บททั้งหมดของ The CEO'S Little Lamb : บทที่ 51 - บทที่ 60

CHAPTER 52 Author’s POV The wine tasted expensive. Which made sense because everything inside Alberto Lopez, Martina's father's mansion was expensive. The crystal chandelier above her reflected soft golden light across marble floors polished enough to mirror movement. Jazz music drifted quietly through hidden speakers while the clouded sky stretched endlessly beyond the massive windows. Martina sat elegantly on the velvet sofa with one leg crossed over the other, a glass of red wine balanced delicately between perfectly manicured fingers. She looked like luxury itself. Beautiful and composed. Deadly underneath all of it. Across from her, Nora, her assistant scrolled through her tablet while adjusting her glasses. “The Romano board meeting ended an hour ago,” Nora said. “Adrian approved the Singapore investment deal despite objections from two shareholders.” Martina smiled slowly before taking another sip of wine. “Of course he did,” she murmured. “He always wins eventually.

CHAPTER 54Adrian’s POVThe private lounge sat hidden beneath one of the most expensive hotels in the city.No signs. No cameras. No unwanted guests.Just low jazz music, dim amber lighting, expensive alcohol, and powerful men pretending they didn’t have blood on their hands outside business hours.I sat in the corner booth with a glass of whiskey untouched in front of me while Ken watched me carefully from across the table.“You look homicidal tonight,” he observed casually.“I’m always homicidal.”“Fair point.”Ken leaned back against the leather seat, adjusting the cuffs of his dark shirt.Unlike me, Ken actually enjoyed nightlife. He liked crowds. Noise. Women. Attention.I tolerated those things when necessary.Tonight, I barely had patience for breathing.“He’s gone?” Ken finally asked.I knew who he meant.“Rafael was taken out of the city this morning.”Ken nodded once slowly.“And?”“And if he’s smart, he stays gone.”“And if he’s stupid?”I took a slow sip of whiskey.“Then w

CHAPTER 56Adrian’s POVI almost told Lara I loved her yesterday.The realization had followed me into sleep like a threat. One sentence. Three words. One irreversible disaster.You matter to me, Lara.That was what I had said instead while standing beside her under the city lights after shopping.Nice and composed.But what I almost said?That was something else entirely.Because when Lara smiled at me softly and told me I mattered to her too, the words had risen into my throat before I could stop them.I love you.Christ.Even now, the thought unsettled me.Not because it was weak. Because it was permanent.Men like me didn’t survive by loving things deeply. Love created leverage. Vulnerability. Blind spots enemies could exploit.But every day around Lara made emotional self-preservation increasingly impossible.And the worst part?I wasn’t trying very hard to stop it anymore.The next morning, I found her sitting upstairs, at the outdoor pool, with coffee in her hands and sunlight

CHAPTER 58Adrian’s POVI knew I’d made a mistake the second I left her apartment. Not because letting Lara move back home was dangerous. Not because I disagreed with her decision.But because the moment the elevator doors closed between us, something inside me immediately felt… off.Like I’d left an important part of my day standing behind that doorway smiling softly at me.The drive back to the penthouse was unbearable.Everywhere I looked, there was something reminding me of her.The faint vanilla scent still lingering inside the car from her perfume.One of her hair ties abandoned near the armrest from days ago.Even the silence felt wrong now because I’d gotten used to her voice filling it.God.This woman had quietly invaded every part of my life without permission.And the worst part?I’d let her.No.Worse than that—I wanted more.By the time I arrived back at the penthouse, one thought had already settled firmly into my mind.I was done pretending this was temporary.Done pr

CHAPTER 60Adrian’s POVI hated breakfast dates.That was the first thing I realized the next morning while standing in front of my closet at seven in the morning changing my shirt for the third time like some emotionally confused teenager.Absolutely ridiculous.I'd already sent the driver to pick Lara from her apartment and they'd be here soon.I stared at the black shirt in my hand with irritation. Why did this suddenly matter?It was breakfast. Not a negotiation. Not a business meeting. Just Lara. And somehow that made it worse. Because I actually cared what she thought.A dangerous weakness.“Sir,” Vincent said from the doorway with very obvious amusement, “are you dressing for breakfast or a magazine cover?”I looked at him coldly.“Why are you here this early?”“You have meetings in two hours.”“You’re still fired.”Vincent’s eyes moved toward the discarded shirts on the chair nearby.Then slowly back to me.“Are you nervous.”“I’ve killed people calmer than this.”“That is not