Ch 5

"Good morning, Clara," Damon greeted without immediately looking up, as though her presence in his home were the most natural thing in the world. When he finally raised his eyes, his sharp gaze traveled from her hair down to the elegant lounge dress she was wearing—a high-quality garment tailored to fit her current figure perfectly.

"Y-You... know my size?" Clara asked hesitantly, tugging lightly at the hem of the dress.

Damon took an unhurried sip of his coffee.

"I know everything about you, Clara." He gestured toward the dining table. "Sit down. Your breakfast is ready."

Clara approached the table and pulled out one of the heavy teak chairs.

"Damon, we need to talk. I can't keep staying here without knowing what's going on. I need to finalize my divorce, find a place of my own, and—"

"Everything has already been taken care of," Damon interrupted flatly, closing his laptop.

He slid a dark blue folder across the table toward her.

"That's the divorce petition against Julian Vance. My legal team drafted it last night. All you need to do is sign the last page."

With trembling fingers, Clara opened the folder.

Every clause had been meticulously prepared, citing adultery and emotional neglect as the grounds for divorce. It also included provisions ensuring Julian could make no claims against Clara's personal assets.

"What about Julian?" Clara asked, lifting her eyes to Damon, who watched every subtle change in her expression.

"He's stubborn... and incredibly arrogant. He'll never sign these papers without causing a scene."

Damon leaned back in his chair, a faint smile of quiet confidence appearing at the corner of his lips.

"He'll sign them, Clara."

His voice was calm.

"Today."

"He has no other choice."

---

Across the city, inside the headquarters of his mid-sized manufacturing company, Julian Vance slammed his fist onto his desk.

The deafening bang made Vivian—his secretary and secret lover—jump near the doorway.

"What do you mean all our primary investors have suspended funding?!" Julian shouted into his phone. His face burned crimson as the veins in his neck bulged. "We signed the preliminary agreements last week!"

"We're sorry, Mr. Julian," the voice on the other end replied coldly. "The consortium received direct instructions from our new majority shareholder. Your company's financial standing has been classified as high-risk. All partnerships are terminated effective immediately."

The call ended without another word.

Julian hurled his phone onto the sofa with a furious curse.

But the disaster wasn't over.

Only seconds later, his office door burst open without a knock.

The finance manager rushed inside, his face deathly pale.

"Mr. Julian! The bank has frozen all of our operating credit lines! They're demanding repayment of our short-term loans within forty-eight hours!"

"What the hell is going on?!" Julian roared. "How can every financial institution attack us at the same time?!"

"T-There's something else..."

The manager swallowed hard before handing him a thick brown envelope.

"A legal courier delivered this to reception. It's a court summons... and Mrs. Clara's divorce petition."

Julian snatched the envelope and tore it open.

His eyes widened as he read page after page detailing his legal violations, including meticulously documented photographs of his affair with Vivian at the nightclub and inside his office.

But what terrified him most wasn't the divorce petition.

It was the final attachment.

A complete set of acquisition documents bearing the name Zephyr Group—the multinational conglomerate owned by Damon.

Julian collapsed into his executive chair, breathing hard.

The man standing beside Clara yesterday hadn't been just another wealthy stranger.

Damon was the owner of the parent corporation whose investments and shareholdings had quietly supported Julian's business for years.

In less than twelve hours, Damon had dismantled every pillar supporting the company Julian had spent years building.

"That bastard..." Julian hissed, sweeping the pile of files from his desk onto the floor.

"He destroyed me... because of Clara?!"

---

Back at the penthouse, Clara was still staring at the folder when her phone suddenly vibrated across the table.

Julian.

His name flashed repeatedly across the screen.

He kept calling.

Clara hesitated.

But before her fingers could reach the phone, Damon's hand moved first.

Without a trace of hesitation, he declined the call and powered the phone off completely before slipping it into the pocket of his jacket.

"You don't need to hear the voice of a man who humiliated you, Clara," Damon said calmly.

"Damon!" Clara rose from her chair, staring at him in shock.

"What did you do to Julian? You did something to his company, didn't you?"

Damon stood as well, walking around the table until he stopped directly in front of her.

Folding his arms across his chest, he looked down at her from his imposing height.

"I merely returned everyone to the place they deserve."

His tone remained cold.

"Julian used you. He destroyed your confidence and made you believe you were worthless. A man like that doesn't deserve the power or status to hurt you anymore."

He held Clara's gaze steadily.

"I simply took away everything that allowed him to think he could look down on you."

"But this has gone too far, Damon!" Clara cried, her chest rising and falling with emotion.

"I want to leave him because our marriage is over—not because you destroyed his life with your money! This makes me feel like some kind of trophy being fought over!"

Something flashed dangerously in Damon's eyes.

In one swift movement, he closed the distance between them.

His hands wrapped around Clara's upper arms, drawing her firmly against his chest.

His grip was strong—not painful, but impossible to ignore.

"A trophy?" Damon whispered, his face only inches from hers.

His voice trembled with restrained anger and fierce possessiveness.

"Never belittle yourself like that again, Clara."

His gaze never wavered.

"Julian was nothing more than a parasite who accidentally obtained the most precious treasure in the world—and squandered it."

He lowered his forehead until it rested gently against hers.

Their breaths mingled in the narrowing space between them.

"...As for me..."

His voice softened, yet carried unwavering conviction.

"...I'm the man who spent more than a decade waiting for the chance to bring you home."

"If I have to tear down a thousand men like Julian to make sure no one ever makes you feel insignificant again..."

He looked directly into her eyes.

"...I'll do it without a single regret."