\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 11\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWho gave you the right to call her Gigi?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bainbridge\u2019s roar exploded like thunder, his fist flying straight at Matthew\u2019s face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In an instant, the two men were locked in a brutal brawl.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I screamed at them to stop, but neither of them listened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the fuck are you doing?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aelfric rushed over and tore them apart.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The two stood face-to-face, glaring at each other, their eyes bloodshot and blazing with fury\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aelfric turned to me, his expression tight. \u201cGigi, take Matt and get out of here.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded, grabbing Matthew\u2019s arm and pulling him away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bainbridge tried to follow, but Aelfric clamped a hand on his shoulder and snarled, \u201cBainbridge, have you lost your damn mind?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I waited in the living room for a long time before Aelfric finally returned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stepped inside and saw me curled up on the sofa.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He froze for a heartbeat, then strode over and pulled me into a fierce, protective embrace.\u00a0<\/p>\n
0.00%\u00a0<\/p>\n
18.53\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 11\u00a0<\/p>\n
288 Vouchers\u00a0<\/p>\n
His voice was rough, hoarse with regret. \u201cGigi, I\u2019m so sorry. I had no idea your boyfriend was Bainbridge.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought\u2026 when you said you used to like him, it was just some silly teenage crush.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I shook my head gently against his chest, trying to soothe him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRick, how is this your fault? I just had a poisonous relationship.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The pain was gone now-truly gone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aelfric pulled back, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He murmured softly, \u201cWe\u2019re never going back to Houston. We\u2019ll stay right here at home. Mom, Dad, and I-we\u2019ll always protect you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded, urging him to go rest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t ask what Bainbridge had told him about our past.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t want to know.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I had found my happiness now. That short, misguided love from the past no longer mattered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, there was one piece of unfinished business.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d been putting it off, but since Bainbridge had dared to show his face in New York, I thought it was time to settle it once and for all.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I called the butler and asked if it could be arranged.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The butler had watched me grow up. He\u2019d followed my father across cities and continents and had \u201cfriends\u201d in every corner of the city-both in high society and the dark underbelly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
18:53\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 11\u00a0<\/p>\n
88 Vouchers\u00a0<\/p>\n
When he heard what had happened to me, his fists clenched so hard his knuckles turned white.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That same night, Bainbridge was intercepted by a group of men and driven out to the suburbs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They took him to an abandoned factory-just like the one he\u2019d once used.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This time, the roles were reversed. He was the one suspended from the rafters.\u00a0<\/p>\n
One of the men asked through a phone. \u201cMs. Ortiz, you\u2019ve ordered one hundred slaps. Shall we begin?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDo it,\u201d I said calmly\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the surveillance screen, Bainbridge looked up at the camera in disbelief.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The first slap cracked through the air\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then the second and the third..\u00a0<\/p>\n
I watched as the light slowly drained from his eyes-dimmed, dulled, emptied.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At last, the tight knot in my chest loosened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In my heart, I whispered, \u201cBainbridge, when I loved you, I was willing to give you everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut when I stop loving you, you are just nothing to me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom this day forward, we\u2019re done. The debt is paid. We\u2019re even.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
51.34%\/%\u00a0<\/p>\n
18.53\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 11\u00a0<\/p>\n
288 Vouchers\u00a0<\/p>\n
The next morning, Bainbridge left New York.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I breathed a quiet sigh of relief at this news.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Everything had finally returned to its rightful path.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I threw myself into taking over the family business, planning the wedding, and stealing every spare moment to spend with Matthew.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Two weeks later, Aelfric sauntered into my office.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He glanced around, then leaned against my desk with a playful grin. \u201cWell, well, Miss Boss. You\u2019re actually looking pretty competent behind that desk.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I arched a brow. \u201cOf course I am. You\u2019d better step up your game, or the whole empire\u2019s going to be mine. Family competition is brutal, you know.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aelfric burst out laughing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After a moment, his tone grew more serious.\u00a0<\/p>\n
B\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBainbridge just relocated his company operations to New York.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My fingers paused over the keyboard.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLet him,\u201d I said evenly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing that I was unfazed, Aelfric relaxed and took his leave.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The following evening, he sent me the address of a private club we frequented.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When I arrived, the room was filled with our inner circle.\u00a0<\/p>\n
18.53\u00a0<\/p>\n
Joseph King is an editor and storyteller who ensures every chapter is clear, polished, and engaging for readers.<\/p>\n
Royal Furline Betrayed BY Mark Twain 11 \u00a0 Chapter 11\u00a0 \u201cWho gave you the right to call her Gigi?\u201d\u00a0 Bainbridge\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22963","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-let-the-game-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22963","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22963"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22963\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22963"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22963"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22963"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}