Tempting Mr. Cole

Chapter 6. Her Dark Secret

Liam Hayes stormed in, face twisted with rage. Before Delilah could react, his foot slammed into her side. She hit the floor with a sickening thud.

Liam Hayes

“You think you can lay a hand on her?” Liam’s voice was feral. He kicked her again, then again, spitting curses.“ You’re dead, Delilah! You hear me? Dead!”

Liam, Vivian’s only son, was trouble personified—a spoiled brat with a taste for fights and chaos. Fresh back from another reckless trip overseas, he was itching for a brawl.

Delilah lay crumpled on the hardwood, gasping for air, her body screaming in agony. Copper flooded her mouth.

“Stop it, Liam!” Malcolm Hayes bolted out of his study at the commotion, but his son was a man possessed.

With a final shove, Liam grabbed Delilah and hurled her toward the railing

A railing he’d busted during one of his tantrums two days earlier.

The weakened wood gave way under the impact.

Delilah’s scream tore through the air as her body plummeted from the second floor

But just before she hit the ground, a shadow flashed across her vision.

Strong arms caught her mid-fall with bone-crushing force.

The momentum sent both of them sprawling, her body slamming into a broad, muscular chest as they crashed to the floor.

A low grunt escaped him, followed by silence—

And then, the only sound in the room was her ragged breathing against his heartbeat.

The moment her body slammed into something solid, Delilah’s breath caught and her mind went blank.

Then she felt movement beneath her back—and realized she wasn’t on the ground. She was on top of someone.

A familiar masculine scent hit her. Turning her head slowly, she froze when her eyes locked with Sebastian Cole’s.

He was the one who caught her.

“Sebastian!” Aubrey’s voice cut through the air as she rushed over, her heels clicking against the marble floor. Dropping to her knees beside him, her hands hovered in panic.

“Are you okay? Can you move? Where does it hurt?” Her voice cracked as her eyes darted to his arm. “God, what were you thinking? Why would you risk that—for her?”

Malcolm Hayes and Vivian hurried down the stairs behind her, faces pale, spitting apologies while peppering Sebastian with questions about his injuries. They circled him like he was the only person in the room.

Meanwhile, Delilah—who had almost died—sat slumped to the side, invisible.

Vivian’s voice rose above the chaos, sharp and scolding.

“Sebastian, that was insane! What if you’d hit your head? Do you know how dangerous that was? Why would you throw yourself into this mess?”

Before Sebastian could answer, Vivian’s eyes snapped to Delilah, her tone turning venomous.

“And you! If you were planning to kill yourself, why not do it somewhere else? Instead, you turn our home into a circus—while we have guests! If anything had happened to Sebastian, you’d be facing a criminal lawsuit!”

Delilah’s stomach churned, her fingers digging into her knees. She was too shaken, too sore, to fight back. Not that they’d listen.

Sebastian finally brushed off the hands trying to hold him up. With a grimace, he pushed himself to his feet.

His voice was cold when he turned to Malcolm.

“Mr. Hayes, unless my eyes deceived me, your family just attempted murder.”

Malcolm’s face drained of color. His gaze flicked to Liam, who stood frozen nearby.“This…Sebastian, let’s not blow things out of proportion—”

Vivian jumped in, forcing a nervous laugh.

“Please, Mr. Cole. It wasn’t like that. She barged in here and attacked me, her stepmother. Liam only stepped in to protect me—”

“Enough.” Sebastian’s tone sliced through her excuse like ice.

“Your family drama isn’t my concern. But every time I set foot in this house, it’s chaos. I’ve had enough. Until this is sorted out, the wedding is postponed.”

Then he turned on his heel and strode toward the door, his injured arm cradled to his chest.

Aubrey shot to her feet, face flaming with anger and humiliation. Watching him leave after defending Delilah—after putting his own body on the line for her—was a slap in the face she couldn’t swallow.

Her rage exploded.

After Aubrey finished yelling, she spun on her heel and bolted after Sebastian.

Tonight was supposed to be about finalizing wedding details with the Cole family—but thanks to what just happened, that plan was in flames. Vivian’s face twisted with fury and resentment.

Even though Delilah had nearly fallen to her death and was still lying on the floor, Vivian didn’t show a shred of concern. Instead, she spat through gritted teeth:

“You selfish brat. You pick the worst possible time to make a scene! If this ruins my daughter’s wedding, I swear, you’ll regret it—”

“Enough!” Malcolm snapped, his voice sharp. “Can’t you see she’s hurt? Just stop talking for once!”

He was still her father, after all.

Malcolm hated Delilah’s defiance, but after that terrifying fall, guilt pricked at him.

“Come on. Let’s get you to the back room so I can take a look at you,” he said, reaching for her arm. As a top neurosurgeon, he kept a small medical room at home for emergencies.

But the moment his hand touched her, Delilah jerked away like she’d been burned.

She pushed herself to her feet, teeth clenched, standing on her own.

“Vivian.Malcolm.”

Her voice was cold as steel, her glare slicing through both of them.

“One day, you’ll wish you’d finished me off tonight.”

Before they could respond, Delilah staggered toward the door, every step unsteady, her body screaming in pain.

She made it to her car and climbed in, her head spinning.

Liam’s flashy sports car was parked crookedly, blocking her way.

Delilah started the engine, slammed her foot on the gas, and rammed into his bumper. The car jolted forward, clearing her path. Without a glance back, she sped out of the driveway. On the road, she drove slow, her mind heavy, the day replaying in jagged pieces. Her chest ached so badly it was hard to breathe.

And then her thoughts drifted, unbidden, to the past—to the life she’d lost.

Her mother’s name was Clara Monroe. She had an older sister—Vivian.

Except one truth set them apart: Vivian wasn’t blood. She’d been adopted. Clara was the real daughter of the Monroe family.

The parents treated them both with equal love, kept things fair. For years, the sisters got along—until Malcolm Hayes came into the picture.

He was young, handsome, fresh back from medical school in the States. Wealthy family. Polished manners. A rising star in medicine.

Clara married him with everyone’s blessing. A year later, Delilah was born.

But before Delilah turned three, Clara discovered the betrayal—her husband in an affair with Vivian. Worse, Vivian was already pregnant.

The shock shattered Clara. Depression swallowed her whole. At twenty-eight, she ended her life with a jump that left Delilah motherless.

Losing their real daughter broke the Monroe parents beyond repair. Their health declined.

Two years later, tragedy struck again—Clara’s parents, Delilah’s grandparents, died in a mysterious car accident.

With their deaths, the Monroe family legacy was gone.

The family’s pharmaceutical empire—worth billions—fell straight into Vivian’s hands.

An adopted daughter who stole her sister’s husband, caused her death, and then inherited everything.

Over the next twenty years, Vivian and Malcolm built their perfect little world—a son, a daughter, the picture of success.

Malcolm Hayes climbed from young doctor to one of the top neurosurgeons in the country. Vivian turned stolen wealth into an empire—private hospitals, pharmacy chains—multiplying her fortune hundreds of times.

Now, the Hayes name ruled the pharmaceutical industry. And soon, by marrying into the Cole family—a dynasty even wealthier—they’d rise higher still.

So much for karma. In this world, the ruthless, the shameless—they’re the ones who win.

Delilah’s hands clenched on the steering wheel, her chest tightening until it felt like she couldn’t breathe.

She stood in front of the mirror, tilting her head as she clipped on pearl earrings, a confident smile curving her lips.

After one last glance, she opened the drawer, slipped a red Durex packet into her handbag, and slid into her seven-inch stilettos. Grabbing her bag, she walked out without a second thought.

She entered the address for Cole Pharmaceuticals into her GPS, threw on a pair of oversized sunglasses, and headed out.

An hour later, her car rolled to a stop in front of a gleaming tower on the city’s edge—a glass-and-steel monument to wealth and power. This was the headquarters of Cole’s billion-dollar pharmaceutical empire.

After parking, Delilah breezed through security with a visitor badge and strode inside.

The executive floor wasn’t open to just anyone—only senior staff or those with clearance could get past the double security doors.

But Delilah had planned ahead. With a borrowed access card, she stepped into the elevator and pressed for the top floor—the one people liked to call“the forbidden zone.”

Moments later, she stood at the door to Sebastian Cole’s office.

The secretary’s desk was empty.

Delilah didn’t hesitate. She turned the handle and pushed open the heavy door.

Inside, the office was quiet, drenched in warm afternoon light. Sebastian was sprawled in his leather chair, eyes closed, his jawline sharp against the glow. Whether exhausted or half-asleep, he didn’t stir.

Delilah shut the door behind her with a soft click and started toward him, heels sinking into the thick wool carpet. Step by silent step, she closed the distance.

When she reached his desk, the man’s eyes snapped open—dark, sharp, and instantly alert. He had caught her scent.

Sebastian Cole stared at her for a good five seconds, like she’d completely lost her mind.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

His voice was low and sharp, cold enough to slice through the air. This was his office—a place for business,not whatever stunt she was pulling right now.

And Delilah Hayes, the woman who’d once shared a messy past with him, barging in like this? Unforgivable in his book.

But Delilah didn’t flinch. Dropping her usual sharp edge, she circled the desk with a teasing smile.

“It’s been, what, two weeks?I missed you. Thought I’d stop by.”

Then she hopped up onto his desk like she owned the place, legs crossed, calm as ever—zero shame, zero boundaries.

Her outfit was pure temptation, every line of her body screaming danger. But Sebastian’s face stayed hard, unreadable.

When he finally spoke, his voice was gravelly, laced with warning.

“Didn’t I tell you to disappear from my life?”

Delilah let out a low laugh.

“Disappear? After you saved my life at the Hayes place? That’d be pretty cold, even for you.”

She slid closer, slipping off her heels and stretching out her legs—black stockings brushing against his thigh.

“To be fair, Mr.Cole,”she said softly,“if you hadn’t caught me,I’d probably be in a wheelchair right now.So don’t you think I should…thank you properly?”

His jaw tightened. He shoved her legs away.

“Cut the crap. If you’d died anywhere else,I wouldn’t have cared. But doing it there—wrecking my wedding?I wasn’t about to let that happen.”

He pushed back his chair and stood, every inch of him screaming authority.

“Get out.Now.”