The Hockey Roommate's Filthy Desire novel Chapter 119

Chapter 119

ARIA’S POV

His words hung heavily in the freezing air between us.

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Part of me—the tired, scared part that had just survived a break–in–wanted nothing more than to nod and let him take the problem off my hands.

The offer was so tempting. I was exhausted, my body still ached from giving birth, and fighting a big court case with a one- month–old baby felt impossible.

I was running on zero sleep, and the thought of going to war with powerful board members was terrifying. But how could I trust him completely?

Yes, he had only lied to me this one time, but it was a massive secret.

He had hidden the truth about his own father. Still, looking at his tired eyes the lawyer, I knew he was risking everything to fix things.

and the thick stack of papers he had just given

He was destroying his own family’s name just to give me a chance to win.

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“One month,” I said, my voice firm as I stared back at him. “I will give you exactly one month to get my father’s company, every share, and every dollar back. But if I don’t get justice by the end of that month, Brandon, I am genuinely cutting you

own way! Do you off forever. I will take the files, and I will finish this fight my

understand?”

Brandon didn’t hesitate. He looked straight into my eyes and gave a single, slow nod. “Agreed. One month.”

“Thank you,” I said quietly, my voice dropping a bit. I looked away, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by how close he was standing. “And thank you again for sending Leo last night. He saved our lives. If he hadn’t been there, I don’t even want to think about what that man would have done to me and Amelia.”

Without waiting for him to reply, I turned around and walked away quickly, heading toward the nearest bus stop. My heart was pounding, and I didn’t want him to see how much his presence still affected me.

As I sat on the bus, watching the snowy city pass by the window, my phone buzzed in my purse. I pulled it out and saw a

bank. notification from my

It was a message about a huge deposit. Julian. Again.

My breath caught as I stared at the screen. I quickly opened my full account history and scrolled back through the months, my eyes growing wide.

He had been sending these huge amounts of money regularly, even during the long month when I was lying helpless in a hospital bed in a coma.

Every single month, a massive sum had been dropped into my account like clockwork. Did he honestly think money could clear his bad conscience?

Did he think a bunch of numbers in a bank account could make up for every single horrible thing he had done to me? Did he think he could buy my forgiveness after destroying my life?

I stared at the massive balance, a bitter smile touching my lips, and shook my head. Before all of this happened, my pride would have won. I would have been too proud to keep it.

I would have looked for a way to transfer every single cent right back to him, refusing to take his dirty money. But not

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anymore. Not after finding out the truth from the lawyer.

Julian was one of the main people actively stealing funds from my late father’s life’s work.

This wasn’t his money anyway. It belonged to my family.

He was just returning a small piece of what they had stolen.

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I locked my phone and shoved it back into my bag. I was going to spend it without feeling sorry at all. I had an extra mouth to feed now, and since

I had officially quit my job at Brandon’s office, I had no steady income.

I needed every single penny I could get to build a life for my daughter.

When the bus finally dropped me off near my street, I practically ran up the stairs of my apartment building. My feet hurt and the cold air bit at my face, but I hurried down the hallway toward my neighbor’s door, desperate to hold my baby girl again.

I knocked loudly on the wood. No answer. I waited for a few seconds, listening closely. I knocked again, harder this time, calling out her name. “Mrs. Gable? It’s Aria. I’m back!”

Silence. I tried the doorknob, but it was locked tight. It didn’t even budge.

Instantly, a wave of cold fear hit me. My stomach dropped, and What if the intruder from last night had partners?

mind immediately jumped to the worst possibilities.

What if they came back while I was at the lawyer’s office? What if Amelia had been kidnapped? What if the bad guys were inside right now, holding her?

My hands shook so hard I could barely move. I could feel tears of pure panic building up behind my eyes. Feeling totally helpless, I opened my contacts and called Brandon’s number.

It was my very first instinct. Even though I was angry with him, he was the only person I knew who could protect us. The phone was still ringing against my ear when I saw movement out of the corner of my eye.

I turned around quickly, ready to fight.

Down at the far end of the hallway, near the emergency exit, Leo was walking back and forth. Safe and sound in his big arms was Amelia, wrapped tightly in her warm pink blanket.

She was fast asleep, totally unaware of the panic she had just caused. I let out a huge sob of relief, my knees almost giving out beneath me. I quickly ended the call before Brandon could answer and rushed down the hall toward the bodyguard.

“Leo!” I gasped, reaching out to take my baby into my arms. I pulled her tight against my chest, breathing in her sweet, familiar scent. I kissed her tiny forehead over and over again.

“What happened? Why do you have her? Where is Mrs. Gable?”

Leo looked a little sorry, keeping his voice very low so he wouldn’t wake the baby. “Your neighbor had a family emergency and had to leave the building in a hurry, Miss Aria. She was worried because you weren’t answering your phone when she called. I was waiting in the hallway, so I told her I worked for you. She handed the baby over to me before she ran out.”

“Thank you. Thank you so much,” I said, feeling relief all the way to my core. “Thank you for watching her.”

I took Amelia back into my own apartment, locking the door safely behind me with every single bolt. But just as I sat down on the couch to lay her down, my phone started ringing.

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Chapter 119

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