Chapter 143
Daniel’s POV.
I sat in the back seat of my car, staring at the tall glass building in front of me. Christiana’s company. Her pride and joy. The place where she spent so much of her time building her dreams. She was probably in there right now, walking back and forth in her office, trying to figure out how to let me down gently
It wasn’t because my offer wasn’t good. It was perfect. It could benefit her in ways I knew she hadn’t even thought of yet. But I knew the real reason she would say no.
Alexander Alistair.
I felt my hands tighten into fists as I thought about him. That man was the reason Christiana held herself back. The reason she couldn’t fully move forward, not with me or anyone else. And it wasn’t fair.
He had abandoned her when she needed him the most. Left her completely alone while she was carrying his children, struggling to figure things out on her own. And now, just because he decided to show up again after all these years, he got to have a place in her life? Just like that?
It made me angry. NôvelDrama.Org holds © this.
Christiana didn’t deserve that. She deserved someone who was going to stand by her no matter what. Someone who wouldn’t leave when things got tough.
She deserved me.
I let out a slow breath, leaning back against the seat. The driver glanced at me through the rearview mirror but didn’t say anything. He could probably feel the tension radiating off me. Smart man to stay quiet.
I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to calm myself down. Christiana didn’t she owed him something, probably because he was the father of her kids.
love Alex. I knew she didn’t. But she felt like
her way
softened when we eyes Still,
every time I saw her smile at me, I felt like she was trying to tell me something. The talked, the way she laughed more freely when it was just the two of us–it wasn’t just in my head. I knew she cared about me.
But she wouldn’t let herself show it. She was holding herself back because of Alex.
The thought of her choosing him, even out of some misplaced sense of duty, made my chest ache. She didn’t owe him anything. He was the one who had left her. He was the one who had turned his back on her when she needed someone most.
I leaned my head against the window, my eyes fixed on the building. She was in there, and I couldn’t stop thinking about how she’d looked earlier. The way she crossed her arms, as if she was trying to shield herself from me. The way her voice got quieter when she mentioned Alex, like she was trying to convince herself as much as she was convincing me
I sighed and ran a hand through my hair.
“Sir, are we staying here for a while?” the driver asked cautiously breaking the silence.
“No. Drive around the block,” I replied, sitting up straighter.
“Yes, sir.”
The car began to move, but my mind stayed on Christiana. She had no idea how much she meant to me. Or maybe she did, but she didn’t know what to do with it. Either way, I wasn’t going to give up on her.
I wasn’t like Alex. I didn’t run away when things got difficult. I wasn’t going to let her go because of some ghost from her past.
62%
As we turned a corner, caught sight of a delivery truck pulling away from the building. My flowers. A small smile tugged at the corner of my lips. I knew sending them was risky. I wasn’t even sure she liked flowers.
But I wanted to remind her that I was here. That I was thinking about her.
I leaned back in my seat, letting out another breath.
Patience. I needed to be patient. Christiana was worth it. She was worth everything.
But patience wasn’t going to get Alex out of the picture.
For that, I needed a plan. Something that would show her what I already knew–that she deserved better. And I was the one who could give it to her.
I sat at a corner table in the private pub with little light, staring into the glass of whiskey in my hand. The amber liquid swirled lazily, catching the light from the candles on the table. I could hear the sound of voices around me, the clinking of glasses, and the soft jazz playing in the background, but none of it mattered.
I wasn’t here for the noise or the drink. I was here to forget…forget everything but her.
Christiana.
She was always on my mind, even in moments like this, where I should’ve been letting off some steam. I couldn’t think about anything else, not when she was the reason I’d played Russian Roulette more times than I could count, risking my over and over just to get the money to face Alex. To show him that I wasn’t someone to be dismissed.
life
I took another sip of the whiskey, letting the burn settle in my throat. I wanted to feel it, wanted to feel something to drown out the ache in my chest. But no matter how much I drank, it didn’t change the fact that Christiana was the only thing that mattered.
I wasn’t stupid enough to think she didn’t care for me. I saw it in her eyes, in the way her smile softened when she looked at me. But then there was Alex…always standing between us, always in the picture.
I clenched my jaw. Alexander fucking Alistair.
The guy who walked out on her when she needed him the most. The man who left her pregnant and alone, not even knowing that she was carrying his child. Now, he was back, and Christiana felt obligated to him because of some twisted sense of duty. It drove me crazy.
I felt a shift in the air, and when I looked up, three women were standing near my table, smiling at me. I didn’t even need to hear what they had to say…I could already tell by the way they were dressed, the way they stood that they were after something.
“Mind if we join you?” one of them asked, her voice sweet and inviting, leaning in a little too close.
I didn’t even look at her. “Not tonight,” I muttered, my voice flat. I kept my gaze fixed on my glass, as if that would make them go away.
But one of them wasn’t having it. She placed her hand on the edge of the table, trying to draw me in with her touch. “Oh, come on. You look like you could use some company. Let us-”
“No,” I said, sharper this time, my eyes finally lifting to meet hers. She stopped, her smile faltering as she took a step back.
The other two exchanged looks, and then all three of them huffed and walked off, their heels clicking against the wooden floor, murmuring something about me being a lost cause.
Good. I didn’t need their company. I didn’t need anyone else. I only needed her.
14:34 Wed, Nov 27 OB.
0༨,62%
I leaned back in my chair, rubbing my temple with my fingers. I could feel the tension building, the frustration gnawing at me. Christiana was the only reason I was here, sitting in this damned pub, drinking to forget.
But I couldn’t forget. Not her. Not what I wanted to do for her.
Alex wasn’t just a man who stood in my way. He was everything hated, everything I’d fought against. He had the life I wanted with her, the family, the history. And now, I was trying to build something of my own…something to prove that I could be better.
Nexus Innovations was growing fast. Faster than anyone expected. But I knew it wasn’t enough to compete with Alistair Davis Enterprises. Not yet, anyway.
I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed a number, my mind already calculating the next move. I wasn’t going to play by Alex’s rules anymore. I didn’t have billions to throw around like he did, but I had something better….potential. Nexus Innovations was more than just a fast–growing company. It was a force waiting to be unleashed.
“Hello?” a voice answered on the other end.
“I need everything you can find on Alistair Enterprises,” I said, my voice cold and controlled. “I’m going after him. Hard.”
There was a pause, and then a reply. “Understood. I’ll get the information to you as soon as I can.”
I hung up without another word, staring out into the pub, thinking about how I would make Alex feel the same fear, the same sense of being outmatc
hed, that I’d felt every day trying to fight for Christiana.
He had no idea what was coming for him.