All Chapters of Just Say Yes: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

EricI knew there was a chance Stevan would refuse my proposal.What I didn’t expect was how deeply the rejection would hit me.The moment he left the booth, I poured myself a generous measure of whiskey and walked to the glass. Below, the dance floor pulsed with lights, laughter, and bodies moving without weight. Meanwhile, I still tasted the bitter residue of his refusal on my tongue.From up here, I watched him come down the stairs and head toward the bar. Back to routine. Maybe he’d serve another client. Maybe he’d smile at someone who wasn’t me.I didn’t stay to watch. The reason I’d come tonight was to make the offer. He said no. There was no point in remaining.I told Ágata to close the tab and left without leaving anything extra for Stevan. Not this time.I took the VIP exit and went straight to the car without looking back—even though every fiber of my body wanted to do exactly the opposite. Wanted to see him one more time.When I started the engine and pulled away, the thoug

StevanI headed home, but only after calming down a little. Even though I figured my mother would already be asleep, I preferred not to risk it.I opened the door slowly. No sign of her awake. I went to her bedroom in silence, just to check that everything was fine. That habit had become automatic over the years.I collapsed onto the living room sofa, and the conversation with Eric came flooding back, bringing with it that same burning indignation in my chest.“I’m more of an idiot than I thought,” I muttered, staring at the ceiling. “How could I let myself get carried away and actually believe he might be truly interested in me?”I glanced toward my mother’s room. As much as the idea made me feel sick, Eric had made it clear I could ask for anything.“Her treatment would be a good reason…”I shook my head and discarded the idea within seconds. I don’t think I could do it. Not like that.I stayed there, trapped in thoughts that wouldn’t stop circling, until my phone vibrated in my poc

StevanI don’t know how to describe the feeling that hit me when I saw her lying on the floor. It was as if the air had been ripped from my lungs. I ran to her, calling her name. Her body was cold; her breathing was weak and uneven.“Mom! Talk to me, please.”I called her over and over, but she never answered. My hands were shaking so badly I could barely hold the phone to call for help. I shouted the address with a rough, desperate voice while trying to keep her conscious.The clock seemed to be mocking me. Time refused to move, or maybe it was my panic distorting reality. Every second felt like the difference between life and death.“Please, you can’t leave me now,” I begged, tears streaming down my face. “I have news to tell you. Don’t leave me.”I held her in my arms and hugged her cold body. I wanted her to feel not just the warmth of my body, but the warmth of my love.The next minutes were a blur of sirens, paramedics rushing in, and me being pushed aside while they secured her

EricThe sound of the private jet’s tires touching down on the runway in New York usually brought me an immediate sense of returning to control. New York was my territory, the center of my empire, the place where every gear moved exactly at the pace I determined. But as the plane slowed and the roar of the engines faded into a muffled hum, I realized the familiar feeling of order never came. In its place, a bitter taste lingered in my mouth.The flight back had been a several-hour test of patience. I tried to focus on the financial reports from the European branch, reviewed the new compliance terms legal had prepared, and stared out the window for far too long. Useless. No matter which file I opened on the tablet screen, the image of that crumpled contract on the VIP booth’s side table kept returning.“My answer is still no.”Stevan’s voice—trembling, yet loaded with a firmness that challenged me—continued echoing in my mind. No one had ever told me no. Rejection, in itself, was somet

Stevan’s voice came next, trembling, choked by tears. The surprise in my own voice was impossible to hide, making Julian raise an eyebrow from the sofa.The moment he said he accepted, I held my breath without realizing it. There was a second of silence where I only heard his uneven breathing. His panic crossed the phone line and began seeping into my chest, awakening a violent concern I had never felt for anyone. He was crying in a way that sounded like he couldn’t get enough air.When I noticed his crying, I asked, my voice dropping in tone, completely forgetting Julian’s presence in the room. He didn’t answer my question, as if he found it unnecessary.He started speaking, his voice failing, interrupted by another painful sob. His desperate plea, using my first name like a cry for help, shattered the last barrier of ice I had been trying to maintain. His anguish infected me in an overwhelming way. He was cornered by life, destroyed by his mother’s illness, and he had swallowed ever