Dumped My Cheating Ex. Now I'm Sleeping Next to a Billionaire CEO novel Chapter 1084

Krystina stopped, uncertain and a little worried. For a second, she just stood there, not sure what to do. Danny took a steadying breath and tried to make his voice sound casual.

“You can just leave it on the path. On the big rock where you were sitting earlier. Just put it down and go. I’ll grab it myself.”

“Alright,” Krystina answered. “I’ll leave it on the rock. There’s a bottle of electrolyte water, too.”

Danny waited until her footsteps faded before he finally grabbed the tree trunk to pull himself up. His legs were so numb it felt like he was standing on clouds. With one hand holding up his pants, he kept looking around, making sure no one was watching.

When he was sure Krystina was really gone, he crouched low and rushed over to the rock. He grabbed the medicine, popped two pills from the bottle, and washed them down with the water. Then he just stayed there for a bit, catching his breath and waiting for the meds to kick in.

Once he started to feel a little better, Danny let out a long sigh. But right away, a wave of embarrassment hit him so hard he wanted to crawl under a rock. He forced himself to chill out, wiped the look off his face, and walked out like nothing happened.

Krystina was waiting at the trail entrance. As soon as she saw him, she moved toward him. “Danny…”

He didn’t even look at her. Staring straight ahead, jaw tense, he brushed right past her. He walked so fast it was like he was trying to escape the planet.

Krystina blinked, a little thrown. She hurried after him. “Hey, why are you rushing? Are you feeling any better? Does your stomach still hurt?”

The more she talked, the faster he went. Krystina’s injured leg made it hard to keep up, so she had to jog just to stay close.

“Danny! Hold up! I want to talk to you!”

She didn’t pay attention to where she was stepping, slipped on a mossy rock, and let out a sharp cry. “Ah!”

Danny turned around the second he heard her. He reached out and caught her before she could fall. Krystina was still trying to catch her breath, clutching her laptop like it was her lifeline.

“Thank God the laptop’s okay. If I dropped it, I’d be in so much trouble.”

Danny just stared at her, speechless.

Krystina must have sensed him staring. She paused, then turned her screen toward him. “Hey, can you check this for me? Besides the suggestions I wrote—like adding more first-aid stations, trimming the bushes, putting up better signs—do you have any other ideas to improve this trail?”

Danny couldn’t help it. He laughed, exasperated. It wasn’t even a real laugh, more like he had no words left.

Krystina frowned, puzzled. “What’s so funny? Are my suggestions that ridiculous? I actually think they’re pretty spot-on.”

Danny turned to her, sarcasm thick in his voice. “Ms. Carter, would you literally drop dead if you stopped working for a minute?”

Her face cooled, picking up on his irritation. As a CEO, she wasn’t used to anyone talking to her like that. “Danny, do you always speak to me this way? I appreciate your help, but let’s not mix things up. This is work. If I see a problem, I need to fix it. What if someone else gets hurt next time? Try showing a little respect.”

Danny took a breath, swallowing his frustration. He grabbed the laptop off her lap, set it on his knees, and typed out a couple of lines. Then he handed it back.

“There. Those are my suggestions.”