Chapter 33
1 stood there, frozen, trying to make sense of what I’d just heard.
Her father owned this company?
My brows furrowed, and I took a small step back, like the words had shoved me. The air felt tight in my chest.
Wait. So he didn’t just randomly buy this place!
I turned to Karl, waiting–hoping–for him to say something. To deny it. To say the woman was being dramatic or delusional or lying for attention.
But he didn’t
He didn’t even glance at me.
He just stared at her, his face unreadable, but his posture stiff like his entire body had locked up. For once, he didn’t look cold or amused. He looked haunted.
She stared right back at him, waiting too. The
tension betwe
them filled the entire room, stretching it tight
Then slowly, Karl slipped his hands into his pockets.
Still without meeting my eyes, he spoke
“Ellen,” he said quietly, calm and sharp, “please excuse us.”
No please stay. No explanation. No second glance.
Just that
I blinked, my chest squeezing harder. I could barely hear my own footsteps as I turned and walked toward the door. Every nerve in me burned like it needed answers, but none came.
The door clicked shut behind me.
And then I heard the lock.
I stopped mid–step, staring at the wall ahead of me, trying to breathe through the whirlwind crashing in my head.
Outside, Kent stood near the corner, phone in hand, calm as usual.
I walked up to him, still dazed.
“What the hell was that?” I asked, my voice lower than I intended. “Who is she?”
He looked up slowly, brows raised like he hadn’t expected me to speak first.
He didn’t answer.
I swallowed, wrapping my arms around myself. I didn’t know what I was feeling. I didn’t even know what I was asking exactly.
All I knew was that something felt wrong, deeply wrong–and I hated how it made my chest ache.
I frowned at Kent, unable to take the silence a second longer.
“Why don’t you answer me?” I asked sharply, stepping forward. “I asked you a question.”
He didn’t flinch. His gaze remained blank, expression unreadable. “I’m not obliged to respond to you unless my boss requests it.”
The words hit like a slap.
“If you have any questions,” he added, adjusting his sleeve, “you should speak to Mr. Lever directly”
And just like that, he turned and walked off, not even sparing me a second glance.
Chapter 33
I stood there for a long moment, arms crossed, lips slightly parted, heart pounding in a way I didn’t understand.
I wasn’t angry. Not exactly.
But I wasn’t okay either.
1 stared at the door, debating, then took a slow step forward. I knew it was wrong. I knew this crossed a line. But I needed to know something–anything. I leaned in, pressing my ear against the door.
Nothing.
The door was soundproof.
Of course it was.
I pulled away slowly, letting out a small breath. Just as I did, the handle shifted and the door swung open.
1 jerked back in surprise.
The woman–Gypsy–stormed out, heels clacking sharply on the floor. Her face was red, eyes wild.
This won’t be the last you’ll see of me,” she spat over her shoulder. “And I promise you’ll pay for this, Karl.”
She didn’t notice me. Or maybe she didn’t care.
She walked away without looking back, her figure disappearing around the corner in seconds.
I hesitated for a second, then stepped back inside the office.
Karl was seated at his desk, already looking down at something in his hands like none of it had just happened. Calm. Cool. Collected.
I blinked at the scene.
I walked over to my small desk partition, slowly pulling out the nearest file, even though I didn’t register a single word on the page.
My eyes flicked up.
He didn’t look at me. Not even once.
I sat down, forced my hands to stay still, and tried to look busy. But I could feel my heart thudding behind my ribs, my head spinning with questions…
And across the room, Karl Lever sat exactly the same way he had before, like nothing at all had just happened.
I stared at the same damn paragraph for the fifth time. My hand stayed frozen around the pen, but my mind was too loud, spinning. Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore.
I slammed the pen down on the file.
“I’m sorry,” I said, standing up. My voice cracked just a little. “I can’t pretend not to notice what just happened.”
He didn’t look up.
“That woman,” I said, louder now. “She said you bought this company. I thought you said it was going under. That it was a smart business
move.”
s eyes finally met mine.
Cold
Flat
“You made her father’s company go under just so you could buy it and meet her again?” The words felt stupid coming out of my mouth. So far–fetched, I didn’t want to believe them even as I said them.
His gaze didn’t soften, He leaned back in his chair like this was just another meeting he couldn’t wait to end.
Chapter 31
That was it. Just that one word. No explanation. No remorse,
My heart dropped. “So?” 1 repeated, almost in disbelief. “You don’t see a problem with any of this
1 could feel myself spiraling now. “You married me just to show off to your mom, and now this–wait,” I stopped. My mouth parted, the pieces slowly clicking together in my head. That woman… she’s Gypsy, isn’t she?”
He said nothing.
Tve heard people mention her before, I didn’t think much of it but she’s your ex?”
He stood up.
1 froze.
Before I could react, he crossed the space between us and grabbed my arm, not rough, but fast. He spun me and pinned me to the w with one hand, his body crowding mine.
My breath caught.
His palm landed beside my head, his face inches from mine. My back hit the wall hard enough to make me gasp.
“I don’t remember giving you the creative freedom to question me like this,” he said, voice low, Controlled. His breath hit my cheek
My throat tightened. My chest rose and fell too fast.
“And yeah,” he added, “so what? I wanted to see Gypsy again.
He didn’t even blink as he said it.
That’s when it hit me
The whole damn thing,
I stared at him, wide–eyed
“You didn’t marry me to piss off your mom,” I whispered.
He didn’t deny it.
“You married me… to make Gypsy jealous,” I said, the words tumbling out, each one harder to say than the last. “You thought, you hoped. she would show up and when she didn’t, you bought this company, made her father go bankrupt just to force it
He still didn’t say a word
He just stood there, towering over me, expression locked.
And I realized… I didn’t know this man at all.
E
