جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 70

When Matthew casually said “will do” and disappeared into the corridor, the sudden silence in the penthouse felt heavy. Henri stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows for a moment, listening to the quiet hum in his ears. He glanced down at the tumbler of scotch in his right hand. He swirled it once, watched the liquor streak down the glass, and drank the rest in one swift, burning gulp. The peat hit the back of his throat, grounding him, but it couldn’t stop the change in the air. He crossed the floor to the deep leather sofa, worn soft from years of quiet, late-night pacing, and collapsed onto it. He leaned his head back against the leather, covering his eyes with his forearm to block out the low ambient glow of the city outside. He tried to concentrate on the present. He tried to think about the logistics of the coming week. But the quiet was thick, and the scotch was strong. The images tugged at him, slow and relentless, dragging him back, out of the silent penthouse and ten yea

A sudden, sharp crack of thunder echoed across the penthouse glass, vibrating through the dark room and shattering the memory into a thousand pieces. Henri blinked, abruptly returning to the quiet space. He took a deep, shuddering breath, feeling the cool air of his air-conditioned living room fill his lungs. His hand was tightly clenched into a fist against the leather sofa, his knuckles white, just as they had been years ago against William Stone’s desk.He sat up slowly, rubbing his temples where a dull ache was starting to pulse. He had kept his word. He had honored it completely, even when it required ruthless actions that made him despise his own reflection. When William finally passed away in that quiet, sunlit room, the wolves had arrived just as the old man had predicted. Elizabeth’s brother, Tom, initially ran the company smoothly, but later fell apart, becoming a gambling-addicted hedonist after losing his wife and daughter. Elizabeth had been blind to it, trusting her

If Elizabeth had any doubts about her unstable emotional state over the past twenty-four hours, besides the painful truth that she had foolishly fallen in love with Henri Gagnon, she now had clear proof that her life was spiraling out of control. Pale-faced and trembling, she walked back into the long, marble-tiled bathroom. For what felt like the twentieth time in thirty minutes, she forced herself to look at the sleek white test sitting on the sink’s edge. It was not alone; there were two others just like it. Three cruel little plastic tests lined up silently against the polished white quartz. Pink. Pink. Pink. All three showed the same, undeniable pink lines in their double windows. Of course they did. When it rained in Elizabeth Stone’s life, it did not just drizzle; it unleashed a devastating hurricane. When one foundation crumbled, the whole structure fell apart. When your world decided to crash down around you, no amount of wishing or bargaining could change the outcome.

The familiar scent of cedarwood filled the quiet space of Henri’s penthouse. He leaned back against the soft cushions of his leather couch while his mind organized the remaining pieces on the board. The strategy for the merger was nearly complete. Marie had taken the bait—hook, line, and sinker. He had her right where he wanted her, caught by her own ambition.On paper, Henri had accounted for every variable. The only one left was his brother. Sebastian had been quiet for weeks. Knowing him well, Henri understood that silence wasn't passive. When Sebastian was silent, he was plotting. He measured his words carefully and thought three steps ahead of everyone else.Henri needed to reach out. He had to make the first move because he was the older brother. Since their father’s funeral, neither had genuinely tried to bridge the gap between them. Grief should have united them, but it instead pushed them further into their corners of resentment.Sebastian needed love—the kind of unconditiona

Silence settled over the table, heavy and dense with years of unsaid words. Between them lay a lifetime of competitive shadows—the constant pressure to earn the approval of a father who treated affection like a finite, currency-based asset.​"Father failed us," Henri continued, his voice steady, holding Sebastian’s cold gaze. "He pitted us against each other from the moment we were old enough to understand what a board of directors was. He thought creating a rivalry would make us stronger. It didn't. It just divided us. But I am not him, Sebastian. I refuse to let his mistakes dictate the rest of our lives."​Sebastian took a measured sip of his drink, his eyes never leaving his brother. "You want an alliance."​"I want a united front," Henri corrected. "We come together. We secure Gagnon Enterprises, neutralize Marie, and build something that actually lasts. Put an end to the silent rivalry. Fight side by side, not against each other."​Sebastian lowered his glass, setting it back o