The CEO's Regret: Darling, Don’t Leave Me novel Chapter 338

Chapter 248: Breaking the Board, Part 1.

Alexander

Some things break silently, without a sound, without announcing their collapse. They simply change way you see everything else.

I didn’t stop functioning after talking to Hale. I didn’t stop working, I didn’t stop being the same man front of Clara. But something did change… Now every move had a more precise purpose. Colder, mo

calculated.

“The permit report doesn’t add up.”

Clara’s voice came clear and firm from the other side of the work table in Boston.

The plan was spread out between us, covered in annotations, markings, and adjusted dates. And dela

Too many.

I leaned slightly over the document, as if it were the first time I’d seen it.

“Which part?”

“Block C approval,” she replied, pointing. “This should have been signed three days ago.”

I nodded slowly.

“Yes… that shouldn’t be held up.”

I wasn’t lying, not exactly. I was just omitting

Clara looked up at me.

“Did you talk to the legal department?”

“Yesterday.”

“So?”

“They told me there was an outstanding issue.”

She frowned.

“What kind of issue?”

I leaned back in my chair.

“Ambiguity in the initial documentation.”

Silence… Clara wasn’t naive, but she wasn’t paranoid either. And that worked in my favor.

“That doesn’t make sense,” she finally said. “Everything was reviewed before being sent.

Chapter 248-reaking the Board, Part 1

I watched her for a few seconds, her way of thinking, her logic, her trust in the processes. That was made her brilliant and, at the same time… vulnerable.

“Sometimes processes fail,” I replied calmly. “Or someone makes them fail.”

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

“Are you implying something?”

There it was, the exact point.

“I don’t like the way this is going.”

I didn’t state anything, I didn’t accuse… I suggested something.

The meeting ended an hour later, with adjustments, with new revisions. And with a clear line… Review Howard’s work.

I left the room with Clara. We walked down the hallway of the building under construction, the echo of footsteps fading into the unfinished concrete and glass.

“This is delaying us,” she finally said.

“Yes.”

“And I don’t like it.”

“Neither do I.”

Silence. Then she turned her head slightly toward me.

“Thanks for saying so.”

I looked at her.

“It’s my project, too.'”

And it was. Even though she wanted to change that… I didn’t tell her anything about Hale, I didn’t tell her anything about the meeting, I didn’t tell her anything about her “changes.”

r

She also seems to be very hypocritical, still dealing with me even though she’s pulling strings to get me out of the company. Because that wasn’t the right time.

First, I needed time, and that’s exactly what I was buying. Time. Every delay… every revision… every doubt. was time. Time to understand her move, time to design my own.

Vanessa texted me three times that day.

I didn’t reply… Then she called. I declined the call, not because I didn’t want to see her but because right

now… it was a risk.

Vanessa can’t control herself, and I can’t afford any emotional mistakes at this point. She talks too much, she feels too much. And this game…. isn’t for feeling. It’s for thinking.

That night, after reviewing the progress with the technical team, Clara and I ended up alone in the lounge.

< Chapter 248-Breaking the Board, Part 1

of a hotel near the building, one where we’ll be staying temporarily.

The city of Boston stretched out before us.

“It’s going to be amazing.

I watched her. The breeze coming through a window gently stirred her hair. There was something abo her… There always is.

“Yes.”

“All of this will be worth it,” she added.

“It depends on how it ends.”

She turned her face toward me.

“It’s going to end well.”

I held her gaze for a few seconds.

“I hope so.”

Silence… Not awkward, but not innocent either.

“You’re quieter than usual,” she said.

I smiled slightly.

“I’m thinking.”

“About the project?”

“About everything.”

She watched me intently, as if trying to read more than what I was saying. And for a second… she did. Bu not enough. Never enough.

I took a step closer, clearly, not intrusively. But present nonetheless.

“Clara.”

She didn’t move away.

“Yes?”

“Do you trust me?”

The question was direct, unprepared. Her eyes barely moved, processing

“Yes.”

The answer was firm, and that made me smile.

“Then let me handle this.”

<Chapter 248 Breaking the Board, Part 1 “We’re handling it together.”

“Let me lead this part.”

Silence… She hesitated. I sensed it.

“Alexander…”

“Trust me.”

She lowered her gaze for a second, then nodded.

“You know that together, professionally, we’re the best team. I can handle this, I really can.”

“Okay.”

“Perfect.”

I sat down next to her; the city was better from there. I looked at the scenery, but my mind was elsewher On New York, on Hale, on her decision, on what’s to come.

“This is important to you,” I said.

“Very important.”

“I know.”

I looked at her.

“That’s why you can’t allow mistakes.”

“I won’t.”

“Or betrayals.”

She hesitated again… just for a moment.

“We’re not in that situation yet.”

“Not yet.”

r

I wasn’t going to beg her… I wasn’t going to plead with her, I wasn’t going to become like Vanessa. I don’t chase, I position myself. This was my last attempt, not with words, but with context, with pressure, with reality. If Clara wanted to get rid of me… she was going to have to face what that really meant.

Later, when I dropped her off at her hotel room, she turned before going in.

“Thanks for today.”

I nodded.

“Get some rest.”

“You too.”

I watched her disappear down the hallway. And then I was alone. Again.

<Chapter 248-Breaking the Board, Part 1

took out my phone, looked at Vanessa’s contact. I didn’t call… I looked at Hale’s. No call either.

I put my phone away, took a deep breath, and smiled slightly. Because now everything was clear: Clara thought she was in control. That she could move pieces, that she could redesign the board. But she was forgetting something essential: I’m not a piece. I’m the one who built part of the game.

And if she wanted to change the rules… Then I was going to show her how much it costs. Even if it mear breaking the board a little first.

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