جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 160

ROMAN'S POV Aria is definitely going to appreciate all this chocolate, I thought to myself as I stared at the love basket sitting neatly on the table. I lowered myself onto the couch, running a hand over the armrest absentmindedly. The room was quiet except for the soft ticking of my wristwatch. Lauren had gone to answer the door a few minutes ago, and she said it was probably Tessa. But now it had been over five minutes. What’s taking her so long? I checked my watch again. Maybe Tessa decided to chat a little longer at the door. Still, Lauren wasn’t the type to just linger in small talk, especially not when there was food to put away. Something felt… off. Then, I heard her voice. “What are you doing here? How did you find this place?” Her tone wasn’t the usual calm, polite one I’d grown used to hearing from her. It was sharp, laced with irritation, and underneath that, something else. I straightened a little on the couch, my head turning toward the hallway. I coul

ROMAN'S POV I pinched the bridge of my nose, a small sigh escaping me. Talk about bad timing. Of all the moments for Tessa and Aria to return home, it had to be this one. The air was already heavy with anger and tension, and now it had turned into something else — shock. Ethan turned his face toward Lauren, disbelief still etched across his expression. His lips parted slightly, as though his mind couldn’t fully wrap around what he had just witnessed. “She’s your daughter?” he asked, voice trembling with confusion and something deeper hurt, perhaps. Then, after a beat, his tone hardened. “Our daughter?” Lauren didn’t flinch. Her hand came down gently to rest on Aria’s small shoulder. “Don’t be ridiculous,” she said flatly, her voice controlled but cold. “She’s not your daughter.” Ethan’s brows furrowed sharply. He took a step closer, eyes darting between Lauren and Aria as though trying to find traces of himself in the little girl’s face. “So who’s the father then?” His voice carri

LAUREN'S POV I stood there frozen, my mouth slightly open, still trying to process what I had just witnessed. My brain struggled to catch up with my eyes, like it couldn’t quite believe what it had seen. Roman — quiet, calm, composed Roman had just dislocated his own shoulder, twisted it back into place, and then flipped Ethan over like he was tossing a pillow across the room. For a second, I thought maybe I was dreaming or hallucinating, but the crash of a nearby coffee table and the sting of adrenaline in the air told me otherwise. I blinked a few times, still standing in the middle of my living room, watching the chaos slowly settle into silence. The scent of sweat hung in the air. I should’ve been angry, furious, even that they’d turned my living room into a miniature wrestling ring. But instead, I found myself… oddly amused. Shocked, yes. But amused too. How in the world was Roman that flexible and athletic at his age? The man moved like someone half his age like he was still

ETHAN'S POV “Sir, there’s a hospital just in front, would you like me to stop there so you can get your arm checked?” my driver asked from the rear-view mirror as I sat rigid in the back seat, every bump in the road setting off a fresh flare of pain. “No, my doctor is already on his way to my house, just take me there,” I managed to say, my voice tight around the words. The pain was a white-hot line through my arm, sharp enough that it made me grit my teeth. It felt like someone had twisted bone and tendon together and then just kept twisting. “But sir, would you be able to hold on?” the driver asked again, concern finally breaking through his professional tone. “Drive!” I barked, and the single syllable came out more like a groan. The car lurched forward as he obeyed, and the city blurred by the window — lights, buildings, a smear of color. I clung to the seat for balance while focusing on steadying my breath. Each inhale felt like a calculation: breathe slowly, don’t let the pai

ROMAN'S POV “Because they might sell illegal or stolen information or certain stolen items there, doesn’t mean I’ll buy them. It only becomes illegal when you buy the items that are illegal,” I said calmly, watching Lauren’s face as I leaned back in my chair. I hoped she would understand what I meant. People always jumped to conclusions about the black market auction, assuming anyone who attended was some kind of criminal. But that wasn’t how it worked. It was all about intent. I thought for a second about how to explain it more clearly to her. “Think of it this way,” I continued, resting my elbows on the desk. “Imagine there are three cars up for sale. Two are stolen, and one is genuine. If you know two of them are stolen and still go ahead and purchase one of those, then when the police come knocking, you’ll have serious problems because you were aware of what you were buying. But…” I paused, making sure she followed, “…if you buy the one that’s genuine and clean, then you’ve