LOGINArielleAnd lastly—I needed Darius. Not because of his money. I needed him because he’d become the one person I wanted beside me whenever everything fell apart. And I desperately hoped he had truly changed this time. Tessa and Tiffany would probably tell me to stop running from him. Even though they didn’t like him, they had always believed we could fix whatever was broken between us. If only they knew I was beginning to feel something for him. But the problem was I couldn’t even explain those feelings myself. I was so lost in my thoughts that I completely forgot Darius had been talking. “Arielle?”I blinked and looked up. “Huh?”His brows lifted slightly. “Are you hungry?”I shook my head. “No. I’m okay.”“You sure?”“Yeah.”Then my brows slowly knitted together. “You still haven’t told me how you knew I was here.”Darius let out a long sigh and leaned back in his chair, lifting both hands in surrender. “Fine.”He looked at me for a moment. “I installed a tracking device on yo
Arielle The phone felt unusually heavy in my hand as I picked it up.None of this made sense. “We’re waiting,” Dan said calmly, folding his arms across his chest. “We have a lot of questions.”My fingers tightened around the phone. Was I about to get humiliated?This was turning into a nightmare. “We’ve already spoken to both of your friends,” he continued. “Neither of them remembers who attacked them. Neither of them knows who called the ambulance.”My stomach twisted. “So whether you cooperate or not,” he added. “This investigation is moving forward.”I lowered my gaze. They already knew we were hiding something. Slowly, I typed a random phone number, turned off the speaker and raised the phone to my ear as if someone had answered. Dan and Trackson watched every movement. After several seconds, I sighed dramatically. “He’s not picking up,” I muttered. “He’s probably busy.”I ended the fake call. Silence. Neither of them looked convinced. “I’m sure he’ll answer once you arri
Arielle The moment I saw two police officers standing outside my door, my body went completely still. For a second, I wondered if I’d opened the wrong apartment. “Good morning, officers.” I managed, forcing a polite smile. “Good morning, ma’am,” the taller officer smiled back. “I’m Officer Dan, and this is my partner, Officer Trackson.”My eyes shifted between them as they showed their badges. “How may I help you?”“We’re investigating an incident that happened at this residence yesterday,” Dan said. “We’d like to ask you a few questions.”My fingers instinctively tightened around the edge of the door. Investigating?My heartbeat slowly picked up. “You live here, correct?”I stared at him without answering.“…Ma’am?”His voice sounded distant. “Ma’am?”I blinked rapidly and forced myself back to reality. “Sorry,” I swallowed. “Yes. I live here.”Heavy silence settled between us. I quickly forced a smile. “You can call me Arielle.”Then Officer Trackson spoke. “Yesterday, an am
ArielleA slow yarn escaped my lips as I rubbed my eyes and blinked away the last traces of sleep. Then I froze. Darius was actually standing in the kitchen. I stared at his messy dark hair, broad shoulders, and the ridiculous apron tied around his waist. I honestly never pictured Darius as someone who cooked. Not when he lived in a mansion filled with chefs who could probably prepare anything he wanted with the snap of a finger. That thought alone tugged a smile from my lips. I cleared my throat. He glanced over his shoulder only once before returning his attention to the frying pan. “Well…look who’s finally awake.”I smiled unconsciously and walked toward him. “I thought you left.”“I almost did,” he said, stirring whatever was inside the pot before pointing toward several grocery bags resting on the counter. “But I figured you could use a proper breakfast before I disappeared.”My eyes slowly wandered over everything. Fresh vegetables, bread, eggs, and more. Even household s
Arielle Darius wouldn’t stop calling. The phone vibrated in my hand again. And again. I stared at the screen until my patience finally snapped. “What are you even calling for?” I muttered under my breath. I declined the call and immediately switched my phone off. I couldn’t deal with him right now. Or anyone. Not after everything that happened today. A few minutes later, Leo returned to the table. The smile he’d worn earlier had disappeared, replaced by genuine concern. “Ari,” he began softly, rubbing the back of his neck. “I really want to spend the rest of the evening with you, but something’s happened at the club.” My brows knitted together. “What happened?” “I’m not entirely sure,” he admitted. “Xavier only said I need to get there immediately before things get worse.” Concern washed over me. “Is everything okay?” He shook his head. “I honestly don’t know.” Then he smiled apologetically. “I’m really sorry.” “You don’t have to apologize.” “No,”
Arielle A new number flashed across my screen. I frowned. Who could this be?Without thinking much about it, I declined the call and slipped my phone back into my bag. When I looked up, Leo was already watching me. A smile tugged at his lips. He leaned forward, resting his elbows lightly on the table. “You know…” he said, shaking his head. “You look beautiful every single time I see you. Like…what’s going on?”I laughed softly. He sighed dramatically before blowing me an exaggerated kiss. “You’re perfect.”“Oh, my God,” I laughed harder, covering my face. “The way you make that expression gets me every time.”“I can’t help it.”“You really can’t.”We both laughed, the tension dissolving almost instantly. Before I could open up my menu again, my phone vibrated. The same number.My smile slowly faded. Leo noticed immediately, but he didn’t ask any questions. “I’m sorry,” I said, standing. “I should probably take this.”He offered an understanding smile. “Of course, go ahead.”“Th
Arielle Tiffany turned back and went silent. “It’s me,” I tapped my chest. “Arielle”. “Oh”. She uttered flatly. “Yeah,” I sighed. “Tiffany, I swear I’m ready to tell you anything you want to know. I’m never hiding anything from–“ “Let’s not talk about that here.” She
Arielle I floated in darkness. I didn’t know where I was or what had happened. It all felt distant, as if I were underwater. All I was hearing was my mom’s voice, calling me for help. The more she called, the more the fear filled my chest. The sound grew sharper and louder. Then her voice bo
Arielle Everyone turned to Joel. “Uhm…” he said nervously. “Is something wrong?” Tessa asked.“Are you going to be there with us?” I asked again. Was he leading us on? I thought he was on our side. “Joel?” Tiffany called. “Uhh…no,” he said quietly. “I can’t.”“Why?” I asked. “He…uhh…fired me
Arielle Blake. The same Blake who kidnapped her. The same Blake who tried to kill me. I wiped my eyes, seriously wishing I hadn’t seen that name. How could she still be in contact with him after everything he did? Oh dear. That must have been why she hid her phone two days ago. I wanted to c







