LOGIN“What are you doing here?!” Glenn demanded sharply the moment he saw Lucy inside Aidan’s office.He had just returned after leaving Aidan alone in the corridor near the lobby following his confrontation with Bruce. What irritated Glenn even more was seeing Lucy comfortably seated in Aidan’s chair as though she owned the office.Striding across the room, he grabbed her arm and tried to pull her to her feet.Lucy immediately shrugged off his grip.“Don't you dare act so disrespectfully in here! That's Mr. Caesar's chair!” Glenn snapped, his voice filled with genuine anger.Lucy couldn't have cared less. Instead, she casually crossed one leg over the other, revealing her long, smooth legs beneath her short skirt in an almost deliberate act of provocation.“Why are you the one getting angry? It's not your chair, is it?” she shot back fearlessly.Glenn felt as though he had completely run out of patience.Where had the sweet, innocent young woman gone? The very woman who had stood out amon
“What did he look like?” Bruce asked the employee who had reported that a man was looking for Malikha. The employee tried to recall the details.“He was handsome, with slightly long dark brown hair. He looked like a Latin man and was wearing an expensive suit, like a CEO. Miss Silvia gave him the address of the project site Mrs. Malikha visited yesterday.”Bruce let out a slow breath. The description clearly did not match Aidan, but it could have been one of his men.A moment later, another of Malikha’s subordinates entered the HR department and looked slightly surprised to see their CEO there.“Mr. Caldwell, what a coincidence. The receptionist just gave me this letter and said it was for HR. When I opened it, I found that it was Mrs. Malikha Swan’s resignation letter.”Bruce’s eyes widened instantly. He snatched the letter and read it carefully. It was signed directly by Malikha.“This is impossible,” Bruce muttered in disbelief.“Sir, Mrs. Malikha also sent a resignation email, and
"You're off the hook tonight," he whispered again, a wider smile spreading across his face. "But next time, I want you to be a little more responsive."Malikha could only squeeze her eyes shut in fear. Sleep became impossible.In the end, Aidan drifted into a peaceful sleep with Malikha wrapped tightly in his arms, while she lay awake, staring blankly at the sofa where she used to sleep whenever she stayed in his room. Tears slipped silently down her cheeks. More than ever, she was convinced there was no escape left for her. She had tried countless times to run away from Aidan, yet every attempt had only led her back into the hands of the same monster.The steady rhythm of Aidan's warm breath brushing against the back of her neck was proof of how easily Malikha lulled him to sleep. Holding her in his arms had become Aidan's favorite way to fall asleep whenever they shared a bed.Aidan no longer shouted at her or belittled her the way he once had. Instead, he had discovered a new way t
Glenn truly couldn't understand Aidan anymore. With each passing day, Aidan's behavior grew harder to control. Glenn had reached the end of his patience and couldn't help protesting. Still, Aidan's paranoia over Malikha had clouded his judgment so completely that he was no longer capable of thinking rationally."Please think this through again, sir. Locking Madam away will only make her even more stressed. She might try to run away again, do something you don't want her to do, or end up hating you even more," Glenn said, offering his honest opinion.Aidan remained silent, but the frustration inside him only intensified as memories of Malikha escaping from him over and over again resurfaced."But I don't have any other choice," Aidan replied quietly.Glenn stepped closer, standing behind him."Women have always liked you, sir. Why not use that to your advantage? Make she fall for you. If she likes you, maybe she'll finally listen to you."Aidan let out a humorless chuckle before turnin
GREENWICHBruce Caldwell awoke on the hardwood floor with a splitting headache. Groaning, he reached instinctively for the back of his head where it had struck the edge of the table the night before. Then the memories came flooding back."Malikha..."His eyes snapped open. Ignoring the dizziness, Bruce forced himself to his feet."Malikha!"Holding his aching head, he searched every room in the house, calling her name over and over. It wasn't until he reached the front door that he realized daylight had already flooded the property. He had been unconscious all night."Damn it..." he muttered through clenched teeth. "Where did that bastard take her?"A sharp throb shot through his skull."My head..."Outside, only his own car remained parked in front of the vacation home.Bruce hurried back inside just long enough to splash cold water on his face. After grabbing his jacket, he climbed into his car
Aidan's hand continued to stroke Malikha's hair while his lips wandered gently from the curve of her jaw to her mouth again and again. He paid no attention to her tears or to the pleas that trembled from her lips. He couldn't bring himself to stop. To him, she was unbearably precious, and every moment with her only intensified the love and desire he had carried for so long."Please... let me go, Aidan..." Malikha sobbed, refusing to stop pleading.Instead of answering, he brushed away her tears with his thumb, caressing her face as though trying to erase every trace of her pain."You belong with me..." he murmured softly, completely consumed by his emotions. "I love you so much, my Babydoll."The overwhelming joy of finally having the woman he loved eclipsed the guilt he should have felt for the wounds he had left on both her body and her heart."Liar..." Malikha whispered between broken sobs. "You're a liar..."A faint smile tugged at Aidan
The first time getting drunk had caused Malikha to forget most of what had happened the night before. She could barely remember anything she had done while intoxicated. Only brief flashes and scattered memories crossed her mind. She knew Aidan had been the one who picked her up. She also remembered
Malikha could no longer hold back her tears or the dizziness pounding inside her head. The alcohol had made her lose control over her movements completely. Again and again, she pushed Aidan away while her husband kept trying to steady her.“Baby doll…” Aidan called softly, but Malikha ignored him a
Without saying another word, Aidan turned around and left Malikha alone in the room, the door still left wide open behind him. He walked away just like that, abandoning her in silence while she stood there unable to speak, only beginning to breathe normally again several moments later. Slowly, Mali
“How does Aidan manage a place like this?” Malikha asked, looking around the enormous vineyard and the sophisticated facilities surrounding it.The worker walking beside her smiled proudly as though he genuinely admired the man he worked for. “Very well, Madam. Mr. Aidan







