The CEO's Regret: Darling, Don’t Leave Me novel Chapter 259

Chapter 185: Making a Decision, Part 2:

Chapter 185: Making a Decision, Part 2.

Alexander.

I close my apartment door harder than necessary; the sound echoes in the empty, dry….

uncomfortable space.

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I stand there for a few seconds, my hand still on the doorknob, as if something inside me hasn’t quite fit in. As if a part of me has been left outside… or worse, as if something has been left behind.

I exhale slowly. I don’t know when this stopped being just work. I walk to the living room, loosening my tie. I let it fall carelessly over the back of the sofa, pouring myself a drink without thinking too

much. I don’t need it… but I want it.

I sink into the armchair in complete silence, but it’s not peace. It’s contained noise.

I rest the glass on my knee, swirling it slightly between my fingers while my mind… won’t stop, Vanessa. Her voice, the way she looks at me. That calculated way of saying things without saying them completely. I clench my jaw; she’s not naive. She knows exactly what she’s doing.

I take a sip of whiskey, letting the burn slowly slide down my throat.

“What do you want?” I murmur to myself. Because it’s not just curiosity, it’s not just coincidence. It’s intention, and I know it. I set the glass down on the table and pick up the iPad beside it. I turn it on almost instinctively, trying to distract myself… but of course. It doesn’t work… The first thing that pops up on the screen is a notification from a gossip site.

One of those sites that thrives on rumors… on pictures… on stories that seem innocent, but always reveal more than they should. I frown; I shouldn’t care. But I open it. Mistake… There they are.

Clara… and Ethan.

My pulse quickens slightly as the images load one after another. A recent business event, people, lights, cameras. And them… in the middle of it all. Together.

My eyes scan each photograph with almost obsessive precision. In one… he’s holding her hand, not casually, not as a social gesture. No. It’s firm, natural. As if it belongs there, as if it’s always been that way. I move to the next one, Ethan leaning toward her… whispering something in her ear. Too close, too comfortable… Too… intimate.

My jaw clenches, next image. She’s smiling, and it’s not just any smile. I know her, I know how to read her. That’s not a professional smile. It’s not her business smile, it’s different. Softer, more… hers. And that… that bothers me more than it should.

I abruptly turn off the screen, silence again. But now… thicker. I lean forward, resting my elbows on

Chapter 185. Making a Decision, Part 2

my knees, running a hand over my face.

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“So it’s official now…” I murmur. Because there’s no doubt, not after this. Not after the way they look

at each other, not after the way they touch without a thought for who’s watching.

They’re officially back together, and this time… it doesn’t seem temporary. It doesn’t feel like an attempt, it feels… solid, real. And that… I don’t like that… Not at all. Because no matter how much i deny it… No matter how much I try to keep it professional… I see her that way too.

I close my eyes for a second, there it is. The uncomfortable truth, the one I haven’t wanted to say out loud. The one I didn’t even want to fully accept. But it’s there. Clara isn’t just my business partner, she isn’t just a good business decision. She isn’t just someone I make a good team with No… She’s more than that. Much more.

And I knew it from the moment I started caring about what she felt. From the moment her opinion stopped being just professional, from the moment… her presence became necessary. So much so that I let her know my interest, but instead of fading, my interest only grows stronger. Because, simply because, I want her for myself.

I slowly open my eyes, taking a deep breath.

“Damn it…” I whisper. Because this isn’t convenient. It’s not smart, it’s not right. But it’s real, and now… there’s something more.

Vanessa. Her face appears clearly in my mind, that controlled smile. The way she talks about Clara

about Ethan… As if she were observing everything from the outside, as if she understood the whole game. As if… she wanted to move pieces. I lean back in the armchair, crossing my arms.

I thought about Vanessa… She didn’t speak just to speak, she didn’t insinuate anything by accident. Every word was intentional, every silence too. And that leaves me with only one conclusion.

She’s not neutral, she’s not on the sidelines. She’s involved, and she wants something. The question is… what?

Does she want the same thing I do?

I pick up the glass again and take another, longer sip.

I feel a weight in my chest; it’s not jealousy. Not exactly. It’s… something else. Something more complex, more unsettling. It’s knowing that someone else… is seeing the same thing you are. That someone else understands the value of what you have in front of you. And that perhaps… they

want it too. I grip the glass tighter.

“Ethan…” I murmur.

He’s not just any man, I know. I’ve seen him, I’ve analyzed him. And it’s no coincidence that he’s

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