Bella\u00a0<\/p>\n
For the next two nights, I barely slept\u00a0<\/p>\n
I moved through the penthouse like a shadow, doing things like a zombie. I would lie down in the huge bed of my room, and tell myself that my mind would eventually get tired and shut off. It never did. The moment I closed my eyes, that video would play again behind my eyelids on a repeat mode.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I did not go to work because every time I tried to get dressed, my hands would start shaking and my throat would tighten. My brain refused to focus on anything except that video and the fact that Scott and I were barely speaking.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I knew the video was fake. I knew I had not done what it showed. I knew that with every logical part of my brain. But fear never cared about logic. Fear cared about what people would believe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
During the day, I couldn\u2019t work. I tried opening my laptop, tried responding to emails, tried sketching designs, and every time my hands hovered over the keyboard, my thoughts would slip sideways and I would end up staring into nothing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Only my pups were the distraction I could face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I hated the effect it had on me. But Scott\u2019s silence made it worse. Scott was there, but he wasn\u2019t there. He spoke when he had to, and he moved around the penthouse like a ghost.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the second night he came home, checked on the kids, had measly dinner and then went off to sleep without talking to me. On the third night, during dinner I couldn\u2019t take it anymore.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cScott\u2026 can we talk?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He paused, then nodded once. \u201cLater.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLater when?\u201d I pressed\u00a0<\/p>\n
He finally met my eyes properly. \u201cWhat do you want, Bella?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI want you to look at me and tell me what\u2019s going on,\u201d I blurted out, and my voice cracked. \u201cI want you to stop acting like you\u2019re\u2026 waiting for me to confess to something.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not waiting for anything,\u201d he replied, his jaw ticking.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why are you avoiding me?\u201d I demanded. \u201cWhy are you leaving early and coming back late? Why are you answering like you don\u2019t care?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He held my gaze. \u201cBecause if I speak while I\u2019m angry, I will say something I can\u2019t take back.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stared at him. \u201cYou\u2019re angry at me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His jaw flexed. \u201cI\u2019m angry at the situation.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cStop trying to sound noble. You\u2019re angry at me too. I can feel it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGoddess! Bella, I don\u2019t have time for this,\u201d he grunted, getting up from the dining table. He collected his coat and turned around to leave. \u201cI have to go.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGo where?\u201d My hands tightened into fists. \u201cYou just got home.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
But he left anyway. That night as I lay in the bed, I stared at the ceiling until the morning, my mind too numb to process anything. I woke up with a headache. I was angry at him for leaving me alone in this mess. I was angry at the whole world.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That evening, Scott came home earlier than usual. For a second, hope lit inside my chest so fast that it\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
hurt. He kissed the kids, sat at the dining table, and ate dinner with us as usual. He laughed once at something Ryan said. He complimented Cindy\u2019s cooking. Then he wiped his mouth with a napkin and stood up.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d I asked immediately.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t sit back down. \u201cI have something urgent to attend.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cScott,\u201d I tried again, forcing calm. \u201cPlease. Just five minutes. Tell me what is happening.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He looked at me, and for a second his eyes softened, like he wanted to give me more. Then the wall returned. \u201cNot now,\u201d he replied.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My hands pressed against the edge of the table. \u201cNot now, not now, not now. That\u2019s all I\u2019m hearing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He glanced at the kids, as if making sure they weren\u2019t listening too closely. \u201cBella, don\u2019t do this in front of them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not doing anything,\u201d I snapped. \u201cYou\u2019re the one disappearing like I don\u2019t exist.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cindy took the kids out of the room, leaving us alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His jaw flexed. \u201cI have work to do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWork to do? You know that we have to tackle that horrible situation! What if Craig-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m doing what needs to be done!\u201d he retorted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd what about me?\u201d My voice cracked. \u201cWhat about our marriage?\u201d He didn\u2019t reply and walked toward the exit. \u201cWhere are you going?\u201d I asked, standing as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He let out a rough exhale. \u201cI have time for this Bella. I have something urgent.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stepped closer to him. \u201cScott, please. This is killing me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He looked at me the way a person looks when they\u2019ve decided something is finished. \u201cI will be back soon,\u201d he replied. \u201cGo to bed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s all you ever say,\u201d I whispered, and I could feel tears on my cheeks. \u201cBack when? In an hour? In the morning? In a week?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His expression changed. \u201cBella, please don\u2019t\u2014\u201d He pursed his lips, cutting off.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stared at him for a second longer, then I turned away. I heard the door close behind him, and my whole body went cold. He didn\u2019t come after me. What was going on? He had no right to make me feel like this\u2013so unwanted and like he was suffering, not me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That night, I woke up in the middle of the night to my phone buzzing on the bedside table. I looked toward Scott\u2019s side of the bed. It was empty. My chest tightened. I looked at the phone. The number on the screen was unknown. My first thought was Scott. My second thought was that something terrible had happened. I grabbed it and answered without thinking. \u201cHello?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHello Bella.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My eyes widened. \u201cCraig?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Craig drawled on, \u201cYou sound tired. Not sleeping well?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My entire body went cold with fear. \u201cWhere are you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat, you miss me?\u201d he mocked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Anger surged through me. \u201cYou\u2019re disgusting. What do you want?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know what I want,\u201d he replied, voice smug. \u201cI want what I\u2019m owed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOwed?\u201d I repeated. Rage pushed through my fear. \u201cYou\u2019re owed nothing. You tried to trap me with that fake video.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
There was a pause, and then he let out a darker laugh, like he was pleased by how miserable I sounded. \u201cNo, sweetheart. The video is real. And your new husband hasn\u2019t contacted me yet, which is making me impatient.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My stomach rolled. \u201cIf you release it, you will destroy yourself too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the difference between you and me,\u201d he replied smoothly. \u201cI will destroy you and Scott. As for me, I\u2019ll just disappear like a ghost.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I swallowed hard. \u201cScott will end you if you try this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLet him try. If I don\u2019t get my money, I will release it and I will make sure it goes everywhere. Your perfect wedding, your perfect life, your perfect story. I will ruin it in one click.\u201d He chuckled. \u201cThat reminds me, your would\u2013be husband hasn\u2019t contacted me.\u201d Then his voice turned sharp. \u201cMaya will come to you again, and you better give a positive response. Tell your CEO to pay. Or watch everything burn.\u201d The phone went dead.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland\u2019s breathtaking cold.<\/p>\n
When Midnight Winds Carry Secrets Toward Worlds Yet Unknown 111 Bella\u00a0 For the next two nights, I barely slept\u00a0 I […]<\/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":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23076","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-new-world-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23076","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=23076"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23076\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23076"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23076"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23076"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}