Chapter 66

The soft chime of a message vibrated against Callum’s desk, barely pulling his attention from the glass of scotch he’d been nursing for far too long. The amber liquid swirled in his grip, untouched since he’d poured it over an hour ago. The office—usually a place of calculated decisions and sharp control—felt like a coffin tonight. Heavy. Airless. Fully of unspoken emotions.

He turned his head slowly toward the buzzing phone and reached for it.

Elena said you weren’t looking too good today. I just wanted to check in. Are you okay? – Ariana.

Callum exhaled, and the breath felt like it weighed a thousand pounds.

He could hear her voice behind the message, that soft cadence she always used when she was worried but trying not to show it. She was giving him space. And he hated it. Because space meant distance, and distance had started to feel like abandonment.

He rubbed a hand over his face, the stubble prickling beneath his palm. He hadn’t slept properly in days. Not since the headlines. Not since Ariana asked if she could leave to her apartment. Her absence took away the peace he had just began to feel in recent times.

And not since he let her go without giving her a reason to stay. He wished he could tell her what she wanted to hear but he wasn’t sure if he could keep that promise but he wished to God that he could be by her side forever.

Callum leaned back in his chair, staring blankly at the ceiling, the echo of her voice in his mind—quiet, hurt, and almost defeated. He hated that he’d put that look in her eyes. He hated that every move he made in the name of strategy came at the cost of her trust. Her love.

His gaze flicked to the glass again. This time he drank all of its content.

The scotch burned all the way down, but it did nothing to dull the ache in his chest. He stood up, pacing to the window that overlooked the city. Manhattan gleamed, as cold and vibrant as ever. The same city that had made him powerful was now reminding him, night after night, of how easily things could crumble.

He didn’t hear Julian enter until the soft click of the study door broke the silence.

“You’re drinking,” Julian said, his tone low but laced with surprise.

Callum turned, glass in hand, eyes shadowed.

“I’m thinking,” he corrected. “The drinking’s just to make it quiet enough in here to hear myself.”

Julian studied him, his usual casual air replaced with something tighter. “You don’t usually unravel like this. Not even when we lost your dad. What the hell’s going on?”

Callum stared at him for a long beat before walking back toward the desk. He poured himself another glass. “You ever build something so carefully, so ruthlessly, you start to believe it’s indestructible?” He looked up at Julian. “Then you meet someone who makes you realize you’ve been standing on glass the whole time.”

Julian didn’t answer. He just waited.

Callum sat heavily on the edge of the desk, the crystal tumbler dangling from his fingers. “Ariana… she’s not just some phase, Julian. I didn’t just fall for her. I let her inside a world I never let anyone into, and still, it’s not enough.”

Julian raised a brow. “You think she left because you weren’t enough?”

“I think she left because she finally saw what I’ve been too afraid to admit,” Callum said bitterly. “That I’m not built for forever. Not in the way she deserves.”

Julian crossed the room, sinking into the leather chair opposite him. “Bullshit.”

Callum looked up sharply.

“You’re just scared because you can’t control this,” Julian continued. “You’ve controlled everything else—your businesses, your enemies, even the damn media. But Ariana? She’s not a project. She’s a person. And you love her. You just need to admit it to yourself that you do.”

The room fell quiet. Callum’s throat tightened around the truth he hadn’t let himself speak aloud.

“I do,” he whispered. “I love her. So much. I haven’t cared about anyone this much in my life.”

Julian didn’t flinch. “Then why are you here alone, drinking like some washed-up ex with regrets he won’t fix?”

Callum laughed, bitter and hollow. “Because I don’t know if I’m enough for her world. She had peace before me. A simple life. Now she’s caught up in something dangerous. And all I’ve given her is fear.”

Julian leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “She’s not afraid of you, Cal. She’s afraid of what your silence means. You think you’re protecting her by keeping her in the dark, but she’s smarter than that. She sees every shadow in this world, and she still chose you.”

Callum stared at the floor, jaw clenched.

Julian sighed. “You’ve spent years building an empire, brother. But what good is it if you lose the one thing that ever made you feel human?”

Callum’s voice dropped. “She said she needed to feel like herself again. That staying with me was changing her. She said I never told her what came next.”

“Then tell her now,” Julian said. “Start being the man who deserves her. Before it’s too late. ”

A silence stretched between them, filled only by the tick of the grandfather clock in the corner and the occasional honk from the street far below.

Then Callum stood, set down the glass, and walked back toward the window. The city still glittered—but it felt different now. Smaller. Fragile.

He pulled out his phone again and stared at Ariana’s message. Her concern. Her absence.

“I don’t know if she’ll come back,” he admitted.

“Then go get her,” Julian said firmly. “Because if you let this go, it’ll be the one war you’ll never win back.”

Callum looked out at the city again. This time, he wasn’t thinking about territory or power. He was thinking about a woman who made his penthouse feel like home. A woman who filled the silence in his soul with her laugh. A woman who still checked on him, even when he gave her every reason not to.

He pressed his forehead against the glass and closed his eyes.

“I miss her, Jules,” he whispered. “More than I thought possible.”

Julian stood, his voice quiet. “Then stop bleeding in the dark and fight for her in the light.”

Callum’s phone buzzed again. Another message. His heart leapt before he even checked.

Charlie starts her sessions next week. Thought you might want to know. Please I would like to be there with her for her sessions. Also, Elena said you haven’t eaten anything today. Please don’t make her worry more than she already is.

He stared at the text. Then, slowly, a sad smile curled at his lips.

She was still watching. Still caring. Even from a distance.

And maybe, just maybe, that meant he hadn’t lost her entirely.

Not yet.

But the clock was ticking.

And for the first time in years, Callum Guerrero had no idea what move to make next.