Mr billionaire's regret chasing his irresistible wife by Gabby Emmanuel

The ghosts that haunts one.

(SOFIA'S POV)

I stood frozen, my heart hammering in my chest as the sting of Dwayne's slap lingered on my cheek. The pain itself was nothing compared to the fear that followed crawled up my spine, seizing my chest with an icy grip. It wasn't the slap that unsettled me. It was the calm that followed. The quiet, dangerous calm in his voice, the chilling intensity in his eyes.

I stared at him, unable to look away.

His gaze... those eyes... green, like emeralds, sharp and piercing, as if he could see straight through me. There was something about them that felt so hauntingly familiar. A memory buried so deep in my mind that it started clawing its way out, unwilling to be ignored. The more I looked at him, the more something in the back of my mind screamed, This is wrong. This is all wrong.

His voice, low and steady, carried a weight to it: calm, but with a thread of something far more dangerous. My breath caught in my throat as my mind raced, sifting through memories, but each time I tried to latch onto one, it slipped through my fingers like smoke. And then, it happened.

He shifted just slightly, imperceptibly like a dancer moving across a stage. His hand, so fluid and deliberate, reached up to adjust the cuff of his sleeve, a small, almost graceful gesture. It was as if he were smoothing away something invisible, but the fluidity of the motion, the precision of it, was all too familiar.

I had seen it before.

I had seen that exact movement years ago. In a different place. Under different circumstances.

The sudden recognition hit me like a jolt of electricity, my skin prickling with a cold sweat. That movement, that fluid grace... I had seen it before. In him.

The air around me suddenly seemed insufficient and suffocating, making it hard to breathe. I knew I had to get out of here before I embarrassed myself any further. With a surge of adrenaline, I turned and fled, my chest pounding as I sought for the safety of my room. I didn't stop until I was away from the Harrison's yacht, and back to the Langley's. I got into my room, grateful I didn't bump into Tiana's parents or my mother. Slamming the door shut, I jammed the locks, too to evade anyone coming in. I leaned against the door, my chest heaving as I struggled to catch my breath.

After regaining a little composure, I slowly walked to the mirror; my eyes fixated on my reflection. I cringed, refusing to believe that the reflection staring back at me was me. My face was red and puffy, with large finger imprints engraved in it.

A sob tore from my lips and my hands flew to my mouth.

in my mind. I stumbled toward the closet, yanking open the door and tossing clothes inside without thinking, my hands trembling violently. I have to

seen it before.

ears, my mind reeling. The pieces were falling into place, one after another, each one more horrifying than the last. He had

The name echoed in my mind, jagged and sharp. It

bag and stuffed it with whatever I could find. The fear inside me was a gnawing beast, telling me that if

eyes. And the memory-the memory I had tried so hard to forget-was

out of here before everyone returns. I just hope that Tiana keeps her mouth shut since her parents and my mom didn't witness the

(DWAYNE'S POV)

rigid, flustered, her eyes distant, as if she was looking at something

her credit for-but she wasn't

I didn't care about being gentle, about holding

struck a woman before, true-but I didn't regret what I'd done. In fact, maybe I was surprised at how easily I crossed that line. But when it came to Arielle... everything else faded. The need to protect her consumed me. And if that

moved closer, my voice gentler now, my eyes

couldn't see. I frowned. Arielle always had her guard up, but this... this was different. Something had shaken her, maybe the scene with Sofia, or maybe it was something deeper. I reached up, ruffling

Jared's voice broke the moment, sharp and

a roll of my eyes. His eyes were practically burning with rage. No surprise there. He was still pissed at Sofia, still trying to come to grips with what had happened. But frankly, that wasn't my concern. He should've done

fallout. Too

fume all he wanted.

on the other hand, seemed thrilled as she clapped her hands. "I've wanted to slap Sofia for ages," she said, grinning broadly. "I

joke. Sofia needed to be put in her place, and I'd done it. But Arielle's silence... It unsettled me more than anything Sofia

stepped closer, my tone gentler now. "Ostrich," I said, reaching out to brush her hair back from her face. "Talk to me.