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The Billionaire's Contract: Protecting My Secret Son
img img The Billionaire's Contract: Protecting My Secret Son img Chapter 5 5
5 Chapters
Chapter 8 8 img
Chapter 9 9 img
Chapter 10 10 img
Chapter 11 11 img
Chapter 12 12 img
Chapter 13 13 img
Chapter 14 14 img
Chapter 15 15 img
Chapter 16 16 img
Chapter 17 17 img
Chapter 18 18 img
Chapter 19 19 img
Chapter 20 20 img
Chapter 21 21 img
Chapter 22 22 img
Chapter 23 23 img
Chapter 24 24 img
Chapter 25 25 img
Chapter 26 26 img
Chapter 27 27 img
Chapter 28 28 img
Chapter 29 29 img
Chapter 30 30 img
Chapter 31 31 img
Chapter 32 32 img
Chapter 33 33 img
Chapter 34 34 img
Chapter 35 35 img
Chapter 36 36 img
Chapter 37 37 img
Chapter 38 38 img
Chapter 39 39 img
Chapter 40 40 img
Chapter 41 41 img
Chapter 42 42 img
Chapter 43 43 img
Chapter 44 44 img
Chapter 45 45 img
Chapter 46 46 img
Chapter 47 47 img
Chapter 48 48 img
Chapter 49 49 img
Chapter 50 50 img
Chapter 51 51 img
Chapter 52 52 img
Chapter 53 53 img
Chapter 54 54 img
Chapter 55 55 img
Chapter 56 56 img
Chapter 57 57 img
Chapter 58 58 img
Chapter 59 59 img
Chapter 60 60 img
Chapter 61 61 img
Chapter 62 62 img
Chapter 63 63 img
Chapter 64 64 img
Chapter 65 65 img
Chapter 66 66 img
Chapter 67 67 img
Chapter 68 68 img
Chapter 69 69 img
Chapter 70 70 img
Chapter 71 71 img
Chapter 72 72 img
Chapter 73 73 img
Chapter 74 74 img
Chapter 75 75 img
Chapter 76 76 img
Chapter 77 77 img
Chapter 78 78 img
Chapter 79 79 img
Chapter 80 80 img
Chapter 81 81 img
Chapter 82 82 img
Chapter 83 83 img
Chapter 84 84 img
Chapter 85 85 img
Chapter 86 86 img
Chapter 87 87 img
Chapter 88 88 img
Chapter 89 89 img
Chapter 90 90 img
Chapter 91 91 img
Chapter 92 92 img
Chapter 93 93 img
Chapter 94 94 img
Chapter 95 95 img
Chapter 96 96 img
Chapter 97 97 img
Chapter 98 98 img
Chapter 99 99 img
Chapter 100 100 img
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Chapter 5 5

Addie kicked the whiskey bottle away from Rick's flailing hand. It rolled across the floor, clinking against the broken glass.

She dropped to her knees beside Sarah.

"I'm okay, I'm okay," Sarah sobbed, but she wasn't. Her face was swelling.

Council leaned back in the cool leather of his car seat, never taking his eyes off the screen. He should leave. He should call the police. But he couldn't move. He was transfixed.

"He's blind!" Rick screamed from the floor. "My eyes!"

"Police are five minutes out, Rick," Addie lied. Her voice was ice. "Get out the back door or go to jail. Your choice."

Rick scrambled up, crashing into furniture, whining like a kicked dog. He stumbled toward the kitchen and out the back door.

The silence that followed was heavy.

Sarah grabbed Addie's hand. Her fingers were stained with blood.

"Addie... Leo? Is Leo okay?"

"He's safe. He's with a neighbor."

"And the husband?" Sarah asked. "The billionaire? Is he treating you okay?"

Council held his breath. He leaned in closer to the speaker relaying the audio.

Addie let out a short, bitter laugh. She grabbed a bag of frozen peas from the kitchen and pressed it to Sarah's cheek.

"Auntie, don't worry. It's just a transaction."

"A transaction?"

"I need the marriage certificate to get full custody of Leo. He needs a boring wife to fix his stock price. That's it. We use each other."

Council's eyes narrowed. So the report was accurate, he thought. She needs a stable home for the boy. But the report said nothing of this... ferocity. It didn't capture the desperation. The pieces were clicking into place, but the picture they formed was more complex than he'd anticipated.

"But... these rich men," Sarah whispered. "If he hurts you..."

Addie's face softened. She looked tired. So incredibly tired.

"I can handle him. I just need to survive until the adoption is finalized. Once Leo is mine, legally mine, I'll divorce him. I'll sign whatever he wants. I don't want his money. I just want my boy."

Council stiffened.

She doesn't want the money.

The realization hit him like a physical blow. She wasn't a gold digger. She was a mercenary. But she was fighting for a child, not a payout.

"I have to go back," Addie said, standing up. "He's moving in tonight. If I'm not there, he might leave. And I can't lose this chance."

She wiped her hands on her jeans. She took a deep breath, and Council watched her put the mask back on. The shoulders slumped slightly. The fierce look vanished. She became the quiet, obedient wife again.

She walked toward the front door.

Council immediately spoke into his earpiece. "Pull back. Return to the primary residence. Now." He moved fast. His car was already pulling away before she even stepped outside.

He watched her run down the street to hail a cab in his rearview mirror.

He waited until she was gone. Then he picked up his phone.

"Marcus," he said into his phone. "Put a security detail on this address. 24/7. If that man comes back, have him arrested for trespassing. Make sure it sticks."

He got into his car. "Get me back to Queens. Fast."

Council was sitting on the lumpy sofa when Addie burst through the door. He had arranged his luggage to look untouched. He was scrolling on his phone, looking bored.

Addie was breathless. She smelled of sweat and stale alcohol-the smell of Rick's house.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Bartlett," she gasped. "I... I went to the bodega. For milk."

Council looked up slowly. He locked eyes with her.

"Milk?" he asked.

"Yes."

He stood up. He walked toward her. He stopped inches away. He sniffed the air.

"You smell like a distillery," he said.

Addie froze. She pulled her coat tighter. "I... there was a drunk guy outside. He bumped into me."

It was a terrible lie.

Council stared at her. He knew everything. He knew where she had been. He knew she had swung a baseball bat at a man twice her size. He knew she planned to divorce him.

He felt a flicker of admiration.

"Go shower," he said, his voice cold. "I don't want my living quarters smelling like cheap whiskey."

Addie blinked, surprised he didn't push further. "Okay."

She rushed to the bathroom.

Council stood alone in the living room. He looked at the closed door.

Just a transaction, she had said.

Fine, he thought. Let's do business.

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