The Billionaire's Unexpected Proposal by Samantha

Billionaire’s 157

Billionaire’s 157

Chapter 157

Derek leaned back in his chair as he sipped his whiskey. Ethan sat across from him, nursing a beer, his gaze distant as he stared at the wall behind Derek's shoulder. The lounge was their usual hangout spot, cozy and familiar, but tonight was different. Ethan was not his usual funny and chatty self, and it was glaring.

Derek studied Ethan for a moment, watching his friend's face for any sign of emotion. "So, what's going on with you, man? How are you really feeling about the whole situation with Rayna?" Derek asked, breaking the silence that had settled between them after their pleasantries and small talk about work. Ethan took a slow sip of his beer, his expression unreadable. "I'm fine," he said flatly. "I've moved on."

Derek raised an eyebrow. "Really? Just like that?"

Ethan shrugged. "Yeah. Just like that."

Derek set his glass down on the table with a soft thud, leaning forward. You don't just move on from someone you claimed to love, Ethan. You don't just flip a switch and pretend everything's fine." Ethan's jaw tightened, but he said nothing, his eyes still fixed on the wall.

"Come on, man," Derek pressed, his voice quieter now. "You're holding on to this grudge like it's going to fix things. She's apologized, Ethan. More than once, to the best of my knowledge.

Is losing your golden sun over that misunderstanding really worth it?"

beer bottle tightened, and for a moment, Derek thought he was going to answer. But instead, Ethan sighed and shook his head. "Can you stop calling her that? Or better still, can we just talk about something else?" Before Derek could respond, his phone buzzed on the table, the screen lighting up with a message notification. He glanced down, his brow furrowing

to see it had an

pocket and connecting it to his phone. He played the recording, his face paling as he

It was Sandra.

done, Sandra's voice said

so find a way to distract him. But don't make it obvious. We

of anger and jealousy because he was still obsessed with her and then killed her and then committed suicide. It was a twisted, calculated plot, and the more Derek listened, the more his blood boiled. "What the hell..." Derek whispered under his breath, still listening to the details of how

trying to process everything he was hearing. This wasn't just about her wanting Evelyn out of the picture- this was a murder

Ethan asked, noticing

the situation made it impossible. He yanked out his earbud and handed it to Ethan. "Listen to this," he said, his voice

he played the recording. The further into the

earbud slowly, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Are you kidding me?" he asked, his voice low. "She is really doing this? She's planning to murder Evelyn...and Michael? I thought Michael was supposed to be her partner?" Derek ran a hand through his hair, still reeling from what he had heard. "I can't believe this. She's gone completely off the rails. This isn't just about some petty jealousy or ambition-

"What are you going to do?" he asked, his voice barely above a

What was he going to do? He couldn't just

didn't matter that Michael had

face the punishment for his crimes than he

this might be his opportunity to catch Sandra red-handed. But how was he going to do this