Chapter 156 CHAPTER 156

Chapter 156 CHAPTER 156
Meeting in secret places
Ethan never liked meeting in the open, but tonight he didn’t care. He’d picked a rooftop lounge on the edge of the city, the kind of place where the music was low, the lights were dim, and nobody paid attention unless you wanted them to. The late evening breeze swept over the building, cool enough to clear his head but not strong enough to blow away the irritation simmering beneath his skin.
Richard stood across from him near the railing, shoulders tense, hands shoved in the pockets of a plain black jacket that made him look harmless. That was the whole point. Harmless men slipped through cracks more easily than dangerous ones.
Ethan wasn’t smiling. He didn’t bother pretending tonight.
“It’s time,” Ethan said, straight to the point.
Richard blinked as if he already knew the sentence but had been hoping it wouldn’t come. “Time for what?”
Ethan gave him a flat look. “For you to get Tessa to fall in love with you.”
Richard didn’t move for a beat. The city lights below painted his face in sharp strokes, outlining every flicker of doubt that crossed his eyes. He let out a low breath, not quite a scoff but close enough. “I don’t see why that would ever work. She doesn’t like me. She hates me.”
“She doesn’t have to like you yet,” Ethan replied. His voice held the calm, precise edge of someone pushing chess pieces across a board. “People fall into things when they’re tired. When they’re alone. When they feel cornered. Tessa is all three.”
Richard shook his head. “That doesn’t mean she’ll fall for me.”
Ethan stepped closer, eliminating the space between them. “She doesn’t have to fall deeply. She just needs to fall enough. Enough to trust you. Enough to choose you over Ares. Enough to shift the balance.”
“That’s not how love works,” Richard muttered.
Ethan tilted his head slightly, unimpressed. “I’m not asking for love. I’m asking for influence. You don’t need her heart. You only need her loyalty.”
Richard’s throat bobbed. He leaned back against the railing as if it might hold him together. “She doesn’t want me. She never has. After I destroyed her wedding she hasn’t even tried to come after me. She’s now married to Marcus.”
“Exactly why I need her more,” Ethan cut in. “Just do what I told you. Don’t you know she married Marcus to get at Ares?”
Richard felt heat rise under his skin. Not anger, more shame than anything. “Ethan… this is Tessa. She’s not someone you can manipulate into…”
“That’s exactly why it has to be you,” Ethan said. “If it were easy, I’d send someone else. She married Marcus, that means you can manipulate her.”
He took a measured breath and folded his arms. The wind caught the edge of his coat as he spoke again, slower this time.
“Tessa believes her kids might be yours. That alone is leverage. But leverage is useless if you don’t apply pressure. You’re supposed to act like their father. You’re supposed to show up. You’re supposed to make her believe that you’re the safer option.”
“She’s not going to just accept me,” Richard argued. “She’s guarded. She watches everything. She reads people too easily.”
“Then stop being easy to read,” Ethan replied sharply. “Stick to your script and let time do the work. Be patient. Be consistent. Don’t chase her, make her notice you without you trying. Understand?”
Richard rubbed his hands over his face. “This feels wrong.”
Ethan exhaled through his nose, slow and irritated. “Wrong doesn’t matter. Results matter. Ares is no longer stable, no longer calculating. He’s emotional. He’s unpredictable. And the only thing that will break him cleanly is losing Tessa permanently.”
A silence settled between them, long and sharp.
Richard broke it. “This isn’t going to be easy.”
“Nothing worth winning ever is,” Ethan replied.
Richard slowly nodded. The decision crept across his expression like a shadow settling into place. Whatever fight he’d had left was dimming, replaced by something colder and more obedient.
Ethan watched it happen with calm satisfaction.
Richard pushed away from the railing. “I’ll do it.”
“Good.” Ethan straightened his shoulders. “Start tomorrow. Be early. Be helpful. Be soft. Don’t push. Just… exist. Let her adjust.”
Richard nodded again. “Understood.”
Ethan stepped back, signaling the end of their conversation. “Go.”
Richard took a breath, then turned and walked toward the exit stairs. His steps echoed against the rooftop tiles, each one heavier than the last. At the door, he hesitated only for a second then continued walking until his figure disappeared into the stairwell.
Ethan stood alone now, staring out at the glowing city below. A car horn blared somewhere in the distance. Music drifted up faintly from a bar a few blocks away. The night felt thick with the weight of plans, plans that were finally fitting into place.
He pulled out his phone, checked the time, then slipped it back into his pocket.
Everything was moving.
Everything was aligning.
Tessa wouldn’t know until it was too late.
Richard wouldn’t question the role once he played it long enough.
And Ares…
Ares would break exactly the way Ethan wanted.
Ethan turned away from the railing, sliding his hands into his pockets, and walked toward the stairs with a slow, confident stride.
Tonight was a beginning.
A dangerous one.
A calculated one.
And exactly the one Ethan needed.