Semua Bab ON YOUR KNEES, EX-HUSBAND : Bab 81 - Bab 90

Carla~The moment the limousine door opened, the noise hit me like a wave.And it wasn’t just loud out here, it was alive.Voices overlapped in excitement, camera flashes exploded in rapid succession, and a sea of people stretched far beyond the barricades, all pressing forward like I was something they couldn’t quite believe was real.For a second, I didn’t move. I just sat there, staring in awe. I've pulled crowd before, but never anything on this scale. And it was honestly mind blowing.“Ma’am,” one of the security men prompted gently, holding the door open.I blinked, flashing him an apologetic smile before finally stepping out. And if I thought the crowd was noisy before, they got even louder.“Carla!” “Over here!” “We love you!” “Look this way!”My breath caught.“Wow…” I whispered under my breath, my eyes sweeping across the massive turnout as the bodyguards struggled to keep people from pushing past the barriers. “I didn’t expect so many people.”Beside me, Damian stepped out

Carla~The numbers were hard to believe.I stared at the tablet in my hands, blinking once… twice… hoping the figures would rearrange themselves into something less absurd.They didn’t.“I…” My voice came out thinner than I intended. “I don’t know if I can accept this.”The words felt heavy on my tongue as I looked up at Damian.He was standing just beyond the open balcony doors, sunlight spilling around him like he belonged to it. One hand rested casually against the railing as he watched me, calm as ever. It was honestly infuriating to see him so unfazed by this.A donation from the Lockwood Group?My stomach twisted.“This is definitely bigger than anything I'd expected, Damian,” I continued, gesturing toward the tablet. “This is insane.”He stepped back into the office slowly, closing the distance between us with that same measured confidence he always carried.“You have to accept it,” he said simply.I frowned.“You’ve been at odds with the Lockwood Group for too long. Think of t

Carla~The message on my screen glowed eerily in the dark.Meet me downstairs–Xavier My stomach twisted uneasily.The mansion was silent tonight. Too silent.Lily had long gone to bed after our argument earlier, and Ryan was asleep upstairs in his room. Even the air felt tense somehow, heavy with something I couldn’t explain.I stepped into the living room, rubbing my temple tiredly—And froze.A figure stood near the large windows overlooking the estate.“What the—”My heart nearly stopped before recognition slammed into me.“Xavier?”Anger replaced my shock almost instantly.“What the hell are you doing here, Xavier?” I questioned sharply as I hurried downstairs properly.My voice stayed low despite my fury.The last thing I needed was Damian finding Xavier sneaking around his house in the middle of the night.Xavier slowly stepped out of the shadows, the hood over his head falling back slightly under the dim lights.God.He looked terrible.His eyes were tired. Hollow almost.But

Carla~For a moment, I just froze.That name echoed inside my head like a distant memory I had buried years ago.My brother was here?After all this time?I didn’t even realize Greta was still standing there watching me carefully until she cleared her throat awkwardly.“Should I… not let him in?” she asked cautiously.My lips parted but no words came out immediately.I hadn’t seen him in years, not since Father had cast me aside like I was nothing more than a disgrace to the family name.And Larry…I clenched my jaw tightly.He had stood there and watched it happen.I slowly lowered myself into my chair, my fingers drumming restlessly against the polished surface of my desk.“Let him in,” I finally muttered.Greta hesitated briefly before nodding.“Right away.”The moment she disappeared behind the doors, my chest tightened painfully.I hated this feeling.That strange mixture of anger, nostalgia, and curiosity clawing at my insides.A part of me wanted to scream at him the second he

Damian~“You know maybe Xavier was right all along.”Her voice would not leave my head.It kept replaying over and over again like a curse I couldn’t outrun.“Maybe you're really not better than he is.”I tightened my grip around the glass in my hand until my knuckles turned pale. Any more pressure and I was sure the glass would shatter from my grip.“And you're not half the man I thought you to be.”The words hit harder the second time.And the third.And every damn time after that.I leaned back heavily into my office chair, staring blankly at the untouched city skyline beyond the glass windows while the whiskey burned its way down my throat.Nothing helped. Not the damn alcohol, it barely left any after effect.Not the deafening silence, and definitely not the anger.Because underneath all of it, Carla was right.A bitter laugh escaped me at the thought.When had everything become such a disaster?The office was dark except for the dim amber light near my desk. Shadows stretched ac