let me cheer you up."I sighed, staring at the ceiling, but I knew she was right. Sitting in isolation was only mak
Last Updated: 2026-06-15
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