Chapter 146 CHAPTER 146

Chapter 146 CHAPTER 146
You are damned
The music in the mansion basement had stopped. Lila stood before the mirror, adjusting the strap of her sequined black dress. Her red lipstick was flawless; her hair framed her face like a dark halo.
She turned toward him finally, breaking the silence.
“You’re not going to say anything?”
Ares didn’t look up. He was flipping through a folder—a business proposal, Lila’s new expansion plan for her luxury brand. Her company was thriving, worth billions, and she’d pulled Ares in with the promise of partnership, money, and power.
Lila smiled softly, moving closer. “I know what you’re thinking,” she said, her voice silk over venom. “You’re wondering if I’ll really sign those papers without getting something in return.”
Ares stopped pacing and lifted his eyes. “You already own half of Tokyo’s fashion scene, Lila. You don’t need my name for anything.”
“Oh, but I do.” She took a step closer, her heels echoing on the marble floor. “Your name still matters. The Langford bloodline still commands attention. You might be drowning in debt, Ares, but you’re still a Landlord and that means something to investors. Especially now that your father is playing God.”
Ares’s lips pressed into a hard line. He hated that she was right. Marcus had stripped him of every asset, every ounce of credibility, after the public fallout. He was clawing his way back up, piece by piece.
But not like this.
Lila set the folder on the table and leaned against it, crossing her arms. “You want me to sign the merger? Marry me.”
He let out a short, humorless laugh. “So this is a trophy thing now?”
“It’s a business move,” she replied coolly. “For both of us. You need a lifeline, Ares. I’m offering you one. You give me your name, I give you back your empire. That’s fair, isn’t it?”
He stepped closer, his height casting a shadow over her. “You think I’d sell my last ounce of dignity for a deal?”
“I think you’d do anything to win,” she countered, her voice sharp now. “You always have. Don’t pretend you’re some noble hero. You used me when it suited you. You played along when it gave you access. Now I’m asking for something real in return.”
Ares’s jaw flexed. He turned away, walking toward the tall glass windows overlooking the city. The skyline shimmered, neon lights painting his reflection in cold color. His fingers curled into fists.
He wasn’t angry at Lila. Not entirely. He was angry at himself for getting this deep, for losing control, for pushing Tessa away in the name of survival.
“Do you really think a marriage between us would work?” he asked, his voice low.
“It doesn’t have to work,” she said behind him. “It just has to look like it does. My father thinks I am a failure because I am not married, I want to prove him wrong.”
He turned around, eyes burning. “You’re talking about using me.”
She smirked. “You want to use me too.”
For a long, tense moment, they stood locked in silence. Only the faint hum of the air conditioner filled the space.
Ares took a slow breath. “You don’t get it,” he said finally, voice steady but laced with exhaustion. “I can’t marry you, Lila.”
Her brows lifted. “Can’t, or won’t?”
“Both.”
Lila laughed softly, though it didn’t reach her eyes. “You think you have the luxury of saying no? You’ve already lost everything. You think you can rebuild that empire without me?”
“I’d rather start from ashes than build on lies,” he said.
For the first time, her mask cracked. She stared at him as if she didn’t recognize the man before her. “So that’s it? You’re turning me down after everything I’ve done for you?”
“You didn’t do it for me. You did it for control,” he shot back.
Her eyes flashed. “And Tessa didn’t control you? That woman made you weak! You were a god before her, Ares. You ruled everything you touched. And now look at you—brooding, half broken, clinging to a love that destroyed you.”
Ares’s gaze darkened. “Don’t talk about her.”
Lila smiled bitterly. “Still defending her. Of course.”
He moved toward the door. “This conversation is over.”
She grabbed his arm. “No, it’s not. You’re not walking away from me.”
He stopped, slowly looking down at her hand gripping his sleeve. “Let go, Lila.”
Her voice trembled with fury. “You owe me, Ares. I stood by you when no one else did.”
“You stood by me because you saw profit.”
She slapped him before she even realized it. The sound cracked across the room.
Ares didn’t flinch. He just stared at her, his expression hollow. “Are you done?”
Her voice broke. “You’ll regret this.”
He stepped back, straightening his shirt. “No I won’t.”
Lila’s chest rose and fell fast. “You think you can rebuild your empire without me? Watch what happens when I walk away, Ares. You’ll lose every investor you have left.”
He gave a tired half-smile. “Then I’ll find new ones.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You’ll crawl back. Men like you always do.”
“Then I’ll crawl back on my own terms,” he said quietly. “Not as your husband.”
For a moment, she looked at him. His eyes, the same eyes she’d once fallen for, were steady now. Cold. Resolute.
“You’re making a mistake,” she whispered.
“Yes,” he said, already walking toward the door. “But it’s mine to make.”
He reached the doorway, pausing just long enough to glance over his shoulder. “You should know something, Lila. You were never the plan. You were the distraction.”
Her lips parted slightly, stunned. “What?”
But he didn’t wait for her response.
Ares walked out, the sound of the heavy door slamming behind him echoing through the mansion like a final verdict.
Lila stood frozen, hand still on her cheek where he’d said those words. Then slowly, her expression shifted from shock to fury, from hurt to calculation.
She turned toward the mirror again, wiping the corner of her eye where a tear had dared to fall.
“Fine,” she whispered to her reflection. “You’ll come back, Ares and when you do, I’ll make sure it’s on your knees.”
Outside, Ares climbed into his car, slamming the door behind him. The night was cold and merciless, the city lights blurring through his windshield as he drove.
He didn’t know where he was going. He just knew he needed to get away from the lies, from the noise, from her.
The only face in his mind was Tessa’s. Her voice. Her quiet strength. The way she’d looked at him the night she walked away.
For a moment, he gripped the steering wheel so hard his knuckles went white. Then he loosened his hands, exhaling slowly.
“No more games,” he muttered under his breath.
Back in the mansion, Lila poured herself a glass of champagne, watching the bubbles rise and fall like tiny ghosts of her pride.
She raised the glass to the mirror. “To power,” she whispered. “Because love is for fools.”
Then she took a long, deliberate sip, her reflection staring back, dangerous and determined.