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The CEO’s Accidental Bride のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 21 - チャプター 30

45 チャプター

Chasing What You Lost

Emily didn’t go back to his office.She didn’t look for him.And this time—she didn’t wait.Instead, she buried herself in work. Reports, meetings, numbers—anything that would keep her mind from drifting back to him.Back to his voice.You’re becoming a problem.Her grip tightened on the pen in her hand.“Emily.”She looked up.Daniel stood by the door again, more cautious this time.“You’ve been staring at that page for five minutes.”She blinked, then forced a small breath. “I’m working.”“No,” he said gently. “You’re thinking.”A pause.Then, softer, “About him.”Emily didn’t answer.Because she didn’t need to.Daniel stepped inside, closing the door behind him. “You don’t have to tell me what’s going on,” he added. “But you don’t have to pretend either.”Emily leaned back in her chair, exhaustion finally catching up to her.“I’m not pretending,” she said quietly.“Then why do you look like you’re trying so hard not to feel something?”That hit.Harder than she expected.She looked

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Don’t Walk Away

Emily didn’t answer him because she couldn’t. If she did, she wasn’t sure what she would say.The silence stretched between them, heavy and fragile at the same time. Adrian didn’t move. He didn’t look away. He was waiting—for her, for something.Emily took a slow breath, trying to steady herself. “This doesn’t change anything,” she said finally.His gaze didn’t soften. “It already has.”Her chest tightened. “No. You don’t get to decide that just because you suddenly feel something.”“Suddenly?” Adrian repeated.“Yes, suddenly,” she said, her voice sharpening. “You set the rules. You made it clear what this was. And now—what? You just change your mind?”Adrian’s jaw tightened slightly. “I’m not changing anything.”“You are.”Their eyes locked again. “Then what do you call this?” she asked, gesturing between them. “Because this—this isn’t part of the deal.”“No,” he said quietly. “It isn’t.”That answer didn’t help. If anything, it made things worse.Emily took another step back. “I don

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Pull Instead of Push

Adrian didn’t follow her.That was new.Unfamiliar.And far more difficult than chasing her.He stood there long after Emily left, his gaze fixed on the door she had just walked through. Every instinct in him told him to go after her, to stop her, to pull her back the way he always did.But this time—He didn’t.Because for the first time, he understood something clearly.Pushing her only made her leave faster.And if he wasn’t careful—She might not come back at all.Across the building, Emily didn’t slow down until she reached the hallway outside the elevators.Only then did she stop.Only then did she breathe.Her chest rose and fell unevenly as she leaned against the wall, closing her eyes for a second.That was too much.Too close.Too real.She pressed her fingers lightly against her temple, trying to steady herself.“Emily?”She opened her eyes.Daniel stood a few steps away, concern clear in his expression.“You left the meeting early,” he said. “What happened?”Emily straight

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Closer Than Before

Emily didn’t leave. That was the problem. She told herself she needed space, that distance would make things clearer, but standing there only a few steps away from him, she realized something she didn’t want to admit. Distance didn’t feel easier. It felt worse.Adrian didn’t move either. He didn’t reach for her or try to stop her, but he didn’t step back. He stayed, just like he said he would.“You’re making this harder,” Emily said quietly.“I know.”“That’s not helping.”“It’s not supposed to.”She frowned slightly. “Then what is it supposed to do?”A pause. “Make you stop pretending.”Her chest tightened. “I’m not pretending.”“You are.”Silence stretched between them again. Not sharp this time, not aggressive, just heavy.Emily looked away first, her thoughts tangled. “You said you wouldn’t push.”“I’m not.”“This feels like pushing.”“It’s not,” Adrian replied calmly. “It’s me not walking away.”That answer lingered longer than it should have.Before Emily could respond, her phon

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The Choice You Didn’t Expect

The meeting didn’t end the way Emily expected.It ended better.Too smoothly.And that alone made her uneasy.The investor leaned back in his chair, fingers tapping lightly against the table as he studied them. “I like your proposal,” he said. “It’s aggressive, but it works.”Emily felt a small sense of relief. “So you’re in?”A faint smile crossed his lips. “I didn’t say that.”Her chest tightened slightly.“I said I like it,” he continued. “But investment decisions aren’t just about numbers. They’re about stability.”Silence settled.Then his gaze shifted—directly to Adrian.“Tell me something, Mr. Kingsley,” he said. “How stable is this… partnership?”The question wasn’t subtle.It wasn’t business.It was personal.Emily felt it instantly.The shift.The tension.She glanced at Adrian, but his expression didn’t change.Cold. Composed. Untouchable.“We’re aligned where it matters,” Adrian said calmly.The investor hummed softly. “That’s not what I asked.”Emily’s grip tightened slig

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One Step Closer

Emily didn’t answer right away.She couldn’t.Because staying meant something.And walking away meant something else.Neither of them was simple.Neither of them was safe.Adrian didn’t rush her.He didn’t speak.Didn’t move.He just watched her.Waiting.That made it harder.Because if he had pushed—She would’ve resisted.If he had controlled—She would’ve walked away.But this?This quiet patience?This choice?It pulled her in.“You’re doing that again,” she said softly.His gaze didn’t waver. “Doing what?”“Making it difficult.”A faint pause. “You said you wanted a choice.”“I didn’t mean like this.”“How did you mean it?”She didn’t answer.Because she didn’t know.Silence stretched between them.But this time—It wasn’t uncomfortable.It wasn’t sharp.It was something else.Emily took a slow breath.Then—A step forward.Not away.Toward him.Adrian noticed.Of course he did.But he didn’t react.Didn’t close the distance.He let her.“Don’t read too much into this,” she said

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Almost

Emily shouldn’t have stayed. She knew that the moment she stepped back into the mansion. Everything felt different. Not the place, not the silence, not even him—but her.She felt it in the way her chest tightened when she heard his footsteps behind her, in the way she didn’t walk as fast as she usually did, and in the way she didn’t try as hard to put distance between them.That was the problem.“Emily.”Her name came from behind her, low and familiar.She stopped—not because she had to, but because she wanted to.Slowly, she turned.Adrian stood a few steps away, watching her. Not cold, not distant. Just there.“You’re still here,” he said.It wasn’t a question.Emily crossed her arms lightly. “I live here.”A faint shift crossed his expression. “That’s not what I meant.”She knew that, but she didn’t answer.Silence stretched between them again, but this time it wasn’t tense or sharp. It was quiet. Too quiet.“You didn’t walk away,” he added.Her heart skipped. “I told you. I’m not

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After the Line

Neither of them moved.The space between them was no longer distance—it was tension. Heavy, real, and unavoidable.Emily could still feel it. The warmth of his lips, the way he pulled her closer, the moment she stopped thinking and just let it happen.That was the problem.She had let it happen.“This shouldn’t have happened,” she said quietly.Her voice was steady, but her chest wasn’t.Adrian didn’t respond immediately. He was still watching her, his gaze fixed, unreadable but no longer distant.“No,” he said after a moment. “It shouldn’t have.”The agreement came too easily, and that made it worse.Emily looked away first. “Then we shouldn’t do it again.”Silence followed.She felt the shift in him before she saw it.“You don’t mean that,” Adrian said.Her head snapped back toward him. “I do.”“No. You’re trying to mean it.”Her chest tightened. “That’s the same thing.”“It’s not.”Emily shook her head and took a step back. “This is exactly what I didn’t want.”“And what is that?”

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When the Game Turns Real

Emily tried to focus.She really did. But for the first time since everything began, work wasn’t enough to distract her. Numbers blurred, meetings felt longer, and conversations echoed without meaning.Because her mind kept going back—to him, to what happened, to what changed.“I need those reports finalized by tonight.”Emily blinked, snapping back to the present. Daniel was standing across from her desk, watching her closely.“You okay?” he asked.“I’m fine,” she said quickly.Too quickly.He didn’t look convinced. “You’ve said that a lot today.”She forced a small breath. “Because it’s true.”“It doesn’t sound like it.”Emily looked down at the file in front of her, pretending to read. “I’m just tired.”“That’s not it.”Her grip tightened slightly on the paper. “Daniel—”“You don’t have to tell me,” he said, softer now. “But something’s different.”That word again.Different.Emily exhaled quietly. “Things are just… complicated.”He nodded slowly. “With him.”Not a question. A stat

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Play the Part

Emily didn’t answer him right away.Because she already knew what he was asking.Not directly.But clearly.“Say it,” she said quietly.Adrian’s gaze didn’t waver. “We act like nothing’s wrong.”A pause.“Better than nothing,” he added. “We act like everything’s perfect.”Her chest tightened.“That’s a lie.”“Yes.”The answer came without hesitation.Emily let out a small breath. “And you’re okay with that?”“For now,” he said. “We don’t give her anything to use against us.”Silence.Emily looked away, her thoughts racing.Because he was right.And that made it worse.“This doesn’t fix anything,” she said.“It’s not supposed to.”“Then what does it do?”“It buys us time.”Her fingers tightened slightly at her sides.“And what happens after that?”A pause.Adrian didn’t answer.Emily let out a quiet, humorless laugh. “Exactly.”She turned, walking a few steps away before stopping again.“This is what I was afraid of,” she said softly. “Pretending like everything’s fine when it’s not.”

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