Chapter 121 #121

Chapter 121 #121
Chapter 121
~Dante’s POV~
Fuck.
Fuck fuck fuck.
What the hell just happened?
I stood in the bathroom, pressing a cold towel to my bleeding nose, trying to process the complete disaster this night had become.
First that crazy woman claiming I was her boyfriend. Thank God she didn’t reveal too much.
Then the video.
That goddamn video.
How did that get out? How did anyone even access that footage?
I specifically had it deleted. Wiped from the servers.
Someone had to have recovered it. Saved it somewhere.
Dwayne.
It had to be Dwayne.
He’s been lurking around, watching everything, getting too close to Shailyn.
Of course he’d do something like this.
The bathroom door opened.
Gramps walked in, expression thunderous.
“Gramps, I can explain—”
His hand shot out and slapped me across the face.
Hard.
My head snapped to the side, the towel falling into the sink.
“You stupid, reckless boy,” Gramps hissed.
“I—”
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done? The damage you’ve caused?”
“It was taken out of context—”
“Context? There is no context that makes choking your pregnant wife acceptable!”
“I was stressed! She pushed me too far—”
Another slap.
“Don’t you dare blame her for your lack of control.”
I pressed my hand to my stinging cheek. “Gramps, please—”
“Every investor in that room saw that video. Every board member. Every business partner. They all saw you assault your wife.”
“I didn’t assault her—”
“That’s exactly what you did! And now our family looks like a circus. Our company looks unstable. And you—” He pointed at me. “You look like an abusive monster.”
“I’m not—”
“I don’t care what you are. I care about what people think you are. And right now, they think you’re dangerous.”
“I’ll fix it.”
“How? How exactly are you going to fix this, Dante?”
“I’ll make a statement. Explain what really happened—”
“No statements. You’ll make it worse.”
“Then what do you want me to do?”
“Fix your marriage. Publicly. Make Shailyn forgive you. Make her stand by you. Because if she leaves you right now, we’re finished.”
“She won’t leave me.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Yes. She loves me.”
Gramps studied me for a long moment. “You better hope you’re right. Because if she walks away, the board will use this as an excuse to remove you as CEO.”
My blood ran cold. “They can’t do that.”
“They absolutely can. Moral character clause. It’s in your contract.”
“But—”
“Get your wife back on your side. Do whatever it takes. Grovel. Beg. I don’t care. Just fix this.”
He walked out, leaving me standing there, blood still dripping from my nose.
….
I found Shailyn in the lobby, talking quietly with Hannah.
“Shailyn,” I called out. “Can we talk?”
“I don’t think—”
“Please. Five minutes. That’s all I’m asking.”
Hannah glared at me. “She doesn’t owe you anything.”
“Hannah, stay out of this.”
“She’s my best friend. I’m not staying out of anything.”
“Hannah,” Shailyn said softly. “It’s okay. I’ll talk to him.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Wait in the car?”
Hannah shot me one last warning look before walking away.
Shailyn turned to me, arms crossed. “What do you want, Dante?”
“I want to apologize. Properly. For everything.”
“Everything? That’s pretty vague.”
“For the video. For losing my temper that day. For putting my hands on you.”
“You mean for choking me.”
I flinched. “Yes. For that. I was wrong. Completely wrong. And I’m so, so sorry.”
“Sorry doesn’t erase what you did.”
“I know. But I’m trying to make it right.”
“How?”
“By being better. By controlling myself. By never letting it happen again.”
She laughed bitterly.
I reached for her hand. “Shailyn, please. I love you. I need you. Don’t leave me.”
She pulled her hand away. “I’m not leaving you, Dante.”
Relief flooded through me. “You’re not?”
“No. But not because I forgive you. Because I’m pregnant and tired and I don’t have the energy to deal with a divorce right now.”
“That’s… that’s fine. That’s enough. We can work with that.”
“Can we?”
“Yes. Absolutely. I’ll do whatever you need.”
She stared at me for a long moment. “Right now, I need space. Can you give me that?”
“Of course. Whatever you need.”
“Good. Then stay away from me tonight.”
She walked past me toward the exit.
I watched her go, my chest tight.
She said she wasn’t leaving.
That’s all that mattered.
….
The drive home was silent.
Shailyn sat as far from me as possible in the back seat.
Dwayne drove separately, thank God. I couldn’t look at him without wanting to put my fist through his face.
When we got home, the house felt like a tomb.
Cold. Silent. Heavy.
“I’m going to bed,” Shailyn said immediately.
“Wait—”
“Goodnight, Dante.”
She disappeared upstairs.
I stood there alone in the foyer, fists clenched.
This was Dwayne’s fault. All of it.
I pulled out my phone and went to my study, locking the door behind me.
Frederick answered on the second ring. “Yeah?”
“We need to talk.”
“I saw the news. Hell of a party.”
“Shut up. This is serious.”
“What do you need?”
“The girl. The one who crashed the party. Take care of her.”
“Take care of her how?”
“I don’t care how. Pay her off. Threaten her. Whatever it takes to make her disappear. Even kill her.”
“Got it. What else?”
“The video. I need every copy of it wiped. Completely. No trace left anywhere.”
“That’s going to be expensive.”
“I don’t care what it costs. Just do it.”
“Alright. Anything else?”
“Yeah. Dwayne. We need to move up his timeline.”
“How soon?”
“This week. I want him handled before the board meeting.”
“That’s fast. You sure?”
“Completely. He’s becoming a problem. A big one.”
“What about your grandfather? Won’t he—”
“Let me worry about Gramps. You just focus on Dwayne.”
“Alright. I’ll scope it out and get back to you.”
“Make it quick. And Frederick?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t screw this up. I can’t afford any more disasters.”
“Relax. I’m a professional.”
I hung up and leaned back in my chair, exhaustion hitting me like a wave.
The door opened.
Dad walked in, closing it behind him.
“We need to talk,” he said.
“Not now, Dad—”
“Yes, now.” He sat down across from me. “What the hell were you thinking, Dante?”
“I wasn’t thinking. I was angry.”
“Angry enough to choke your pregnant wife?”
“She pushed me—”
“I don’t want to hear excuses. I want to know how you’re going to fix this.”
“I’m working on it.”
“Work faster. Because the board is already talking. Questioning your leadership. Your judgment.”
“Let them talk. I’ll handle it.”
“You better. Because if you lose Shailyn, you lose everything. The company. The family support. All of it.”
“She’s not leaving me.”
“You sure about that?”
“Positive. She loves me.”
Dad studied me for a long moment. “You’re delusional if you think love is enough after what you did.”
“It’ll be enough. It has to be.”
“Make it up to her. Publicly. Show everyone that you’re committed to being better.”
“I will.”
“Good. Because I’m not watching this family implode because you can’t control your temper.”
He stood and walked out.
I sat there alone again, staring at my phone.
Suddenly, I heard footstep
Dwayne. Walking toward his room.
I stood quickly and walked towards him.
I caught him in the hallway outside his door.
“Dwayne.”
He turned, expression cold. “What do you want?”
I grabbed his arm and pulled him back. “We need to talk.”
“Get your hands off me.”
“Not until you explain what you did tonight.”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Bullshit. That video didn’t just magically appear. You leaked it.”
“Did I?”
“Don’t play games with me.”
He yanked his arm free. “Even if I did, you deserved it. Everyone deserved to see what kind of man you really are.”
“Stay out of my marriage, Dwayne. This is none of your business.”
“It became my business when you put your hands on her.”
“She’s my wife!”
“She’s a person. And she deserves better than you.”
“What, someone like you?”
“Maybe. At least I wouldn’t choke her.”
I stepped closer. “You think you have some kind of claim on her? You think she’d ever choose you?”
“I think she’s smarter than you give her credit for.”
“She’s mine, Dwayne. Forever. And nothing you do will change that.”
He laughed. Dark. Humorless. “You really believe that, don’t you?”
“Because it’s true.”
“We’ll see about that. Especially when she remembers.”
I froze. “Remembers what?”
“Everything.” He leaned in closer. “The truth. All of it. And when she does, you’re finished.”
“She’ll never remember. The doctors said—”
“Doctors can be wrong. And I have a feeling hers will be.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“I’m promising you. Your days of controlling her are numbered.”
He turned and walked into his room, closing the door behind him.
I stood there, heart pounding.
When she remembers.
No. Impossible.
But Dwayne’s words echoed in my mind.
I pulled out my phone and texted Frederick.
Change of plans. Meet me next week.