Chapter 98 Chapter 98
“Well, well... Nicholas, you blind fool.” Marcus shook his head. “Fine. Since this little woman is more important than our blood, consider these ten years a waste of time. You don't need brothers. Apparently, you only need her for the rest of your life.”
With that last venomous sentence, Marcus turned on his heel and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
“Marcus! Wait!” Sheila shouted.
She cast one last desperate and hurt look at Nicholas, sighed heavily, and ran after Marcus, the sound of her heels echoing in the hallway.
The room fell into a deathly silence.
Hiago, the only one left, sank into his chair and covered his face with his hands, letting out a long, exhausted groan.
“Damn...” he muttered. “What I feared most has happened.”
(...)
At the exit of the Private Club.
The night in São Paulo was cold, but not as cold as the atmosphere among the group.
While waiting for the cars, Hiago desperately tried to control the damage. He knew he had to fix things, or the group would be destroyed forever.
“Nicholas, listen...” Hiago began nervously, fiddling with his car keys. "I don't know what got into Marcus today. You know he's always been a little unstable.
Think of it as... an early midlife crisis? Or male PMS?“
Hiago forced a laugh, but Nicholas remained stone-faced.
”Don't stoop to his level, Nick. As soon as he cools down, he'll realize what a mistake he made and come crawling back to apologize. I'm going to have a serious talk with him."
Hiago then turned to Caroline, clasping his hands together in supplication.
“And sister-in-law... I beg your forgiveness on my knees on behalf of that idiot. Marcus has a big mouth and a bad temper, but he's not a bad person. He didn't really mean to hurt you, it's just that today... well, his mood is terrible.”
Hiago knew the truth: Marcus was acting this way because he was jealous of Sheila. But he would never say that out loud. If Nicholas found out that Marcus was disrespecting Caroline because of another woman, he would skin him alive.
Caroline looked at Hiago's anxious face. She saw his loyalty trying to keep his friends together.
She didn't want to be the catalyst for destruction.
“It's okay, Hiago,” Caroline said, flashing a soft, magnanimous smile. “I don't mind, really.”
Hiago blinked, surprised. “Sis-in-law... you really don't mind? After what he said?”
“Hmm.” Caroline shrugged elegantly. “We all have bad days.” I understand. And honestly, he's your friend, not mine. I won't take it personally.
It was half true. Deep down, she thought, I'll probably never see this man again in my life, so why waste energy hating him?
“You're an angel, sister-in-law!” Hiago exclaimed, relieved. “Thank you for understanding. Nicholas is lucky to have you.”
Hiago looked at Caroline with new eyes. If before he had found her only pretty and cute, now he saw her character. She was kind and mature, very different from Sheila's toxic possessiveness.
“Well, I'm going to go now.” Hiago pointed to the valet who was bringing his car. “I don't want to interrupt your time alone. Bye, Nick! Bye, sister-in-law!”
Hiago got into his flashy lime green Lamborghini and drove off with a screech of tires, the engine roaring down the street, fleeing that heavy atmosphere.
As soon as he left, the black Rolls-Royce, silent and imposing like a shadow, glided up to the sidewalk.
José, the driver, quickly got out and opened the back door with a respectful bow. “Gentlemen.”
Let's go."
Nicholas's voice still carried traces of ice, but when he turned to Caroline, his gestures were gentle. He took her hand, intertwining his fingers firmly, and led her to the safety of the car's interior.
The interior of the Rolls-Royce was immersed in a luxurious, isolated silence.
The privacy partition between the back seats and the driver was raised, creating a small world just for the two of them.
Nicholas leaned his head back against the soft leather seat, closed his eyes, and massaged his temples with his fingertips. The tension of having to confront a friend of two decades seemed to have drained him momentarily.
Caroline watched him, biting her lower lip. There were things she couldn't say in front of Hiago, but now, in the darkness of the car, guilt bubbled up in her chest.
Although she knew, logically, that Marcus's rudeness was not her fault, she couldn't ignore the fact that she was the pivot of the discord.
“Um... Nicholas...” she called, her soft voice breaking the silence.
Nicholas slowly opened his eyes. The fatigue was still there, but as he looked at her, his expression softened.
“Um?” he murmured. His hoarse voice, vibrating in the low register, sounded dangerously seductive in that enclosed space.
Caroline hesitated, twisting her fingers in her lap. “I-I'm sorry...”
Nicholas frowned, confused. He sat up straight on the bench, turning to face her. “What are you apologizing for?”
“For what happened tonight,” she whispered, lowering her eyes.
“It was because of me that you and your friends fought. If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have argued. I'm really sorry. If I had known they wouldn't like me, I wouldn't have come...”
“You shouldn't have done what?” His voice hardened slightly. “You shouldn't have come with me? You shouldn't be my wife?”
Before she could answer, Nicholas reached out and pulled her firmly into his arms, nestling her against his chest.
“Caroline, look at me.”
He cupped her face, forcing her to look at him.
"You are my wife. They are my friends.
There is a hierarchy here. His eyes flashed with fierce intensity. I don't demand that they love you, but I do demand that they respect you. Because disrespecting you is disrespecting me.
He caressed her cheek with his thumb, his voice lowering to a protective tone that made her heart skip a beat.
“If I allow them to treat you badly today, they'll do worse tomorrow. I promised I wouldn't let anyone hurt you, and I'll keep that promise, no matter what it takes. Marcus knew how much I value you. When he looked at you with that look of contempt, he wasn't just insulting you; he was questioning my choice. And that I will not tolerate.”
Caroline was speechless.
Her heart began to beat wildly against her ribs, a frantic rhythm she couldn't calm.
He said he valued her... that he cared.
Regardless of the circumstances of their marriage, she had to admit: she was touched. Deeply touched.
What woman could resist that?
The feeling of being protected, of being the absolute priority of such a powerful man... it was intoxicating. Nicholas wasn't just a wealthy CEO; he was charismatic, loyal, and at that moment, he looked like a hero straight out of a book.
If she could remain indifferent to everything he had done for her today, she would not be human. She would be a statue of ice.
But she was not made of ice. She was made of flesh, bone, and confused feelings.