<b>Chapter </b>114
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Five hourster, Raelyn arrived at Cedric’s ce.
Two hours after that, she waspletely worn out, barely hanging on.
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Cedric pped her across the face several times. “You slut! Cheating on me with Charles? Haven’t I warned you before? I can’t stand that guy!”
Raelyn’s face was <b>so </b>swollen she was unrecognizable. There was no way she’d be working on set anytime soon.
She fell to her knees, crying desperately. “Cedric, I swear, I have no idea who Charles even is.”
“Drop the act! I saw the damn photos myself!”
“I didn’t! I swear, Cedric, you’ve got to believe me!”
Cedric kicked her hard, sending her sprawling. His eyes were cold and cruel. “Believe you? Are you really saying you haven’t been seeing other men?”
Raelyn’s eyes betrayed her guilt. She’d actually been meeting someone else.
Cedric caught it right away. He grabbed a stool and smashed it down onto her back. “Just die already!”
Raelyn cked out instantly.
Cedric still wasn’t satisfied. He walked over and kicked her a few more times before his rage finally eased up a
bit.
He lit up a cigarette, scoffing as he called outside, “Drag her out—take her to the hospital, and make sure she doesn’t die.”
The people waiting just outside came in to deal with her, looking like this was routine for them.
Cedric was halfway through his smoke when his phone rang. It was Vivian.
Vivian had been put through the wringer by Charlesst night, and this morning, he wouldn’t even look her way at the meeting–she totally snapped.
“Cedric, I want you to get rid of Ynda in three days! I can’t wait any longer. Didn’t Grady say he was interested in her before? Get him to take her to Raventon–I want her to never know a moment’s peace for <fn80c1> Th? link to the orig?n of this information r?sts ?n find·novel</fn80c1>
the rest of her life.”
Cedric raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t we already taking care of it? I’ll go light a fire under Greg.”
“That’s too damn slow! I want her gone–now! Just the sight of her makes me want to gag!”
Cedric rubbed his temples, a vicious glint shing in his eyes as he sneered, “Then that’s perfect–Ynda’s in the next city. Charles is only there for work, so once Ynda’s out on her own, that’s when I’ll strike. She won’t being back.”
<b>13:34 </b><b>Mon</b><b>, </b>Sep 22
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Relief washed over Vivian after hearing that.
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Ynda had been in town for four days now, mostly hanging around the set or asionally dropping by, or just sitting in on Charles’s meetings.
Charles had been fairly nice to her these past couple of days–especially since he’d publicly said he <b>was </b>only here to keep herpany.
But when she caught the raw hatred in Vivian’s eyes, Ynda immediately knew she was about to make a
move.
Right now, Ynda was powerless against the Andrade family–her only option was to find a way to deflect. the danger onto someone else.
Ynda nced at Charles walking beside her, lowered her eyes thoughtfully, then hooked her arm right around his.
“Hey, babe, can we go up the mountain tonight? I heard there’s this ce nearby where they hang papernterns all along the path–it looks absolutely stunning.”
Charles caught the sparkle in her eyes and, remembering what happened with Renee, figured he owed her one and just couldn’t say no.
“What time?”
“Eight. You head over first, okay? I’ve got a surprise nned for youter.”
For all the years they’d been married, Ynda had always been so quiet and withdrawn–he’d hardly ever seen her act so girly before. ‘Is she actually in a better mood these days?‘ Charles wondered.
<i>‘</i>Or am I just imagining it?‘ he mused to himself.
“What’s the surprise?” he asked.
“If I tell you, it won’t be a surprise! I’m heading out to pick it up now.”
Charles let out a softugh. “Alright,” he said.
Ynda went out and bought two sets of workout clothes, then wandered the mall for ages before finally finding what she needed.
When she handed the clothes to Charles, he frowned. Casual outfits were reserved for workouts or golf- never any other time.
He pinched the fabric critically between his fingers, then watched as she put something that looked like a digital watch onto his wrist.
He was already wearing a watch–the one she’d given him for his birthday.
He didn’t really know why he let her put it on him, almost like he was on autopilot.
<b>13:34 </b>Mon, <b>Sep </b><b>22 </b><b>N </b>
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Ynda slipped a stic wristband onto her arm, earnest as she exined, “Supposedly if we’re within twenty meters, it’ll start beeping. I want to use it to track you down when we’re on the mountain.”
Her voice was gentle, her eyes clear. As she lowered her head, a lock of hair brushed her ear.
Charles gave her ear a yful pinch. “Since when are you into this kind of thing?”
Ynda looked up, “Weren’t you the one who called me boring?”
‘She got me there, Charles thought, left speechless. Instead, he just gave her cheek a teasing squeeze. “Alright, whatever you say, honey. I’m all yours.”
Ynda gave him a half–smile and nudged him out the door. “Go on, you and Jack head out first. I’ll catch up soon–I wanna find you myself, just like when we yed hide–and–seek as kids.”
Hide–and–seek had been their thing when she was eleven. At some fancy party, all the other kids ignored her, but her one little victory was finding Charles hidden behind a fake rock feature.
She was tiny back then, all big eyes and fragile limbs. Charles, worried she’d spoil his hiding spot, just lifted her right off the ground.
“Don’t say a word,” he ordered.
She was so frightened she barely dared to breathe, struggling to hold back sobs as tears silently streamed down her cheeks, her whole body trembling.
Back then, Ynda was so timid–terrified of the Grant family, scared of everyone else. She really was as fragile as ss.
Charles hardly ever looked back on his time with her; he had plenty of childhood buddies, and with his rxed, gentle nature, he could be friends with anyone.
So now, when these memories surfaced, it surprised him–he hadn’t realized just how much they’d been through together.
“Sure thing, baby. I’ll be waiting for you toe find me,” Charles teased.
He always knew how to say all the right things, but Ynda had built up a total immunity to his smooth talk. She just grinned at him in response.
Charles suddenly felt his heart skip a beat, his eyes lingering on her face as he pulled her into his arms. “Getting out seems to have done wonders for your mood,” he said, noticing the change in her,
He dipped his head and pressed two quick kisses to her lips, then turned and walked away,
The smile in Ynda’s eyes vanished right away. She purposefully wandered downstairs to the restaurant, where she “bumped into” Vivian Andrade. Pulling out her phone, she put on an act, pretending she was chatting with someone.
“Yeah<b>, </b>Golden Peak. I’ll head up there in a bit for a climb–they say at night the view’s unreal, whole city sparkling! Just me, all by myself,” Ynda said, her voice light and breezy as if she genuinely didn’t have a
<b>13:34 </b>Mon, Sep 22 N
care.
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Shezily stirred her juice, barely ncing at it, then got up to leave.
Vivian, who was sitting close enough to catch every word, nearly burst with excitement <i>at </i>what she overheard. She didn’t waste a second before firing off a message to Cedric.
Ynda changed into her workout gear, and just as she heard a knock, she walked over to open the door- there was Ian standing right there.
‘Seriously, did he bug the ce or something?‘ Ynda thought to herself with a hint of exasperation. ‘How does he always manage to show up when Charles isn’t around?‘
Ian had just finished a full day of filming. With his hat pulled low and a mask covering his face, he looked all mysterious and effortlessly cool.
He stepped inside without saying a word, shut the door behind him, grabbed her face, and kissed her fiercely.
Ynda was pressed back until she copsed onto the couch, lying back as he crowded in.
Ian followed her down, his kisses messy and desperate against her lips.
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