Bonds

Chapter 122

Alex’sPOV-

Two weeks earlier-

I watched her bolt, the door slamming shut with a finality that echoed the hollowness blooming in my chest. A million things buzzed in my head, a swarm of words begging to be released, explanations I desperately wanted her to hear. But they all died on my tongue, choked by the tangled mess of emotions churning in my gut.

Regret. Confusion. A yearning so deep it felt like a physical ache, a phantom limb I couldn’t quite grasp. The taste of the kiss lingered on my lips, a forbidden fruit that had left me both wanting and hollow. It was a glimpse into a world I once had but I had thrown away, a connection as thrilling as it was terrifying.

Frustration clawed at me as I ran a hand through my hair, the strands catching on the growing knots of tension at the base of my scalp. What the hell was I doing? This whole thing felt like a twisted game, a dance on the edge of a knife. One wrong move, and I could lose everything.

Pushing myself away from the door, I took a shaky breath. There was no point in dwelling on what could have been. I needed a plan, a way to deal with whatever chaos was going on in my head before it spiraled further out of control. But every thought, every strategy, kept circling back to her. With a heavy heart, I turned and headed out, the weight of the city pressing down on me. The familiar roar of the engine as I pulled out of the parking lot did little to soothe the storm raging inside. My mansion loomed ahead, a stark monument to a life that suddenly felt empty and meaningless.

Stepping inside, the silence was deafening. The plush sofas and gleaming surfaces mocked me with their sterile perfection. This wasn’t a home, it was a trophy case, a collection of achievements that now felt hollow.

I sank onto the couch, the leather cool against my skin. Suddenly, a voice sliced through the stillness, sharp and unexpected.

“Did someone have a bad day at work?”

eyes narrowed at the person sitting cross legged in my living room. I’d been so lost in my thoughts, I hadn’t even

a low growl, suspicion lacing every

smile spread across his face.

Alex.”

came out laced with irritation, a

corner and he knew every one of them. He stopped by one, a familiar glint in his eyes. Adrian used to be my best friend,

at the walls I’d built around my heart. A sigh escaped my lips, heavy with regret. I owed

back was to me as he poured himself á drink, the clinking of ice cubes against glass echoing in the

ash on my tongue. He turned, glass halfway to his lips,

to meet his gaze. “I’m sorry.” The apology felt hollow, a meager offering compared

of

features before dissolving into a

Chapter 122

you took everything from me? I was your best friend, Alex, your damn right-hand man! And you couldn’t even trust me enough to believe

stretched between us, thick and suffocating. Shame burned in my gut, a hot coal that refused to be extinguished. There were no justifications, no excuses. My father’s cruelty had damaged

of what I’d done.

what brings you here?”

glass in a sardonic toast. “Well, Alex,” he said, a cruel smile twisting his lips, “I guess you could say I’m here to share

his glass, his gaze never leaving mine. There was a chilling finality in his words, a unspoken promise of a future where our bond lay shattered,

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