THIRD PERSON POV
Helen pushed open the doors to Damien’s office without bothering to knock.
The sound echoed through the large room, imdiately drawing the attention of several assistants outside. Everyone in the company knew Helen’s temper. Whenever she appeared with that expression on her face, there was always trouble.
Damien barely looked up from the docunts on his desk.
"Damien!" Helen’s angry voice filled the office.
Damien finally looked at her. His expression remained calm.
"Mum."
Helen marched toward his desk.
Her face was still red from anger, and the humiliation she had suffered earlier at the hospital had only made her fury worse.
"Don’t ’Mum’ ," she snapped.
Damien leaned back slightly in his chair. His wolf stirred inside him imdiately.
The last thing he wanted today was another argunt.
Helen slamd her handbag onto his desk "When are you divorcing Sophia?"
The room instantly beca silent.
Even the assistants outside the office exchanged nervous looks.
Damien looked down at the docunts again "I’ll handle my marriage myself."
Helen stared at him in disbelief.
"Handle it yourself?" she snapped. "That woman has already destroyed enough of this family."
Damien’s jaw tightened.
The image of Sophia lying pale and unconscious in that hospital bed flashed through his mind unexpectedly.
His wolf growled restlessly inside him.
Helen continued speaking without noticing his expression
"She lost the child." He said.
"Enough." His voice ca out colder than expected.
Helen froze briefly. Damien rarely interrupted her.
For several seconds, neither of them spoke. Then Helen narrowed her eyes.
"You still care about her." she said.
Damien’s expression remained unreadable. Even he didn’t know how to answer that question anymore.
He thought he didn’t love her anymore. Yet every ti he thought about her injuries, sothing painful twisted inside his chest.
The contradiction was driving him insane.
Helen pointed toward him angrily "That woman has brought nothing but disaster."
Damien closed the file in front of him. His patience was getting thin.
"I said I’ll handle it." he said.
Helen clenched her teeth.
"Fine," she hissed. "Then don’t bla when the family handles it for you."
Without waiting for another response, she turned and stord out of the office. The door slamd loudly behind her.
Damien remained seated. The office beca quiet again.
For a long mont, he stared blankly at the desk. Then slowly, he rubbed his forehead.
His wolf remained restless.
Sothing felt wrong. Sothing had felt wrong ever since the night he chose Ashley over visiting Sophia.
The feeling refused to disappear.
Unfortunately, he still had no idea why.
-
Several hours later, Damien stood inside one of the city’s most exclusive luxury boutiques.
Rows of designer dresses, handbags, jewelry, and shoes filled every corner.
Tiffany stood in front of a mirror while several employees fussed over her appearance.
She had a huge smile on her face. She looked genuinely happy.
"This one looks beautiful on you, Miss Tiffany," one employee said.
Tiffany smiled shyly. She turned toward Damien.
"What do you think?" she asked him.
Damien glanced at the dress "It looks fine."
His answer was short. Tiffany’s smile fell a bit..
Normally she would have felt disappointed. Today, however, she was too distracted by the mountain of shopping bags already piling up nearby.
Every item Damien had purchased cost more than most people earned in years. Her excitent continued growing.
anwhile, Damien barely paid attention. His thoughts remained elsewhere.
He kept thinking about Sophia. The image of her bruised face kept appearing in his mind.
Sothing about the hospital still bothered him. Sothing about Declan’s behavior that night refused to make sense.
Tiffany turned to him "Damien?"
He blinked "What?"
Tiffany forced another smile "You’ve been distracted all day."
Damien looked away "I’m fine."
Tiffany’s eyes narrowed. She knew Damien well enough to realize when he was lying. Still, she didn’t push further.
Instead, she slipped her arm through his.
"Let’s look upstairs." She said.
Damien nodded absentmindedly.
Anything was better than returning to his office and dealing with Helen again.
-
Elsewhere in the sa luxury mall, Helen stepped out of an elevator. Her mood remained terrible.
Every ti she thought about Sophia, her anger returned. Every ti she thought about the hospital, her humiliation grew worse.
Then she suddenly froze. Soone familiar stood across the hallway.
A beautiful middle-aged woman dressed elegantly in a red suit was examining jewelry inside a nearby luxury store.
It was Leah - Zade’s mother.
Helen’s expression darkened.
The two won had never gotten along.
Not only was the Hart family more powerful than the Stone family, but Leah herself was known for her fearless personality.
Unfortunately for Helen, Leah noticed her imdiately. A slow smile appeared on Leah’s face.
It wasn’t a friendly one.
"Well," Leah said casually. "If it isn’t Helen."
Helen forced a stiff smile "Leah."
The atmosphere instantly beca tense. Several nearby shoppers quietly moved away. Everyone could sense trouble approaching.
Leah folded her arms "I heard you visited Sophia recently."
Helen’s expression changed "So what if I did?"
Leah laughed softly “You hit a woman lying in a hospital bed?"
Helen stiffened. "That’s none of your business."
Leah took a step forward "It becos my business when my son cares about her."
Helen’s eyes widened slightly. Then she scoffed.
"That woman?"
The contempt in her voice was obvious.
Leah’s smile disappeared instantly "Be careful."
The warning ca quietly. That made it even more frightening.
Helen refused to back down "She’s still Damien’s wife."
Leah shrugged "For now."
Helen clenched her jaw.
Several store employees had already started pretending to work elsewhere while secretly listening.
Leah looked Helen up and down calmly, then she smiled again.
"You know what the difference is between your family and mine?"
Helen said nothing.
Leah answered anyway "My son is willing to protect the woman he loves."
The words hit Helen hard. Her eyes turned dark.
Leah continued "anwhile, your son lets everyone else hurt his wife."
The hallway beca silent.
Helen looked furious but she couldn’t argue. Because deep down, she knew her words were true.
Leah stepped closer again "If anything else happens to Sophia, don’t bla for getting involved."
Helen felt genuine pressure for the first ti.
The Hart family was powerful, far more powerful than most people realized. Even the Stone family couldn’t afford a direct conflict.
Seeing Helen speechless, Leah smiled. Then she turned and walked away, leaving Helen standing there alone.
Helen was humiliated, angry.....and completely unable to fight back.
-
At the sa ti, several floors above them, Zade sat inside his office.
A ssage notification appeared on his phone. It was from his mother.
Leah: "I just t Helen."
He imdiately replied.
Zade: "And?"
Several seconds later, another ssage arrived.
Leah: "She still thinks she can bully Sophia."
His wolf growled.
The mory of Sophia’s bruises flashed through his mind again. His hands tightened.
Leah quickly sent another ssage.
Leah: "That girl has suffered enough."
For several monts, Zade stared at the words.
The image of Sophia sleeping weakly in the hospital returned again. His wolf imdiately beca protective.
Leah: "I like her."
A rare smile appeared on Zade’s face.
Leah rarely approved of anyone. For her to say those words ant sothing.
Another ssage appeared.
Leah: "Don’t lose her."
Zade leaned back in his chair.
For years, he had never seriously pursued any woman. Won pursued him. He ignored most of them.
Sophia had been different from the beginning. Every ti he saw her hurting, sothing inside him hurt too.
Leah’s next ssage ca in
Leah: "Bring her ho when she’s ready."
For a mont, Zade stared at the screen silently. Then he slowly smiled.
He intended to make Sophia his, no matter how long it took.
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