Chapter 162
Grace's POV
"It's Leon," Daisy said softly. "He told me earlier he was back from his business trip."
I felt Alex's entire body tense. His hand, which had been resting casually on my thigh, now gripped with enough force to leave marks.
The irony wasn't lost on me. Since Alex's accident, Leon had maybe called three times. Never once had he come to visit his injured son. Not once. And now, when we were finally having a peaceful family moment, he shows up.
I could feel the collective breath being held around the table. Eleanor's face went carefully blank. Ethan's knuckles whitened around his wine glass.
Alex said nothing. He just stared at his plate, his breathing shallow and controlled. But I could see the storm building behind his eyes.
The front door opened, and footsteps echoed in the foyer. Heavy, confident strides that seemed to suck the warmth right out of the room.
Then Leon appeared in the dining room doorway.
He was tall like Alex, but where Alex carried himself with quiet authority, Leon radiated cold dominance.
"Well," Leon said, his voice carrying that particular brand of coldness. "Having a family dinner without calling me? How... thoughtful."
Eleanor's smile disappeared completely. The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees.
Alex didn't look up. Didn't acknowledge his father's presence at all. He just continued cutting his food with mechanical precision, each movement deliberate and controlled. But I could feel the tension radiating off him in waves.
"Leon," Eleanor said carefully. "We didn't know you were back."
"Clearly." His gaze swept the table before settling on Alex with something that looked like contempt. "Alex. Still playing the invalid, I see."
Oh, hell no.
I felt my own anger flare, but Alex's hand found mine under the table, squeezing gently. A warning. Let me handle this, his touch seemed to say.
But he wasn't handling it. He was just sitting there, taking it.
"Actually," I said, my voice carefully pleasant, "Alex has been recovering remarkably well. The doctors are amazed by his progress."
Leon's attention shifted to me, and I felt like a bug under a microscope.
The silence stretched taut. Daisy cleared her throat nervously.
"Leon," she said, forcing brightness into her voice, "Grace made this wonderful dinner. Why don't you sit down? I can have the staff set another place—"
"How kind," Leon interrupted, but his tone suggested it was anything but. "Though I wouldn't want to impose on what's clearly a... private family gathering."
The emphasis he put on 'family' made it clear he seemed like he wasn't part of it.
I felt Alex's grip on my hand tighten. When I glanced at him, his knuckles were white, his jaw locked so tight I was afraid he might crack a tooth.
"Please," I said, gesturing to an empty chair. "Join us."
It was the polite thing to do. The right thing. But every instinct I had was screaming at me to get Alex out of here before this got worse.
Leon's smile was sharp as a blade. "How gracious. I suppose having a wife has taught my son some manners." He pulled out the chair directly across from Alex. "Though I notice he hasn't bothered to greet his father properly."
Alex's fork stilled. For a moment, I thought he might actually look up, might engage. Instead, he set down his utensil and reached for his water glass, still refusing to meet Leon's gaze.
"Really, Alex?" Leon's voice carried a dangerous edge now. "This is how you show respect? How you demonstrate the values I raised you with?"
Values? I wanted to laugh. What values? Emotional neglect? Indifference when your child nearly dies?
I squeezed Alex's hand, running my thumb across his palm in what I hoped was a soothing gesture. His skin was ice-cold.
"Perhaps," Eleanor said carefully, "we could discuss this later—"
"No." Leon's voice cut through the air like a whip. "I think we should address this now. My son seems to have forgotten basic courtesy."
He leaned forward, his eyes fixed on Alex with laser intensity. "Look at me when I'm speaking to you."
Alex's breathing grew shallower.
"Leon," Ethan said quietly, "perhaps—"
"Perhaps nothing." Leon's attention snapped to Ethan. "This is between me and my son."
The word 'son' dripped with disappointment and barely contained rage.
That's when Alex finally moved. He set down his water glass with deliberate care and slowly, deliberately, raised his eyes to meet his father's gaze.
The look that passed between them was electric with years of unspoken resentment. Alex's eyes were flat, emotionless—but underneath, I could see the hurt. The little boy who'd never been good enough, who'd never measured up to impossible standards.
"Hello, Father," Alex said quietly. His voice was perfectly controlled, perfectly polite. And somehow, that made it worse.
Leon's jaw tightened. "That's all? After two weeks of not returning my calls, that's all you have to say?"
"What would you like me to say?"
The question hung in the air like a challenge. Leon's face flushed with anger.
"I'd like you to show some goddamn respect," he snarled. "I'd like you to remember that everything you have, everything you are, comes from me."
Alex's smile was razor-thin. "Is that what you think?"
"It's what I know."
The tension was suffocating now.
Then Leon made his fatal mistake.
He swept his arm across the table, sending Alex's plate crashing to the floor in an explosion of ceramic and food.
"I taught you better than this!" he roared. "What happened to the manners I drilled into you? What happened to respect?"
I instinctively moved to shield Alex, my heart hammering against my ribs. But Alex was already rising from his chair, his movements fluid despite his recent injuries.
"You're right," he said, his voice deadly quiet. "You did teach me. You taught me that love is conditional. That nothing I do will ever be good enough. That family is just another word for obligation."
Ethan's cane hit the floor with a sharp crack. "That's enough!"
But Leon wasn't done. His face was purple with rage now, spittle flying as he spoke.
"You ungrateful—I gave you everything! I built this empire for you!"
"You built it for yourself," Alex replied calmly. "I was just the heir you needed to continue your legacy."
Leon's hand shot out, aiming for Alex's face. I didn't think—I just moved, stepping between them.
The slap caught me across the cheek and neck, the force of it sending me stumbling backward. Pain exploded across my face as I hit the floor hard, my vision swimming.
The room erupted.