After Divorce, I Married His Half-Brother のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 31 - チャプター 40

When she finally released my hand, I dragged in a deep breath, leaning back towards Ryker. She was....strange. Ella seemed like a sweet woman. But with that type of intensity radiating from her, I could melt before the end of the day. "Anything else?" Ryker asked her. His tone was soft and tender. Warmer than how he usually spoke to anyone else. “No. I just wanted to meet her,” Ella said, her eyes flicking back to me. “She’s lovely. And beautiful.” My throat bobbed up and down when her eyes drifted back to me again. Ryker’s hand rubbed slow circles on my back as if he could sense my tension. “I’ll go look for something to keep me busy,” Ella said, and then turned, Missy still curled contentedly in her arms. “Excuse me,” She left with Missy nestled in her arms, disappearing into the kitchen. Only when she was gone did I finally exhale, unaware I’d been holding my breath. I tried to force calm into my chest, but Ryker chuckled beside me. And I shot him a glare.

I didn’t know which part of me decided to make a decision. Maybe my brain? Instinct? or maybe the part of me that enjoys chaos more than I admit. Either way, I replied to Derek. {Lunch at Celestine in two hours.} The text sat there, and my fingers hovered over the send button. I hesitated, unsure if I was making another bad decision or creating another mess. Ryker’s words echoed in my head like a mantra. ‘Running away from your fears isn’t a solution. It’s what cowards do.’ I swallowed, my jaw tight. I didn’t want to be a coward. Not anymore. I kept chanting that to myself as I sucked in a deep breath, hitting the send button. I didn’t have to wait for a response because Derek’s message popped right in as if he had been staring at his phone, waiting for my text. {Great. See you soon} The level of attention from him was alarming. But it made sense. Derek was always business-oriented. Aside from being a manager at a Holland branch, he also had his own modeling a

"What do you think?" Derek asked. "I think it's completely wrong to get a job on my behalf without telling me. Especially when I haven't even stepped back into the industry yet." That was the only part of his long explanation that actually grabbed my attention. The desperation. The need for control. It wasn't just about wanting me back as his model. After the scandal, I didn't just gain fame, I got offers. And from what he had said, I also got endorsements from companies. And greedy Derek? He said yes to them all without even asking me. This little meeting? It was just him trying to seal the final step, which was getting me to work deals he already signed. "It's not like that—" "It's exactly like that," I cut him off, my voice sharp. "And for the record, I'm not doing any of those endorsements. Hand them over to your sweetheart." "Are you insane, Vanessa?"Derek snapped. "Do you have any idea what's at stake? We're talking millions! You can't just throw that away because

"You won't like where I'm going. " Ryker warned again. I shrugged, a strange rush of energy radiating from every pole of my skin. "Okay? Is that supposed to scare me?" He paused, probably expecting me to back down, but when he saw the look of determination on my face, he nodded and side-stepped me, heading towards the Range Rover. "Nice choice of car you picked to go see that dickhead." He muttered. I winced at that name-calling, but didn’t say anything. Just followed behind him to the car. Ryker sat in the driver's seat while I dropped into the passenger's side. “Seatbelt.” He said, clicking his in place. I buckled up fast, heart already thumping, bracing for whatever ride this was going to be. “Hold on, I’m just gonna—” A screeching sound cut him off as the car launched forward, throwing me back in my seat. He shot out of the parking lot and onto the road like the car had grown wings. He stepped on the gas, the car bolting off with a maddening speed that sent me

I woke up at exactly 11 PM in the station's clinic, reviving from whatever had happened to me. We spent the next few hours in police custody, being told that the underground was dangerous, that we shouldn't have gone there, and many other things I couldn’t quite catch. Ryker sat beside me, but his gaze wasn’t on the officer talking to us. He was staring at me, his look hard and cold. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. But one thing was sure—I had dragged him into this mess by suddenly passing out on him. He was probably so mad he wished he could snap my neck. "You're free to go home," The man said. Ryker stood up first, kicking the chair aside before walking out of the office. I clutched my phone tightly, silently following him. Together, we stepped outside and began walking down the fairly lit street. Unfortunately, our car was left in the underground. Ryker's phone was dead, so he couldn’t call anyone to pick us up. Mine was still alive, but I didn’t have the contact