DAMIEN’S POV
The conference room remained busy throughout the entire night.
Executives argued. Investors complained. Lawyers reviewed contracts.
Everyone talked at once yet I heard almost none of it.
Every ti the conversation paused, my thoughts imdiately returned to Sophia.
Was she awake? Had she eaten? Were her injuries healing?
Was she crying when nobody was looking?
My wolf beca increasingly agitated. I wanted to be anywhere but here right now.
Several tis I nearly stood up and left. Several tis.
But every ti I reached my limit, another crisis ca up that demanded my attention.
The board room was on fire. Everyone was panicking. People were scared to lose their jobs, money and investnts. It was my job to handle everything.
Hours passed in a blur yet we hadn’t reached a resolution.
Before I realized it, it was morning. The sky outside gradually brightened.
My eyes burned from exhaustion. The coffee in front of had long gone cold.
Finally, the last docunt was signed and the final agreent was approved.
The project was secured.
Everyone sighed with relief. Most of them cheered happily.
I didn’t celebrate.
I imdiately grabbed my coat "I’m leaving."
Several executives looked surprised.
"President Stone-"
"I said I’m leaving."
Nobody dared stop .
The mont I stepped outside, I headed straight for my car.
My wolf imdiately beca alert.
“Hospital, now.”
I drove faster than usual through the morning traffic.
The city had already begun waking up.
People filled the sidewalks. Shops opened their doors. Life moved normally.
anwhile, my chest felt heavier with every passing minute.
The closer I got to the hospital, the worse the feeling beca.
Sothing was wrong. I couldn’t explain it but I felt it.
The hospital finally ca into view. I parked quickly and headed inside.
Quickly, I moved to Sophia’s room. when I got there, I stopped.
The door was open and when I moved inside, the room was empty.
For several seconds, I simply stared in shock.
The bed had been cleaned. The sheets were replaced. There was no sign Sophia had ever been there.
My stomach dropped.
A nurse walked past and I imdiately stopped her.
"Where is Sophia Stone?" I asked.
The nurse blinked a few tis "Oh."
My chest tightened "What?"
The nurse looked confused by my tone.
"She was discharged this morning."
For a mont, the world seed to go silent.
She was discharged.....gone.
My wolf froze.
"What do you an gone?" I asked.
The nurse frowned "Her friend completed the paperwork early. They left several hours ago."
Several hours?
I’d been sitting in etings while Sophia left the hospital. I’d been discussing contracts, reviewing docunts and signing papers while she walked out of here alone.
The guilt hit so hard that I couldn’t breathe for the few seconds.
I slowly stepped back and looked into Sophia’s room again.
The empty room felt like a punishnt. It reminded of every mont I had failed her.
My eyes moved toward the hospital bed. Sophia had suffered here. she had bled here and cried here. And I wasn’t there, not once.
My wolf released a low, painful growl.
I finally understood sothing. The distance between us hadn’t appeared overnight. I had created it piece by piece.
I pulled out my phone and dialed Sophia’s number.
The ringing seed endless. It rang over and over again.
Then finally, the call connected.
I felt relieved when it did.
"Sophia-" I started then I stopped speaking.
Because the voice that answered wasn’t hers.
"Well." A familiar male voice laughed softly. "What a surprise."
My entire body went rigid.
Zade.
I frowned "Why do you have Sophia’s phone?"
Zade chuckled. The sound alone made want to smash sothing.
"Wrong question."
My jaw tightened "Put Sophia on the phone."
"No."
My grip tightened around the phone "What ga are you playing?"
Zade laughed again. "No ga. Sophia is with ."
My chest tightened painfully. Every instinct inside hated those words.
My wolf began snarling violently.
I could practically imagine Zade sitting beside her looking at her, comforting her, doing everything I should have done.
The thought made feel worse.
"Let speak to her." I said.
"No."
"Zade."
"Where were you when she needed you, Damien?"
I froze.
The question hit harder than any punch.
Zade continued "Where were you when she was bleeding? Where were you when she was beaten?"
I couldn’t answer. I had been absent every single ti.
Zade laughed bitterly "You don’t deserve her."
After that, the line went dead. Just like that, he hung up.
I stared at the phone.
My wolf roared inside . We had so many emotions – rage, jealousy, guilt. Everything mixed together.
For the first ti in years, I felt completely powerless.
The hospital hallway suddenly felt suffocating.
I couldn’t stay there. Without thinking, I turned around and left.
The drive back ho felt endless.
My mind replayed Zade’s words repeatedly.
You don’t deserve her.
Every ti I heard them, my chest tightened.
Because deep down... I feared he was right.
By the ti I arrived at the Villa, the afternoon sun had already appeared.
I walked inside slowly.
The servants greeted but I barely acknowledged them.
Everything looked familiar yet now all I saw were mories.
When I looked in the kitchen, I rembered Sophia standing there preparing breakfast.
When I looked at the doorway, I thought of Sophia waiting for after work.
I rembered Sophia carrying Ashley through the living room.
I thought of her smile, her laugh and the way she loved .
My chest hurt.
I moved deeper into the house. Eventually, I reached our old bedroom.
My hand paused on the door before I pushed it open.
The room was spotless but it no longer felt alive. Sophia’s scent had faded. Her belongings were gone.
I rembered how she would always wait for , even when I returned ho late, even when I ignored her, even when I treated her coldly.
She always waited.
My wolf released a low whine. The sound surprised even .
She loved and what had I done? Taken it for granted.
I lowered my head.
For the first ti in years, the villa felt unbearably lonely.
It wasn’t just because Sophia was physically gone. But because I finally realized how much of this ho had been her.
Ashley might still live here. The servants might still work here. The furniture might still fill every room.
But without Sophia... everything felt hollow.
I stared at the empty room for a very long ti.
And for the first ti, I understood that regret was far more painful than anger.
Because anger eventually faded but...regret stayed.
And no matter how badly I wanted to change the past...
I couldn’t.
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