Chapter 91: Changing the Game
Alexander’s POV
I raked a hand through my tangled hair, suddenly hyper-aware of how rough I looked. No sleep, no shower, wearing yesterday’s rumpled clothes. “You’re still recovering,” I said, forcing my voice to stay even. “The doctors said you need rest. This argument isn’t helping.”
“Your condition?” Nora’s bitter laugh cut through me. “Now you care? Where was this concern when you were making my life hell?”
“I’ll let you rest,” I muttered, backing toward the door. “We’ll talk when you’re stronger.”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” she shot back, her voice icy. “I’m leaving you, Alexander. Lock me up again—I’ll still find a way out. I always do.”
I froze at the threshold, turning to face her. “You’re my wife, Nora. That doesn’t change just because you want it to.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” she sneered. “It won’t make it true.”
The gnawing fear that she’d run to Liam Traynor tore at me, but I refused to let her see it. Stepping into the hallway, I barked at the security team, “No one enters without my direct say-so. She doesn’t leave this room alone. If she tries, I’m the first to know. Visitors? Clear them with me. Got it?”
The lead guard nodded sharply. “Yes, sir.”
---
Two hours later, I sat in my office at Claflin Enterprises, staring blankly at Kingsley City’s skyline. Emails piled up, calls went unanswered—I couldn’t focus.
A sharp knock snapped me out of it. “Come in,” I called, not bothering to turn.
“Jesus, Alex, you look like hell.” Jason, my VP of Development and oldest friend, didn’t mince words as he slumped into the chair across my desk.
“Thanks for the heads-up,” I grumbled, swiveling to face him. “Hadn’t noticed.”
He eyed me with concern. “When’s the last time you slept? Or showered?”
I shrugged. “Does it matter?”
“It does if you’re gonna run this company without freaking out the board.” He leaned in. “What the hell happened?”
The weight of it all crashed over me. “Nora lost the baby,” I said, voice low. “Or… she terminated it.”
Jason’s face fell. “Shit, man. I’m sorry.”
“Here’s the kicker,” I said with a hollow laugh. “It was mine. That night at Vibe, when someone helped me through the drug haze? It was her. Nora Frost.”
“You’re kidding.” His eyes widened in disbelief.
“Fucking cosmic joke, right?” I dragged a hand over my face. “I accused her of cheating, of carrying another man’s kid. Turns out it was mine. And now it’s gone because I was too damn stubborn to listen.”
“Does she know it was you that night?”
“She does now.” I swallowed hard. “She wants a divorce.”
“And you said…?”
“No, obviously.” I shot him a glare. “She’s my wife.”
“Let me guess,” Jason sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You’ve got guards on her 24/7?”
“Of course. She’d bolt to Traynor the second I let up.”
“Alex, you’re pouring gas on a wildfire.”
“What else am I supposed to do?” I snapped. “Let her walk? Let Traynor have her?”
“This isn’t a game to win,” he said, voice firm. “You’re treating your marriage like a hostile takeover. That works in the boardroom, not with a woman like Nora.”
I scoffed. “What do you know about relationships? When’s the last time you had one longer than a weekend?”
“Maybe that’s why I see this clearly,” he fired back. “I’m not blinded by ego or fear.”
His words stung more than I’d admit. “So, what’s your genius fix?”
“Back off,” he said simply. “Give her space. Let her move freely in Kingsley City.”
I laughed, incredulous. “So she can run to Traynor?”
“If she wants out that bad, guards won’t stop her. They’ll just make her fight harder.” Jason leaned closer. “You can’t apologize your way out of this. Words are cheap after what you’ve done. Show her—through actions—that you get how bad you screwed up.”
“By letting her go?” My frustration boiled over.
“By trusting her,” he corrected. “Ditch the visible security. Keep protection discreet if you have to, but stop caging her.”
I sat in silence, wrestling with his advice. Loosening my grip on Nora terrified me, but he wasn’t wrong. My control was only driving her further away.
“Sometimes you retreat to advance,” Jason added. “Give ground to gain ground. Basic strategy.”
“When did you turn into a damn therapist?” I muttered, hiding how much his words hit home.
He shrugged. “I watch. I learn. Just ‘cause I don’t date doesn’t mean I don’t get it.”
“That’s the thing with you,” I said, studying him. “You read women better than anyone, yet you’re always solo. Why?”
A shadow crossed his face. “Haven’t found the right one, I guess.”
“Or you’re scared to try,” I pressed. “Love isn’t just some concept. It’s about that one person who flips your world upside down.”
Jason went quiet, thoughtful. Then he stood. “I’ve got work. Think about what I said, Alex.”
As he reached the door, I called, “Jason?”
He turned. “Yeah?”
“Thanks.”
He nodded, but I caught the flicker of unease in his eyes before he left.
Alone again, I spun my chair back to the window. Give ground to gain ground. Could he be right? Had my obsession with control cost me everything?
I thought of Nora—her fierce spirit, her defiance, her sharp mind. From the start, those traits pulled me in, even as I tried to tame them. I wanted her fire without the burn. Now, I was left with nothing but ashes.
Yet, beneath her rage, I’d seen a spark in her eyes—something that could’ve been, maybe still could be. Despite it all, I knew she felt something for me, buried under the wreckage of my mistakes.
Decision made, I grabbed my phone and dialed Eric. “Remove all security from Mrs. Claflin’s hospital room. Now.”
“Sir?” Eric hesitated. “Are you sure?”
“Do it,” I snapped. “And one more thing.”
“Yes, sir?”
“Assign our best operatives for discreet surveillance. She doesn’t know they’re there. If she tries to leave Kingsley City, I’m informed immediately. This is protection, not a cage. Her safety is priority one. Clear?”
“Crystal, sir.”
I hung up, staring at the city below. For the first time in days, a sliver of hope cut through the darkness. Maybe, just maybe, this was the first step to winning back what I’d nearly destroyed.