Chapter 4

Christopher POV 

“I’m the one taking this beautiful damsel away from you,” I said, my arm still stretched out protectively in front of her.

He let out a mocking laugh, his eyes shifting between me and her. “And here I thought I was the only one cheating, not knowing you were also spreading your legs,” he said in a very demeaning tone.

Instantly, I felt an urge to protect her and quickly threw a punch.

“That is no way to talk to a lady,” I said, watching him closely to see if he would fight back.

Luckily, he didn’t retaliate. He just looked at me, then at her, as if contemplating what to do.

“I am in no mood for your drama,” he said as he walked away.

“Let me help you,” I said, my focus now on her.

But she shoved my hands away.

“What the hell? Did you just do that?”

“I just saved you.”

“Saved me?” she scoffed.

“From what or who exactly?” she asked as she stood up.

“Next time, mind your business,” she said as she tried to go after him, but I caught her wrist. She struggled, twisting, hitting me, trying to break free, but I held on. Then, all at once, her strength gave way, and she fell to the ground, crying.

I stood there, useless, watching her crumble. My heart felt the pain, wishing she would stop crying.

I cleared my throat, staring at her, hoping this would make her stop crying.

“I’m not a man who likes to beat around the bush,” I said quietly. “So I’ll just say it: marry me.”

Her sobs stopped almost immediately. Slowly, she lifted her head, her tear-streaked face staring at me in disbelief.

“This time,” I said, forcing myself to meet her gaze, “it isn’t a slip of the tongue. I mean it.”

She laughed bitterly as she stood up, brushing her tears away. “My life must be a comedy. My husband cheats on me, and now some stranger thinks I’m a lunatic in need of love.”

I smirked faintly. “You’re not a lunatic. You’re a woman who deserves better.”

“Better?” she scoffed. “From you?”

“I don’t promise perfection,” I said, stepping closer to her, just to see her gorgeous face clearly. “But I can promise to treat you like a queen, something your husband or whatever clearly forgot how to.”

She froze, just for a second, staring at me in confusion.

“It’s crazy, I know,” I continued. “Hell, it doesn’t even make sense to me. I don’t believe in love at first sight, but you… you’ve got my heart doing things it hasn’t done for a long time. And I don’t want to lose that feeling, not again. Even if it means marrying…”

Before I could finish, a hard slap landed across my cheek—the kind of slap that can make you see stars.

She looked at me, giving me that look that said, don’t ever spill such nonsense again.

Then she turned and walked out without saying a word.

I stood there, rubbing my cheek in pain and, at the same time, feeling stupid.

I wasn’t a man of love—not after what happened with Joanne. I saw love as a nightmare, but seeing her changed everything about my belief.

I didn’t know her name, and I was willing to marry her.

Maybe it was because of the stupid deal I had made with my father.

“Shit,” I cursed. Then my phone buzzed; it was my secretary.

I stared at it, then picked it up.

“Sir, we have a problem. A serious one,” my secretary said.

“What?”

“One of our biggest investors just pulled out of the deal,” he said quickly. “Apparently, the delay in the Phoenix Tech project has made them lose confidence, and the delay is because of a lack of communication from Celine.”

I exhaled deeply; work sure didn’t care about my emotions.

“I am at the office. I’ll just deal with it,” I said as I cut the call.

I sighed. Maybe this could be a way of getting her off my mind.

And this Celine girl was clearly asking to be fired. Truth be told, the only reason I hadn’t fired her yet was because of my father. The old man believed in her more than he believed in me. He trusted her judgment, her ideas, her vision.

“That girl,” he once said, “is going to take this company further than you or I ever could.”

I walked straight to the reception desk. The receptionist, of course, didn’t know me. I quickly pulled out my business card, not wanting any delay. She stared at it and jumped up immediately.

“M-Mr. Hale,” she stammered, “I didn’t know you would be visiting today...”

“Is Celine in the building?” I asked impatiently.

“Yes, sir. She arrived not too long ago.”

“Good. Inform her that the boss wants to see her in the boardroom. Ten minutes.”

She looked at me, surprised—maybe because no one had ever seen me before in this branch. I never bothered myself with Sterling Holding; I usually left that to Lewis. But today was different. Today, someone had caused my company’s stocks to drop and nearly destroyed a deal worth billions of dollars.

I headed to the boardroom and sat down, thinking about what to say to her. At the same time, I couldn’t get that girl off my mind.

The seconds ticked by. I tapped my fingers against the table. Then I heard a knock at the door.

“Come in,” I shouted.

The door opened.

And the person I saw shocked me—it was the lady from earlier.

“You seriously are unbelievable. You do realize I can actually sue you for stalking me,” she said, barely allowing me to say a word.

“The next time I see you, I will charge you for being a stalker,” she added while walking out.

“Celine,” I said authoritatively, making sure my deep baritone voice was loud.

“I am Mr. Christopher, your boss.”