CHAPTER 676. RED PROMISE. You Have a Wife Now, Remember?For Ainara, it only took June falling completely asleep in one of her new grandparents’ guest rooms for her to let out all the worry she’d been hiding from her daughter.“Where are they? What’s going on, Danna? And don’t tell me ‘nothing,’ because I’ve seen you whispering into that phone three times already, and I’m sure you’re not talking about fashion.”Her mother-in-law looked at her uneasily. While she trusted her husband completely, she couldn’t deny that she was also dying of worry.“The family lawyer called me,” Danna murmured. “Loan and Mauro are at the police station. I’m not entirely sure what happened, but…”“They’re under arrest?” Ainara interrupted, unable to believe it.“It seems so, but Loan will fix it. I’m sure he’ll—Ainara! Daughter, where are you going?” Danna tried to stop her, but Ainara was already grabbing her coat from the hook by the door.She paused in the doorway, looking at the team of bodyguards stat
CHAPTER 677. RED PROMISE. A SecretThe detective was sure he wasn’t that lucky, but the fact remained—he couldn’t afford to let even the smallest clue or opportunity slip away.“Well, I’m no saint, but while I can’t give you the confession you’re hoping for, I might be able to shed some light on your murder case,” Ainara replied. Mauro shook his head, visibly worried.“Babe, this isn’t a good idea. Please.”“It’s okay, sweetheart,” she smiled at him, trying to reassure him. “There’s nothing to worry about. You need to understand—Lugh had nothing on me. No matter what he said, he had absolutely nothing. I’ve never stolen anything in my life, I haven’t committed any crimes, I wasn’t a stripper or a prostitute, and I never got involved in the shady business surrounding campaigns. I’ve always stayed away from all of that. So whatever he may have claimed, I promise you, he had nothing to use against me for blackmail.”“Blackmail?” The detective pulled out the chair in front of them and ges
CHAPTER 678. RED PROMISE. StrategyMauro could swear he was about to swallow his tongue from the shock, and the detective sitting across from them wasn’t faring much better. He knew Ainara was a strong and shrewd woman, but he also believed she was perfectly capable of carrying out her threat—and he knew she’d do it to get him out of jail.“Mrs. Keller, you can’t…” the detective began, but she cut him off with a sarcastic smile.“Please. Freedom of speech was enshrined in this country’s Constitution long ago, so don’t bother telling me what I can or can’t do. Senator Rosso is a suspect, and…”“But he’s not the only one,” Mauro interjected quietly. Ainara looked at him. No, he wasn’t the only one, and maybe that was the real problem. Any one of their enemies was powerful enough in politics to make the police hesitate to go after them.“Can we speak privately?” she asked the detective. She squeezed Mauro’s hand gently, knowing he’d protest. But with or without his objections, she left t
CHAPTER 1. More than one way to break a heart**JANUARY SEATTLE**"How could you do this?!" Zack Keller's furious roar stopped his girlfriend right at the door as soon as he saw her arrive.Giselle saw a piece of paper in his hand and had no idea what he was talking about, but she had never seen him so upset as he was at that moment."I don't know what you're talking about...""Of course you do! You aborted my child! You lost it on purpose!" he accused her angrily. "Did you at least have the damn intention of telling me anything?!"The woman in front of him turned pale."How... how do you know...?"Zack threw the paper in her direction and looked at her with disappointment."Do you forget you're on my company's health insurance?" he spat, approaching her. "As soon as your last name appeared in the payment records, they notified me. Imagine my joy when I found out the insurance had paid for a pregnancy test and then for an ultrasound!"Giselle stepped away from him, her face red with e
CHAPTER 2. Something is Very Wrong...**NOVEMBER. VANCOUVER**"Andrea! To my office! Now!"The shout from her boss, a middle manager at SportUnike, made her jump in her seat, anxious because she knew he was in a very bad mood that day."Is this a damn joke?" he growled, throwing a folder of documents at her face. "I clearly told you I needed the budget reports for the water sports division from last month!"Andrea's eyes widened."But... Mr. Trembley... I'm sure you said you wanted this month's reports...""Don't argue with me, you useless idiot!" her boss snapped. At fifty years old, Peter Trembley was as unpleasant as his bulging belly, but Andrea had to endure him because she had barely managed to get a job as his assistant, and she and her daughter depended on it to survive. "Don't you realize what's happening? SportUnike is gone! A Swiss bastard bought it, and now we'll just be a part of his company! Do you know what that means?"Andrea knew. The arrival of a new owner had create
CHAPTER 3. A Possible AllyBut if Zack thought something was wrong with the company, his instincts went on high alert when he went down to the parking lot and saw the woman leaning against one of the walls. She was trying to change from high heels to low sneakers, but her hands were shaking.He was tempted to go talk to her, but something in him still resisted getting involved in other people's problems. He had a new company to run; if he wanted Andrea to feel better, he just had to fix his company, not the woman's personal life.Finally, he saw her adjust her coat and step out into the cold street.He watched from a distance and saw she didn't take a taxi or a bus, so she probably lived nearby. He had no idea how wrong he was because Andrea didn't live remotely close; she simply couldn't afford any form of transportation.For forty minutes, the young woman walked through the cold of a Canadian winter, and by the time she finally reached her building, it was almost dark."Good evening
CHAPTER 4: This is War!Trembley's face visibly reddened, and the hardness in his eyes remained."Waiting for Andrea?" he growled. "Are you trying to be funny, or do you not know that interpersonal relationships are prohibited in this company?""Well, I'm a slow learner, but I tend to imitate," Zack replied sarcastically. "Maybe I got confused when I saw you climbing on her like a lizard needing sunlight."The old man clenched his teeth and released Andrea abruptly before walking up to Zack."Don't get in my way, kid. You're just a newcomer, and I can...""What? Fire me?" Zack interrupted with a cold voice. "Well... you can try, but you'll find my job here doesn't depend on you. I belong to the team of the company owner, and only he can fire me. I'm sure he wouldn't look kindly on a manager trying to dismiss me without justified cause."Trembley clenched his fists and glared at Zack with a malevolent, defiant expression."Maybe your job is safe," he spat, "but hers leaves much to be
CHAPTER 5. Difficult DecisionsFurious… no, but definitely frustrated. He couldn't understand why she was so submissive to a guy who was utterly despicable. Sure, he was the boss, but God strike him down if he ever treated any of his employees like that!Andrea not only tried to do her best, but she did it well. You'd have to be blind not to see that the idiot Trembley minimized her just to keep her controlled. Zack didn't know why it angered him that she allowed it, but it bothered him that she was so docile with her boss.As soon as he saw she was less watched, he followed her to the copy room and closed the door behind him."Hey, were you born with a neck problem?" he asked, stopping her. Andrea looked at him, confused."Excuse me?" she murmured, not understanding."It's just that your head only moves up and down to say yes. I haven't seen you move it sideways even once to say no!" Zack hissed, and the girl pressed her lips together, her cheeks flushing."Because it's not easy..."