The Wife He Never Meant to Love (Lila and Damon) novel Chapter 155

Chapter 155

Chapter 155

Miles away, inside Damon’s study, silence ruled the room.

Until-

A voice.

Lila’s voice.

Damon froze.

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His hand stilled mid-motion, his eyes locking onto the monitor in front of him as if it might somehow bring hér closer. The sound was faint, filtered through the connection-but unmistakable.

Real.

Alive.

Safe.

For a moment, he couldn’t move.

Couldn’t breathe.

Then the line went quiet.

And just like that-

she was gone again.

Damon remained still, the weight of that brief moment pressing heavily against his chest.

Then his phone lit up.

Mark.

He answered immediately.

“Where are they?” Damon said, his voice urgent, already moving. “I’ll come-wait for me, okay?”

“Damon… you heard that, right?” Mark said from the other end.

Damon didn’t respond directly, his silence answer enough.

“She’s safe,” Mark continued calmly. “Let her stay safe for now-while we clean up the people who want to

hurt them.”

Damon stopped walking.

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Chapter 155

The words hit harder than expected.

“No,” he said, turning slightly, tension building in his voice. “We can keep them safe beside me.”

There was a pause.

Then-

“Please listen to me, Damon.”

Mark’s tone didn’t rise-but it carried weight.

“The best thing you can do right now… is protect them from a distance while we clean this up.”

Damon’s jaw tightened.

His grip on the phone hardened.

Silence stretched between them.

“Like for example…” Mark added, quieter now, “I can stay here.”

Damon’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Mark-”

“Don’t worry,” Mark cut in gently. “I won’t hide them from you.”

Another pause.

Heavy.

Because that wasn’t the issue.

Damon exhaled slowly, forcing himself to think past the instinct-to act, to go, to take control.

But this wasn’t just about him.

It never was.

His gaze drifted toward the window, into the darkness beyond.

For the first time in a long while-

he knew exactly where she was.

And yet-

he couldn’t go to her.

Not yet.

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15:26 Mon, May 4

Chapter 155

… Keep her safe,” Damon said finally, his voice lower now.

Controlled.

But carrying something deeper beneath it.

“I will,” Mark answered.

The call ended.

Damon stood there, unmoving.

The distance between them felt smaller now-

but somehow…

more unbearable than ever.

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Damon returned to the study room, the weight of the last call pressing on him like a physical force. He knew moving too hastily-going after Lila now-would only make Mark angrier. Maybe even push him to hate him

more.

He sank into his chair, eyes fixed on Mark’s computer. The audio file of Lila’s conversation-her soft, trembling voice, the words of relief and safety-played over and over in his mind. Every syllable a reminder of what was at stake and how far he had to tread.

He couldn’t act recklessly. Not now. He needed Mark’s approval before he could even think about explaining anything to Lila. Before he could make her talk to him, he had to ensure she was truly safe.

The door creaked open. Simon slipped in, leaning casually against the frame, though his eyes immediately caught Damon slumped in the chair, the faint glow from the monitor casting shadows across his face.

“Did Mark find Lila?” Simon asked, his voice calm, observing Damon like a general surveying a battle-worn

soldier.

Damon lifted his head slowly and nodded, his voice soft, almost uncharacteristically vulnerable. “She… she said she’s safe.”

Simon’s face softened slightly. “Then that’s good. That’s really good news.”

He walked over, placing a reassuring hand on the desk. “All you have to do now is clean up the mess first. Then… and only then… can you think about bringing her back.”

Damon exhaled, leaning back into the chair, letting the tension drain slightly from his shoulders. “I know,” he murmured, almost to himself. “I just… want to fix it. All of it.”

Simon smirked faintly, a mix of amusement and warning in his eyes. “And you will. But patience, Damon. Right now, that’s what will keep her safe.”

Damon closed his eyes, listening to the faint echo of Lila’s voice on the computer again. The resolve in her words steadied him, but the ache of not being able to reach her still lingered.

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Chapter 155

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Outside, the world went on. But inside that room, time seemed suspended-held between safety and the storm that still threatened to reach them.

He couldn’t rush. Not yet.

But he would. When the time was right.

“Did you already send Maddy?” Damon asked, his voice low but firm, glancing toward Simon, who looked just

as worn out.

“Yeah,” Simon replied, eyes closing for a brief moment as he leaned back against the sofa. “She’s on her way.”

Damon exhaled slowly, his mind already moving ahead, calculating, anticipating. “Soon… they’ll trap them,” Simon added quietly, almost to himself.

He pushed himself upright, moving over to the table where stacks of documents waited. Picking them up, he set them carefully in front of Damon.

“Here,” Simon said, his tone sharper now. “While you listen to Lila’s voice.”

Damon nodded, placing his fingers over the keyboard. The soft, recorded tones of Lila’s voice began to play in the background, faint but unmistakable. It was like a quiet current-white noise that wove through the chaos in his mind.

He didn’t need to see her to feel her presence. Every word she spoke, every soft pause, grounded him. Calm washed over him, steadying the storm inside his chest.

With the documents spread before him and Lila’s voice humming quietly behind, Damon began to work. Relentlessly. Tirelessly. There was no room for distraction, no space for hesitation. The people of Blackthorne Industries relied on him-and he would not let them down.

Without looking up, Damon muttered, more to himself than to Simon, “So… when can we catch Eric?”

Simon’s eyes scanned the papers again, lips pressed into a thin line. “That man… he’s careful,” he said simply.

“Careful,” Damon repeated, voice flat but tense. “Careful, patient, calculating. But he’s human. He’ll make a

mistake.”

Simon nodded. “Give it time. He always does.”

And with that, silence returned, except for the soft echo of Lila’s voice, threading through the room.

For Damon, it was more than a recording-it was a reminder. A reason.

And the world outside could wait. Because for now, he had work to do. And when the time came… Eric would slip.

And Damon would be ready.

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