She Was Never Just the Billionaire’s Wife (Natasha and Chase) novel Chapter 33

Chapter 33 The Safe Harbor

(atasha)

The private jet’s tires touch down smoothly on the Los Angeles runway.

Looking out the small window, exhaustion wars with a strange sense of victory.

The week in Tokyo felt like a fever dream.

Working alongside Chase was surprisingly seamless, easily slipping back into old rhythms.

We anticipated each other’s thoughts during meetings, operating like the team we used to be.

My proudest moment came yesterday morning.

Jeffrey Bauer shook my hand and promised to formally include Stein Mergers and Acquisitions in the final contract.

Mason’s firm will get the credit, the respect, and the payout they rightfully deserve.

A black Mercedes takes us straight to the Warren estate from the airport.

Chase carries Lily inside, his large hand shielding her delicate head.

The quiet foyer feels like a battlefield waiting for the first strike.

My week with Lily is officially over.

Watching Chase walk toward the stairs with our daughter, panic tightens my throat, suffocating me.

The thought of driving back to my townhouse without my daughter makes my stomach turn violently.

Living without Lily is an agonizing prospect.

Every maternal instinct screams at me to stay right here, to protect her from Sonia’s fake smiles.

“Chase,” my voice echoes slightly in the grand hall.

He stops on the bottom step and turns around.

“I accept your ultimatum.”

The admission costs me the last of my pride, but the gains far outweigh what I’ll be losing.

“I’m moving back in permanently.”

Relief flashes across his handsome features, chased quickly by a fierce, possessive satisfaction.

“Welcome home, Natasha,” he murmurs, turning back to the stairs.

Two hours later, Mason arrives at the estate.

We meet in the sprawling back garden, far away from Eleanor’s prying eyes and Chase’s barely suppressed fury whenever he sees Mason.

The crisp air bites at my cheeks, but the chill is nothing compared to the look of pure heartbreak etched across Mason’s face.

He stands near the stone fountain, wearing a dark trench coat, his shoulders tense.

Chapter The Safe Ho

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When he sees me approaching along the gravel path, he closes the distance in three long strides and pulls me into

desperate, crushing hug.

Burying my face in his shoulder, tears spill over my eyelashes.

He holds me tight, anchoring me to the ground when my whole world feels like it’is spinning out of control.

“You did it,” Mason whispers. He pulls back just enough to look deep into my eyes.

“You agreed to stay here.”

“I had to,” I sob quietly.

“Leaving Lily feels like tearing my own heart out. Working with Chase in Tokyo made me realize again how much power he holds.”

I take a moment to try and calm the hammering of my heart.

“If I fight him from the outside, his lawyers will drag the custody battle out for years. I need to be with her now. And in the week we were gone your lawyers didn’t find anything we could use.”

Mason’s green eyes shine with raw, agonizing emotion.

“He’s trapping you, Natasha,” Mason pleads, his voice thick with genuine fear.

“He’s using the baby to pull you back into a toxic marriage. He abandoned you when you needed him most. He cheated on you with Sonia.”

“I haven’t forgotten anything,” I promise fiercely.

“But Sonia is hiding something. I don’t think she’s actually pregnant..

Mason shakes his head. He reaches up to cup my face in his warm hands, his thumbs brushing away my falling

tears.

“I don’t care about Sonia’s lies,” Mason confesses, his voice dropping to a rough, broken whisper.

“I care about you. My deepest fear is that you will fall back in love with him. You spent a week playing house in Japan, and now you’re sleeping under his roof again. He’ll use every trick he knows to make you stay.”

A heavy lump forms in my throat.

The undeniable chemistry Chase and I shared in the hotel suite is a dangerous secret.

Confessing how natural it felt to act like a family would only shatter Mason further.

He deserves so much better than my confusing, tangled feelings.

Mason searches my eyes, looking for reassurance I can’t honestly give him.

“Mason, you’ve done so much for me,” I say, my voice trembling.

“You saved my life and my sanity so many times.”

“Listen to me,” he interrupts softly, leaning his forehead against mine.

“I love you. I will fight for you until my dying breath. I don’t care if you live in his house, you are still the woman I want.”

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