CHAPTER 79: TERRIFIED

Jack sat on the edge of his bed with his elbows on his knees, hair a mess and his entire posture screaming frustration and helplessness.

Since morning, his phone had not stopped buzzing.

Congratulations messages, wedding emojis and gossip screenshots swamped his chat groups.

Everyone was talking about Alexander and Evelyn

He had shut his curtains and turned off his phone to shut the world out but the storm inside wouldn’t quiet.

That was when the door slowly creaked open.

Olivia stepped inside with an expression carved into the perfect mask of motherly concern.

"Jack, sweetheart?"

He didn’t look up. "What do you want, Mom?"

She exhaled dramatically as if she were the victim. "I came to check on you. You haven’t eaten anything since morning."

When he did not say anything, Olivia walked closer and sat beside him, leaving just enough space to not invade but enough to show she was there.

Her voice softened. "I know you are hurting."

Jack scoffed. "Hurting doesn’t cover it."

Olivia sighed sympathetically and placed a gentle hand on his back. "I understand. Truly, I know how hard this must be."

Jack stiffened and his jaw clenched. "Do you? Do you really?"

She leaned closer, "Your brother is marrying the woman you loved. Yes, I understand." Her tone was warm but her words were poisonous.

Jack’s breath stuttered and his anger flared. "Don’t—don’t say it like that."

"But it’s the truth, darling." Her fingers stroked his back slowly. "And your outbursts, your shouting, your scene at the Carter Mansion, it didn’t help you, did it?"

Jack flinched.

Olivia continued gently, "You showed them your pain and your desperation but you didn’t show them your worth."

Jack looked at her sharply.

And Olivia saw that tiny flicker in his eyes and she fed it.

"You want Evelyn back, don’t you?"

He swallowed hard before nodding, "Yes."

"You want Alexander to stop winning for once?"

His jaw clenched. "Yes."

"Then screaming will not work," she said softly. "Screaming makes you look weak and nobody listens to a weak man."

Jack closed his eyes in humiliation.

Olivia’s tone dipped lower. "You need to change your approach."

Jack frowned. "What do you mean?"

Olivia leaned in and whispered like she was telling him a dangerous secret. "Be subtle and soft. Be patient and don’t fight them head-on. You have to make them believe you are harmless, you have to make Evelyn believe you have changed."

"What good will that do?" he asked bitterly.

Olivia gave him a soft, motherly smile masking the sharp glint beneath.

"Because people let their guard down around softness. Especially women like Evelyn who respond to gentleness." She paused. "And once her guard lowers, you slip back into her life."

Jack’s breath hitched. "You think that will work?"

"I know it will work," Olivia whispered, brushing a hand through his hair. "You already have a connection with her. You already have history. Alexander may have her now but he does not have her past."

"And remember," she added, "Your brother already thinks he has won. He won’t expect you to play smart."

His expression shifted as confusion melted into calculation.

Olivia saw it and she smiled, slow and victorious.

"That’s my boy," she whispered. "Now clean yourself up, look composed and behave politely. Show remorse and make Evelyn believe you are no threat."

Jack nodded slowly. "I can do that."

"But most importantly," Olivia said, cupping his face. "Let Alexander get comfortable. Let him think his life is perfect because that is exactly when people crumble."

Jack inhaled sharply with something new burning in his eyes.

It was bitterness and quiet rage.

"I won’t let him win," Jack whispered.

Olivia pulled him into a gentle hug, stroking his head with fake tenderness.

"I know you won’t," she murmured. "You and I, we just have to play smarter."

And as Jack finally hugged her back, Olivia’s smile shifted into something sharp, something triumphant and dangerous

Because the pieces were finally moving exactly where she wanted.

.....

[Carter Mansion]

The house was quiet, too quiet.

The grandfather clock ticked steadily in the hall and its soft rhythm echoed through the dim-lit space where Gregory sat hunched over the coffee table with papers spread in front of him.

He wasn’t working, he was pretending to. He was using the files as an excuse because he couldn’t bring himself to go upstairs to their bedroom.

Not after how badly things had spiralled between him and Melissa.

Half an hour later, Melissa finally came downstairs.

She moved past him toward the kitchen without so much as a glance. Her shoulders were stiff and her expression was unreadable.

She had never ignored him in their entire marriage like she had in the past few days. And tonight, she walked right by him as if he were furniture.

That hurt more than anything Benjamin Reid had ever said to him.

"Melissa," Gregory called quietly.

But she didn’t stop, like he had expected.

"Melissa," his voice sharpened just a little but it wasn’t out of anger, but desperation.

She froze.

Slowly, she turned halfway toward him with her gaze guarded and tired. "Yes?"

Gregory stood up immediately, walked to her and gently took her wrist. It was not forceful, just enough to make her pause.

"Sit with me, please." His voice cracked on the last word.

Melissa hesitated but the pain in his eyes made her sigh softly. She let him guide her back to the couch and sat beside him with a small but noticeable distance between them.

Gregory hated that distance.

He swallowed hard. "I am sorry."

She didn’t respond.

He exhaled shakily. "I have handled everything very badly. I yelled at you, shut you out, refused to listen and I am ashamed of myself for it."

Melissa’s expression flickered. The hurt was still there but it had softened.

Gregory continued with his voice thick with remorse. "I was angry, worried and I let that turn me into someone I never wanted to be with you. But you didn’t deserve that, you never have."

Her eyes dropped to her hands. "Then why did you behave that way?"

"Because—" Gregory admitted quietly, "I was terrified."

....