Hired a Gigolo, Got a Billionaire

Chapter 397 Vivian's POV My phone screen glowed with dozens of notifications as I had breakfast in a discreet corner of a small café in dov Town Belmonte. Every gossip profile, every society column, every celebrity blog was covering the same explosive story: Madeline Sullivan's whirlwind wedding to Marcus Kensington, the heir to one of the most influential and powerful families in the world. I scrolled obsessively, devouring every sordid detail, every paparazzi photo, every malicious, venomous comment. There were images of the ceremony on the family's estate in Highridge Valley.

Photos of the lavish reception in the mansion's gardens. Close-ups of the simple yet elegant dress Madeline wore. She was smiling in every picture, as if she were the happiest woman alive. "Kensington..." I muttered under my breath, the name tasting like a bitter curse. How was this even possible? How had that dull, insignificant girl not only escaped the consequences of her reckless behavior, but gone on to marry one of the country's most desired and most untouchable bachelors? And so quickly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

The last I'd heard of Madeline, she'd been fleeing a medical clinic like a criminal. And now, less than a week later, she was posing for wedding photos like a fairy-tale princess, shielded by the name and influence of one of the most powerful families on the planet. It was infuriating and unfair. I couldn't comprehend it. I was so completely absorbed in the compulsive reading that I nearly jumped out of my skin when someone violently dragged the chair opposite me across the floor. The harsh scrape of metal against tile echoed like a gunshot, making me flinch and almost knock over my coffee.

my temple, impossible to fully hide no matter how much foundation or concealer I used. But when I forced my eyes

photos. I nodded automatically, not trusting my voice not to sound shaky and pathetic. "Why aren't you furious?" I finally managed to

exactly where she is," he said, his glacial calm sending a deeper chill through me than any 1/2 uncontrolled outburst ever could. "But she's married to man," I insisted, genuinely confused by his unsettling composure. "Is she?" he asked rhetorically, lifting an eyebrow in a way that made it clear he knew something crucial I did. "Because as far as I know, a mentally stable, well-adjusted person doesn't marry a complete stranger overnight, out of

was in a psychiatric clinic..." A slow, malicious smile spread across my face as I finally understood where he was going. The sheer brilliance of the strategy hit me like a flash of light, illuminating possibilities I hadn't even considered. "I think I know exactly where you're headed," I said, my voice tinged with genuine admiration for his diabolical cunning. "I want you to dig up