My Reborn Admirer Wins Over My Heart (Oriana) novel Chapter 178

**Chapter 178: Fury**

This time, Grant’s reaction was unexpected. Instead of the anger or disappointment that usually accompanied Oriana’s barbs, a low, almost amused chuckle bubbled up from him, laced with a peculiar sense of enjoyment.

It was as though Oriana’s insults were not merely humiliations to him but rather challenges he was more than willing to accept. There was a strange thrill in the air, a dance of emotions between them that was both exhilarating and torturous.

With a gentle yet deliberate motion, he took one of her hands and pressed it softly to his lips. The long-missed scent of her skin enveloped him, igniting a fire in his heart that he had thought was extinguished.

Oriana, however, was in turmoil. She struggled against his hold, her heart pounding in her chest.

“Oriana, you’re jealous, aren’t you? Seeing me take the drinks for Luna?” he teased, his voice smooth and taunting.

She glared at him, her frustration boiling.

“You know, after you scolded me so harshly that day, I fell apart,” he continued, his gaze unwavering. “I locked myself in my room, spiraled into madness, and all I could think about was you. The companies, the projects—none of it mattered anymore.”

His words hung in the air, heavy with longing.

“I let myself hit rock bottom, but deep down, I knew that if I truly gave up, I would lose you forever! And this time, I’ve managed to pull myself together again, largely thanks to Luna.”

He paused, his expression softening. “She doesn’t ask for anything in return. She got the Dixon family onboard for our project, and I’m grateful. Treating her well is just my way of repaying her kindness.”

Oriana listened, her heart conflicted.

“And lately,” he continued, his voice dropping to a whisper, “she’s been telling me that her stomach burns badly at night. She wants me to massage it to help her feel better. Oriana, your medical skills are incredible. But she’s getting worse, isn’t she? Time isn’t on her side. I just want to give her some comfort—it’s nothing more than that.”

Oriana turned her face away, pushing his hands outward with all her strength. Yet, through the mirrored wall of the elevator, she could see him murmuring, his lips moving with a fervor that made her heart race in ways she despised.

He slowly moved the kiss from her hand up to her cheek, his breath warm against her skin.

To Oriana, it felt like a disgusting, crawling caterpillar making its way across her body, sending shivers of revulsion down her spine.

“Grant, get off me—” she hissed, desperation creeping into her voice.

“Oriana, all the gifts you sold? I’ve retrieved every single one. They’re back where they belong—in our Seabar house.”

His eyes sparkled with a hint of mischief.

“You don’t like that place? We can move. I’ll soon have a foothold in Jindiwood and can buy a house here too. Just like we dreamed about before—a little yard, maybe a cat or a dog.”

His words were painted with nostalgia, a vision of a life they once imagined together.

Finally, Grant reached the lips he had long coveted, the ones that haunted his dreams.

His eyes burned with an intensity that was both dark and passionate. “Oriana, I was foolish before, thinking that mere respect and patience would be enough. I was wrong. To truly have a woman, you don’t just need her heart—you need her entirely.”

Oriana’s entire body tensed, her resolve hardening. “Grant, what do you think you’re doing?! I’m married!”

“So what if you’re married?” he countered, his voice low and insistent. “As long as you want me, I don’t care if I’m beneath Micah. Oriana, give me a chance. In every way, I’ll be better than Micah.”

The deafening crash reverberated through the air. He watched in horror as his nearly-new Maybach was slammed, flipping violently, its frame contorted and smoke rising in thick, dark curls.

The other car—a Maybach as well—sustained only minor front-end damage, a stark contrast to the devastation of Grant’s vehicle.

In shock, Grant’s pupils constricted. When he finally regained his composure, fury erupted from him, and he yelled at the man stepping out of the other car. “Micah! Are you insane?!”

Backlit by the car’s headlights, Micah’s lean, tall figure approached with an icy, ruthless aura that sent chills down Grant’s spine.

The closer Micah got, the more Grant felt an invisible force pressing down on him, a suffocating weight that threatened to crush him.

When their eyes finally locked, the barrier of distance shattered, and Grant felt his control falter under the sheer pressure of Micah’s presence.

Suddenly, Grant gasped, his breath hitching. “Your eyes—”

Before he could react further, Micah reached out, pulling Oriana toward him with a commanding force.

Despite the fierce energy radiating from him, his movements were surprisingly gentle as he held her close, an unsettling contrast to the tension in the air.

Grant snapped back to reality, rushing forward to intervene.

Micah glanced at where Grant’s hand gripped his wrist, a smirk playing on his lips. “Dirty.”

“Dirty? Micah, you think you’re any cleaner?” Grant shot back, anger fueling his voice as he prepared for the inevitable confrontation.