Semua Bab Mr. CEO, Your Abandoned Wife Has Powerful Brothers: Bab 41 - Bab 50

I shook Lara's hand off.Stood up straight, steadying my breath, before meeting her eyes directly."I don't know what you're talking about," I said, my voice calmer than I expected. "And I don't have time for you right now."I moved to leave. But Lara stepped into my path.Her body shifted smoothly forward — just enough to stop me without appearing confrontational to anyone who happened to pass through the corridor."You never have time, always so busy." Her lips curved thinly. "Yet you always end up wherever Arvan is."I tightened my jaw.I knew letting this go unchallenged wasn't an option. A misunderstanding left to grow was more dangerous than one addressed head-on."Lara." I looked at her directly. "I'm here for a work meeting. I work for Ashford, and Arvan is a representative from the Hargrove Group. We're attending the same meeting because we're handling a joint project. Nothing more."Lara let out a short laugh — a brief sound with nothing funny in it."Of course. You always h

Lunch was lively.Mrs. Whitmore led the conversation with energy that never seemed to tire — telling stories about her mother's home, childhood memories, how she had been imagining the renovation for years. Everyone around the table responded with enthusiasm. Zain joined in at the right moments with the right questions. Ms. Brennan offered technical observations that had Mrs. Whitmore nodding with satisfaction.Everyone ate heartily.Except me.My fork had moved toward my plate three times and never once reached my mouth. The food in front of me looked exquisite — pasta in a cream sauce with truffle shavings whose aroma alone was enough to make anyone hungry. But my stomach felt like it had been filled with stones.*Aldric has been admitted to hospital.*That sentence had been circling my mind since it was spoken. Refusing to leave, no matter how many times I tried to push it into a corner where it wouldn't bother me.I knew the Aldric Arvan meant was this company's CEO — not my broth

After more than three hours of driving, I arrived at the clinic Casper had mentioned. The place was exactly as described. Small. Remote. The signboard had long since faded. Two plastic chairs sat on the front porch, one of them tilted against the wall because a leg had snapped off. I parked, got out, and ran straight inside. Casper was already there — standing at the reception desk, talking to a nurse in a pale blue uniform. From the nurse's expression, the conversation was clearly not going well. "What's going on?" I asked the moment I reached them. Casper turned. "Mr. Hargrove." He gave a respectful nod. "This nurse says there's no patient named Kirana here. I've already asked her to check, but —" "I've checked twice," the nurse cut in, her voice flat — not hostile, but not warm either. "There is no Kirana Hargrove at this facility." "Please check one more time," I said. "There's no need." She held my gaze without blinking. "We only have fourteen beds. I know every patient's

Reyna drew a breath, then shook her head slowly. For a moment I thought she was going to pull her hand away. Angry at having discovered my lie.But she didn't."But that's not what frightened me most. It wasn't the misunderstanding about the CEO that kept me thinking about you all day," she said quietly. Her voice trembled, but not the way it had that afternoon. This was a different kind of trembling.I stayed silent, waiting."This afternoon, at the restaurant, I heard someone say that Aldric Ashford had been admitted to hospital." Her fingers tightened around mine. "I knew they meant the CEO. Not you. I kept reminding myself — that's someone else, not my brother. But you share the same name. And you hadn't replied to my messages. Hadn't answered my calls."Her shoulders began to shake."I was scared," she whispered. "I was scared the one in hospital was you. I was scared you were ill and I wasn't there. I was scared of losing —"Her voice broke.And this time, her tears came again.

Reyna's POV This morning felt like a beginning that should have been good.I deliberately left for the office earlier because I was motivated. I have to work hard so I can help my family’s finances, like I promised Aldric.My body felt lighter this morning after a long sleep last night. The first truly deep sleep this week, without waking every hour with my head full of numbers and deadlines.My new team had already been assigned. Four people. Two from the materials division, one technical, and Sera Hadley as the lighting coordinator. Today we would start the first coordination for the mansion project.I walked to my desk in the corner of the room.Then I stopped.A large box lay on my desk. Not one, but three. Neatly stacked, wrapped in elegant cream paper with satin ribbons that were clearly not cheap. On top was a small envelope with my name written in neat black ink.Reyna Valeria.I stared at it for a few seconds before reaching for the envelope.I opened it slowly.A card insid