All Chapters of Contractually Yours: Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

Jem's POV I watched Dante walk out of the boutique without looking back once.And just like that. He was gone.The female attendant he'd spoken to at the front desk turned around and started walking toward me with a wide, warm smile—the kind that was so genuinely sweet it almost felt out of place after everything that had just happened in that back room.She stopped in front of me; "Jem, Mr. Dante mentioned you'd like to take a picture. How would you like it done? We have a studio room upstairs—beautiful background, great lighting—or we could take it right here if you prefer."I blinked. "No, it's—here is fine. Right here is fine."She took my phone from me gently, stepped back, and directed me with quiet, cheerful instructions—stand here, turn slightly, chin down just a little—and took several pictures, checking each one before moving to the next. When she handed the phone back her smile hadn't dropped once."Thank you," I said, already reaching up to pull the jacket off. "Thank y

Jem's POV Before I could recover from everything Liam had just said, he immediately shrugged and added again, "You know, most people would've robbed me by now."I stared."What kind of people are you meeting?""The wrong ones apparently." He laughed it off.Despite everything, a smile slipped onto my face.Liam noticed, and the grin on his face only widened."You should do that more often," he said, finally looking away from me."Do what?" I asked."Smile. Blush. All of it. It really makes you look cute," Liam replied.I blinked sharply, suddenly feeling slightly uncomfortable.But still, for some reason, that made me smile even harder.A few moments later, Liam grabbed the door handle and stepped out of the car.He opened the umbrella above his head, then came around to my side, pulling the door open and holding it over me before I'd even fully stood up."Your carriage awaits." He joked.I couldn't help laughing, "Thank you." I chuckled."There it is again." Liam pointed at my smile

Jem's POV Dante's voice was low now, almost frighteningly calm."I am not exaggerating, Liam. And I am not being dramatic. If you touch him, I will end your life. Don't test me."Liam looked at him for a long moment.Then he looked over Dante's shoulder at me.He smiled—small, genuine—and gave the tiniest nod, like some private thought had just been confirmed.Then without uttering a single word, he picked up his umbrella from the wall, turned, and walked back out the front door, pulling it shut behind him without drama.The room went quiet.I stood behind Dante and stared at the closed door.My mind was turning in too many directions at once.Liam had picked me up—Driven me home—Walked me to the front door in the rain with his umbrella and his easy laugh and his comment about woodland creatures. He had been nothing but kind to me from the moment I got in that car.And Dante—this same man who had left me behind without a second thought—had just threatened to kill someone for looki

Jem's POV I was still trying to scramble free from Mara's hold when a hand suddenly closed around my arm from behind—firm but gentle—and pulled me back in one clean motion.I stumbled to my feet and spun around quickly.It was Dante's mother. She was the one who had just pulled me up.She was standing right there, her expression completely unreadable, eyes moving over me quickly before shifting past me entirely—toward the couch, toward Mara.I dropped to my knees immediately;"Ma'am please—please listen to me—I didn't touch her, I swear I didn't, she came in here and she started—I was sitting on the couch and she just—I didn't do anything, I promise, please believe me, I would never touch her like that—please—"The woman didn't look at me.Not even once.Her eyes stayed fixed on Mara and she took two slow steps forward and the temperature in the room shifted completely. I had only ever seen this woman warm—soft-voiced, easy-laughing, the kind of presence that made a room feel lighte

Jem's POV The words left my mouth before I could stop them, and only then did I realize I had made a serious mistake talking back at him. The moment I saw Dante's expression change, I knew for sure that I was done for. Dante’s eyes dropped, his jaw tightened, and he walked toward me with that dangerous calm expression—the kind that didn’t shout, but just came like it already knew how this would end. I did the only logical thing. I climbed onto the bed completely. And then I turned around quickly and started crawling across the bed toward the other side. I just wanted to get down and run into the bathroom. Lock the door, and protect myself from this dangerous man who was now walking toward me. I had no idea what he was going to do to me. But the way he walked. The way he stared straight into my eyes. It made me think he was about to beat me up right there. I didn’t know what was coming next. But I was scared. But then, I’d barely made it halfway across the bed when suddenly