All Chapters of Her Exodus, His Regret. : Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

72. You never once looked..."The foundation looks stronger now," Mr. Fisher said, leaning back slightly in his chair with that particular satisfaction of a man who had bet on the right thing. "Less likely to collapse under pressure."Lucien glanced at the projection on the screen. Then, almost without thinking: "Things usually hold better when the right person is finally handling them."The room received it as a professional observation.Heads nodded. Someone from the design team made a note.Dahlia's fingers paused over the documents in front of her.Just for a second. Just long enough.She didn't look up. Didn't react visibly. She turned the page and kept going, her voice smooth when she spoke next, redirecting the conversation back to the coastal landscaping timeline with the kind of calm that took years to build.Lucien realized, about four seconds too late, exactly how that had sounded.He looked at his own notes and said nothing.The meeting ran another forty minutes.Mr. Fishe

74. The Only Thing Left To Give"Sir, this could have been our chance," Sam said, the moment they stepped inside."We could have labeled Mr Voss unstable. Had you take over the company. Everything else follows from there."Liam stopped walking.His hands found his pockets.Right.It could have been exactly that. An opportunity handed to him without effort, without planning, without any of the careful years he had spent positioning himself for exactly this kind of moment.And he had walked away from it.His jaw pressed together."You may leave, Sam," he said. Quiet. Final.Sam opened his mouth. Thought better of it. Bowed and left.The room settled into silence.Liam walked to the mini bar. Poured a glass of whiskey. Took a sip. Then another.His mind went back to the Voss manor. To the corridor. To the shape of his brother folded against the doorframe, knees drawn up, shoulders shaking.Lucien.Calling her name in the dark like it was the only word he had left.Liam took another mouth

76. Soft Clothes, Sharp Feelings"You scared half the house," Adrian said, dropping into the chair beside the bed like he owned it. "Genuinely. Camille was outside crying into her apron.""I'm fine," Lucien said."You look terrible," Damien said from the doorway, arms crossed."Thank you.""That wasn't a compliment."Lucien looked between them. "Did you come here to assess my appearance or was there something else?"Adrian leaned forward, elbows on his knees. "We came because Jace called and said you'd collapsed and we're your friends, so." He gestured vaguely. "Here we are.""I'm fine," Lucien said again."You keep saying that," Damien said, finally moving into the room. He sat on the edge of the sofa, unhurried, the way he did everything. "Nobody believes you."A short silence."The doctor cleared me," Lucien said."The doctor also said if you do it again it won't be as mild." Adrian tilted his head. "His words, not mine."Lucien said nothing to that.Damien was watching him. Not ob

78. Like They Were Still MarriedLucien woke slowly.For one second, before his mind fully caught up, he turned toward the bed beside him.Empty.He stayed like that for a moment, looking at the space where she had been. The pillow. The blanket folded back on her side. She had been careful when she left. Quiet enough not to wake him.He sat up.Looked at the room.He had once had her completely, every morning, every quiet hour, and he had treated it like furniture. Like something that would always be there. And now every moment she stayed felt conditional, like she was allowing it rather than choosing it, and the difference between those two things was something he was only beginning to understand.He got up.Fixed his feet into his slippers and walked to the door. Pulled it open and stepped into the hallway. It was quiet as always. No staff in sight. Nothing. Something clenched somewhere in his chest. He took in a slow breath and moved forward. He heard her before he saw her.He wa

80. He Said Okay...."How dare you?!" the shrill aged voice of Mr. Vale rang through the hallway the moment he saw Sasha walk through the entrance.His hand shot out, hurling a glass tumbler toward his daughter.Sasha dodged it.But one of the shards somehow still found its way to her wrist, giving it a small red cut.Fiona gasped. "Miss—"Sasha raised a hand without looking at her. Silencing her. She walked deeper into the living room where her parents sat and took the chair opposite them.Her father seemed to have aged overnight. Her mother had that particular look on her face, the one that had always made Sasha feel like an inconvenience wearing a dress.Sasha's throat clogged for a second.Whatever wrong had she done. What exactly. Was it just merely her existence?She lowered her gaze to the small cut on her wrist. Did nothing about it."What's the plan now Sasha?" her mother's voice came. "After you take over the company, what next?"Sasha raised her head and met her mother's ey