Christopher quickly pulled his phone from his pocket, his fingers moving with nervous urgency as he opened Luana’s profile. He had guessed correctly that the video would come from her page.The screen was cracked from the fall he’d taken earlier, but he could still make out the images clearly enough: Briana and Mark appeared on the feed.“Hello, everyone,” Mark began in the video, his tone calm but firm. “This is Mark Ferro, manager of Glamour Company. Here with me is my lovely wife, the general manager, Briana Vasconcelos Ferro.”Briana smiled softly and ran a hand over her belly. “Hi, everyone,” she greeted, her voice carrying that familiar gentleness that always seemed to calm a room.The sound of a door opening pulled Christopher out of the moment. He looked up to see Mark stepping into the office, his expression grave.“Looks like the video reached you,” Mark said.Christopher hit pause on the cracked screen and stood up quickly. “Mark… is Brie doing better?”“She’s fine now,” Ma

In the dim light of the underground parking garage, the Porsche finally stopped rocking, the rhythmic motion dying away like the fading tremor of a guilty heartbeat.From inside came a heavy, masculine breath. “And now? Where are you going?”Celia’s voice was faint, drained. “Are you... out of your mind? How am I... supposed to go home like this?”“Oh, come on,” he said, voice slick with amusement. “It’s not like there’s a husband waiting for you.”“No,” she shot back between weary sighs, “just my lover.”That word struck him like a slap. Mr. Collins sat up abruptly, still slick with sweat, his expression curdling with offense.He had thought he was the lover!“I’ll drive you,” he muttered, fastening his seatbelt and pulling a crumpled pile of clothes onto his lap for modesty’s sake.The engine roared to life, echoing off the concrete walls as he maneuvered carefully, trying not to scratch the Porsche against the dumpster beside them.******Gilson stormed into his American-style hous

Lieutenant Ribeiro stood before a sea of cameras, the harsh white lights reflecting off his uniform as he faced a restless press corps.The hastily organized conference had been called under intense political and public pressure.Blue Cove demanded answers.At the center of the crowd, Mary Ellen typed furiously on her tablet, capturing every word for the morning edition.“We are doing everything in our power,” Ribeiro declared, his voice echoing through the room, “to identify and arrest this extremist group dissatisfied with entertainment programming. Their actions are unacceptable.”A reporter raised her hand, her tone sharp. “Lieutenant Ribeiro, is the department treating both incidents as connected?”“Yes,” he confirmed without hesitation. “The car belonged to Christopher Vasconcelos, cousin of Glamour’s general manager, Briana Vasconcelos Ferro. Unfortunately, the young man was simply visiting the company. He has no connection to ‘Times of Glory’.”Flashbulbs erupted, the clicking

“I’m so sorry, sir... it won’t happen again,” Dalila murmured, her cheeks warming.Christopher smiled faintly, standing and closing the short distance between them. “Relax,” he said softly. “It’s just a sheet of paper.”“A sheet of paper with names worth millions,” she replied under her breath.He followed her gaze, his expression hardening. Without realizing it, he was now standing close enough to catch the faint scent of soap and starch from her uniform.He sighed. “The woman I actually want is engaged to a scoundrel,” he confessed quietly.Dalila’s tone softened. “I’m sorry, Young Master Vasconcelos.”He chuckled at the formality. “You always take ages to call me by my title. Why not make it simpler: just ‘Mr. Christopher’?”Dalila straightened, startled by the suggestion. “I’d rather not...”“In my opinion, it’s still respectful,” he said gently. “And I authorize it.”That disarmed her. She lifted her head and smiled, more at ease now. “All right then... Mr. Christopher. Have a go

On the other end, Nadir stood by the pool at the Vasconcelos Mansion, whispering even though no one else was there.“Is that really the tone you’re using with me?” she hissed.“What tone were you expecting?” Julian replied evenly.“The tone of a man who can’t wait to devour his starving lover!” Nadia answered with her eyes gleaming with “passion”.“Jeez,” he said dryly, “you’ve been watching way too much triple-X cinema.”Her voice tightened. “Julian, don’t make me do something drastic.”He kept using “you” instead of “ma’am,” careful not to alert Regis, who no doubt thought he was dealing with some clingy young fling.“What can you do?” he said. “Expose me? You’d go down with me. And that wouldn’t look good for my employers.” He let a sly smile curl his lips. “Or maybe it would. Lord Ferro knows my family. That’s partly why he hired me.”“Please, Julian,” Nadir whimpered, her voice breaking. “I need your naked body again!”“Forget it,” he snapped.He wanted to shout “Go find your hus