His Ruthless Redemption (Isabella and Dominic) novel Chapter 234

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Chapter 234

Chapter 234

Isabella’s POV

After Alessia left, the room felt strangely colder.

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Maybe it was my imagination. Maybe it was because she had left behind that awful feeling she always seemed to bring with her. Or maybe it was simply because grief had a way of making everything feel cold.

Either way, I couldn’t stop replaying her words in my head.

Be careful you don’t lose another.

The threat sat heavily in my chest. It wasn’t because I was afraid for myself, but because it involved Mateo.

The moment someone threatened my son, every other emotion immediately took a backseat. Grief, heartbreak, even the crushing emptiness left behind by losing my baby ceased to exist because Mateo was still here, still breathing, still mine.

And I would burn the world to the ground before I let anyone hurt him.

A soft knock interrupted my thoughts and the door opened.

For a brief moment, my entire body tensed, full expecting Alessia coming back again with another thinly veiled threat, another fake performance.

Instead, Luca stepped inside.

The second our eyes met, his expression changed.

I’d seen Luca angry. I’d seen him frustrated. I’d seen him stressed.

But I had never seen him look heartbroken. Not like this. And definitely not for me.

The sight almost made me cry all over again.

He walked slowly towards the bed.

For several seconds, neither of us spoke. Then he quietly pulled a chair closer and sat down.

“Hey.” The simple greeting somehow felt impossibly gentle.

“Hey.” My voice sounded weak.

Luca nodded once. His jaw tightened. Then relaxed. Then tightened again. It seemed as though he was fighting with himself internally.

I knew exactly what he wanted to say. I could practically see it. The words sitting right there on the tip of his tongue.

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Chapter 234

I warned you.

I told you this would happen.

I told you Dominic would only bring more chaos into your life.

I told you none of this was worth it.

For a second, I thought he might actually say it. And I honestly wouldn’t have blamed him.

His mouth opened but then immediately closed again.

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His gaze shifted briefly towards Dominic and something dark flashed across his face. Anger. Resentment. Maybe even hatred.

Then just as quickly, it disappeared.

When he looked back at me, his expression softened considerably. “I’m sorry, Isa.”

And somehow that was worse. Because there wasn’t any judgment in his voice. There was no accusation, no satisfaction, just pure, genuine sadness.

My throat tightened painfully. “Me too.”

Luca lowered his gaze briefly. Then nodded.

The room fell silent again but not awkwardly, just heavily. Like all three of us were carrying something too large to put into words.

Eventually Luca cleared his throat. “I brought updates.”

The abrupt change of topic surprised me. Then I realized he was trying to distract me, trying to give me something else to focus on. Something other than grief.

And God, I appreciated it more than he knew.

“Work updates?”

A tiny smile touched his lips. “Unfortunately.”

For the first time all day, I felt the ghost of a smile tugging at my own mouth. It didn’t quite make it. But it tried.

Luca immediately noticed. And seemed encouraged by it. “The contractors are behaving exactly as you’d expect.”

I groaned softly.

His smile widened slightly. “Three arguments before lunch.”

“Only three?”

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Chapter 234

“You’re right.” He shook his head dramatically. “We’re clearly losing our touch.”

Despite everything, a small laugh escaped me. A real one. It was brief, fragile but it happened.

The relief on Luca’s face was immediate, like he’d just accomplished something important.

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For a while, he told me about the project. The final preparations. The endless small problems. The meetings. The suppliers. The last–minute changes.

These were all things I normally would’ve found stressful but today they felt oddly comforting, familiar.

Work was predictable. Work made sense.

Unlike grief, loss and my life right then.

Eventually Luca leaned back in his chair. “We can push the opening.”

Immediately I shook my head. “No.”

Both men spoke at once.

“Isa-”

“No.”

My voice came out stronger this time, firm and determined.

Luca frowned. “There’s no reason to rush.”

“I’m not rushing.”

“You just lost-” He stopped himself.

The unfinished sentence lingered heavily between us.

I looked down at my hands. Then back up.

“I know what I lost.” My voice cracked slightly. “But postponing the opening isn’t going to-” bring my baby back, I wanted to say. But I couldn’t bring myself to say the words out loud just yet. “-to change what happened,” I settled on saying.

My words were met with silence.

Luca exchanged a glance with Dominic, a glance I didn’t particularly appreciate. It was the kind people gave someone they thought was making decisions while emotionally compromised.

“I think you need rest.”

I laughed but there was nothing funny about it. “I’ve done nothing but rest.”

“That’s not what I mean.”

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Chapter 234

“I know.”

The room fell quiet again.

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Then I looked directly at him. “If I sit still..” My voice weakened. “If I don’t have anything to do, it’s all I’ll think

about.”

Neither man interrupted me. Neither man looked away.

“If I sit around all day doing nothing, I’m going to keep replaying everything,” I continued, my throat tightening. “The ultrasound. The doctor’s face. The things we’ll never get to do.”

A tear slipped down my cheek but I ignored it stubbornly.

“I’m not trying to avoid my feelings.” I looked between both men. “I’m drowning in them.”

The honesty surprised even me.

For a moment, nobody spoke.

Then Dominic finally broke the silence. His voice was gentle, careful. “That’s exactly what worries me.”

I looked at him.

He looked exhausted, heartbroken, helpless. “You don’t have to carry this alone.”

My chest ached. Because despite everything, I knew he meant it. He genuinely meant it.

“I know.” The words came out softer than I’d intended. “But I need something else too.”

“What?”

I stared out the window briefly. Then answered honestly. “I need reminders that my life didn’t end.”

The room went silent.

Because we all understood what I meant.

I wasn’t saying the grief wasn’t real. Or important. Or devastating.

I was saying it couldn’t become the only thing I was. The only thing I thought about. The only thing I lived

for.

Because if it did, it would consume me completely.

Luca let out a slow breath. Then finally nodded. “Okay.”

Dominic looked less convinced.

“Isa-”

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Chapter 234

I raised an eyebrow. “Don’t.”

To my surprise, he actually stopped.

Luca looked mildly impressed.

I almost laughed, almost.

Then Luca stood, straightening his jacket. “If working is what helps, then we’ll work.”

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Relief immediately flooded through me. Because out of everyone in the room, Luca understood work the best. Understood what it meant to me, what it represented–normalcy, structure, control. A future.

He pointed towards me. “But.”

I immediately narrowed my eyes.

Luca ignored it. “You follow the doctor’s orders.”

I sighed dramatically. “You’re impossible.”

“Good.” His smile returned briefly. “I’m aiming for consistency.”

That tiny smile nearly made me cry. It felt almost normal. And right now, normal felt precious.

Before leaving, Luca stepped closer to the bed and his voice softened. “You don’t have to be strong every second.”

The words settled somewhere deep inside me as I gave a slow nod.

Then he added quietly, “Take care of yourself, Isa.”

I nodded again. “I’ll try.”

His gaze lingered on me for a moment longer. And then he left.

The room became quiet again.

But this time the silence felt different, not quite as crushing, not quite as lonely.

And I found myself thinking about something other than the crushing loss I’d suffered. It was not for long, just a few minutes. But even that felt like progress, tiny, fragile, painfully small, yet progress nonetheless.

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