The Firefighter Returns as a Quintillionaire King novel Chapter 24

CHAPTER 24

“Isn’t it?” Alex gestured to her phone. “He calls, and you drop everything. He has a fever- probably just a cold-and suddenly nothing else matters. Not your board meeting, not your husband, not this conversation. Just Ben.”

Lisa’s hands trembled as she clutched her purse. You don’t understand. Ben has been through trauma. The fire affected him deeply. He has panic attacks, nightmares. He needs support.”

“And what about my trauma?” Alex’s voice broke slightly. “What about my nightmares? What about the fact that I nearly died in that fire while my own wife ran off with another man?”

“You’re a firefighter!” Lisa threw her hands up in exasperation. “You’re trained for this! You’re strong, capable. Ben is just a civilian who got caught in a terrible situation!”

“So because I’m trained to handle emergencies, I don’t deserve emotional support? I don’t deserve my wife’s concern or care?” Alex shook his head in disbelief. “Do you hear yourself, Lisa? Do you hear how insane that sounds?”

Lisa’s phone buzzed with a text message. She glanced at it, and her face paled. “Ben says his fever is getting worse. He’s asking me to bring medicine. I really need to go, Alex.”

“Fine.” Alex’s voice was cold now, all emotion drained from it. “But before you leave, you’re going to listen to what I came here to say. You owe me that much.”

“I don’t owe you anything!” Lisa’s voice rose to a near-shriek. “You’re the one who left! You’re the one who walked out! You’re the one who moved in with some rich bimbo and is now trying to rush this divorce through so you can-”

“So I can what, Lisa?” Alex interrupted. “Move on with my life? Find someone who actually gives a damn whether I live or die? Is that what threatens you so much?”

“I’m not threatened!” But her voice wavered slightly. “I just think it’s suspicious that you suddenly want a divorce right after meeting this woman. Mia, or whatever her name is.”

“This has nothing to do with Mia,” Alex said firmly. “This is about us. About the fact that our marriage has been dead for a long time, and we’ve both been too stubborn or too scared to admit it.”

Lisa’s phone buzzed again. And again. Ben was clearly getting impatient.

“I have to go,” Lisa said, her voice taking on a desperate edge. “Ben needs me. We can discuss this later-”

“No.” Alex grabbed her wrist as she tried to push past him. Not hard, not violently, just enough to stop her. “You’re going to listen. You’re going to hear what I have to say. And then you can run to Ben’s side and play Florence Nightingale all you want.”

Lisa yanked her arm away, her eyes blazing. “Let go of me! How dare you try to keep me here when someone I care about is sick and needs help!”

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CHAPTER 24

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“Someone you care about,” Alex repeated slowly, the words sinking in like stones. “Not ‘my business partner.’ Not ‘my colleague.’ Someone you care about.”

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