?Chapter 1164:


    They had nned to spend the evening together, with Axell away on a business trip, a rare moment of stolen intimacy.


    Thoughts of her secret affair with Austen consumed her every waking moment, a relentless tide that kept sleep at bay until exhaustion finally imed her.


    This was the only way to stop her from recalling the past and thinking about the misfortunes that had befallen her, to forget that she had been responsible for her parents’ deaths, and to erase the loathed image of Maia from her mind.


    Impatiently, Rosanna seized her phone and dialed Austen’s number, muttering under her breath, “He’d better have a good reason for this.”


    The call rang unanswered, her frustration mounting.


    “Damn it! Why is he taking so long?” she hissed, her voice sharp with displeasure. “Men are all the same.”


    Her eyes fell on an old newspaper sprawled across the sofa, its front page proiming Vince’s imprisonment in bold print. With a flick, she turned off the light switch, plunging the room into shadow.


    Suddenly, a loud thump struck the window, followed by a blinding sh of lightning that bathed the room in stark white, chased by a thunderous roar.


    Startled, Rosanna threw herself onto the bed, burrowing under the nkets as fear raced through her mind, her heart pounding in the dimness.


    Her thoughts drifted unexpectedly to Richard and Sandra, their kindness a distant warmth, and to her days as a radiant young woman in the Morgan family, betrothed to the charming Vince. Countless opportunities had once stretched before her but now had vanished, leaving her confined in Axell’s house.


    Yet meeting Austen had rekindled a spark in her heart, a rare fortune amidst her turmoil.


    Boom!


    Find thetest releases g?lnσv????s


    Thunder boomed again, and Rosanna clutched the nket tighter, fully aware of the scandalous nature of falling for her husband’s younger brother.


    What began as mere maniption had spiraled into something overwhelming, ensnaring herpletely.


    She felt wronged by fate. Why hadn’t she met Austen sooner? His daring spirit and calmposure in any crisis drew her irresistibly.


    With a wry snort, she acknowledged her distrust of men, yet her resolve hardened.


    She would have Austen and all that belonged to the Nelson family.


    Killing Axell would be no great challenge. She had, after all, caused her parents’ deaths.


    How much harder could it be to secure her future as Mrs. Nelson, married to Austen, with her current life intact? Lightning cut through the sky, and thunder rumbled once again over Wront.


    Elysium Apartments.


    Lightning sliced through the sky, casting fleeting shadows across the room. In that flickering light, two figures stood entwined, illuminated by the storm’s electric glow.


    Chris loosened his necktie, his lips tracing a tender path from Maia’s neck to her corbone, each kiss igniting a warmth that spread through her.


    His scent stirred a fierce desire, crumbling the walls she had built around her heart.


    .


    .


    .