Semua Bab Back in His Arms, Back in His Game... a Billionaire's Price: Bab 151 - Bab 160

Sebastian didn’t confront Natasha right away.That restraint cost him more than anger ever could.Later that night, he stood alone in his study at home. The lights were dim, the city stretching beyond the glass in fractured reflections, distant and indifferent. Paul’s words still echoed in his mind, flat, broken, full of truths that could never be undone. Tessa’s name pressed against him, not memory, but accusation. Every choice he hadn’t made. Every time he had believed distance meant safety.A soft knock on the door broke the silence.Alina stepped in, a cup of tea cradled in her hands. She placed it on the desk, the porcelain barely making a sound.“I thought you might need this,” she said gently.Sebastian didn’t turn. “You didn’t have to.”“I know,” she said, pausing. “But if there’s anything I can do... I’m here.”He finally looked at her, noticing the calm presence she offered, the quiet steadiness.“I can handle this,” he said slowly. “You already have enough on your plate. I

By the time Gideon ended the call with Natasha, he already knew where this was heading and how little room he had left to maneuver.She had tried to explain. Tried to justify. Tried to frame it as containment rather than concealment, damage control rather than destruction. But beneath her measured words, Gideon had heard something new. Not confidence. Not control.Fear.That unsettled him far more than anger ever could.He didn’t pace. Didn’t curse. He simply stood still, phone heavy in his hand, the silence stretching until it pressed against his chest. He understood consequences. Had built an empire navigating them. Financial exposure. Political fallout. Public scandal.But this was different. This wasn’t reputational.This was criminal.And Sebastian Vaughn did not bluff when he went quiet.Gideon didn’t hesitate. He dialed Sebastian next.Across the city, John glanced at the incoming call and looked up from his tablet. “Gideon Fairfax.”Sebastian’s expression didn’t change. He had

Emilia sat back in the black leather seat of the car, her posture immaculate despite the tension coiled beneath it. Outside, the city slid past in muted blurs of light and shadow, softened by tinted glass meant to keep the world at a distance. The driver maintained his practiced silence, eyes forward, hands steady on the wheel. Her security detail remained unobtrusive, positioned where they always were, present without intrusion.She barely noticed them.Her mind was still in Sebastian’s office, replaying every word, every measured refusal, every look that told her she had failed.She had tried everything, appealing to restraint, to history, to loyalty, to family. She had spoken as a mother, as a matriarch, as someone who understood how quickly reputations and lives could fracture when truth was dragged into daylight. None of it mattered.Sebastian would not stop.And now, as the city carried her farther from him, the truth pressed in with merciless clarity: Gideon’s hold over her was

By the time Sebastian realized what his mother had tried to bury, the damage was already irreversible. The law was the only force left that could still speak clearly.He sat motionless, the office dark except for the faint glow of multiple screens.The live feed from Milton’s operative cut through the quiet. Gideon’s voice, calm and precise, carried across the restaurant. Emilia’s measured replies followed, careful but taut with tension.Certain phrases made Sebastian pause: “If Natasha is seriously implicated, we both fall... my leverage doesn’t vanish, it becomes public...”A storm of conflicting emotions flickered inside him. This was his mother, the woman who had raised him, who had always been a pillar. Yet the evidence before him now confirmed suspicions he had spent years trying to ignore.He did not flinch. He did not hesitate. Every word, every pause, every tone was data. Observation was power. Leverage. Patterns. Everything could be used.Sebastian glanced at John. “File the

The case had barely landed, and already the shadows moved. Minutes later, Sebastian was informed: Gideon Fairfax wanted a meeting, and the threat behind that request was unmistakable.John stood beside his desk, cautious but alert. “Sir, Mr. Vaughn received a call from Gideon. He wants a meeting. The three of you.”Sebastian didn’t look up. Calm. Detached. “And?”“He hinted at press exposure,” John said carefully. “Nothing direct, just enough to signal leverage. Your father wants your guidance before responding.”Sebastian closed the file slowly, deliberate, as if weighing something far larger than the conversation in front of him. “We meet,” he said finally. “On our terms.”John nodded. “I’ll arrange it, Sir.”Sebastian’s eyes lingered on the empty office, expression unreadable. “If Gideon had anything clean enough to release, he wouldn’t be asking for a conversation.”The room felt colder, quieter. Outside, the city continued its motion, oblivious to the storm gathering inside one b