The Tycoon's Gutsy Wife

Chapter 27: Saved Her

He moved faster than he’d expected. He pulled her back and planted her against a concrete wall, shielding her as dust and debris rained down. The beam hit the floor with a deafening crash less than an arm’s length from where her head had been.

She pressed flat against the wall, her breath coming in shallow, fast gasps. Her heart was hammering in her throat.

"Are you okay?" Darien asked, voice low with concern.

Adeline nodded, too shaken to form words. She felt absurdly grateful and deeply aware of how close she had come to being crushed.

Darien’s hand stayed at her back a moment longer than necessary, steadying her. She could feel the heat of his palm through her shirt while his face was so close, only staying a few inches away from hers.

With this proximity, she could clearly see the height difference and her stomach did the thing again.

"Yes. I’m fine."

Despite her response, Darien didn’t let her go. One of his hands moved to her waist and her breath hitched instantly.

She looked up at him; their blue eyes met his dark green eyes. Time seemed to have stilled, while Adeline’s head felt dizzy when Darien hadn’t even done anything to her yet.

Darien glanced down at her lips, his eyes darkening with desire.

He held her waist even tighter this time, pulling her towards her until there was no distance between them anymore.

Her breath hitched once more, goosebumps rising on her skin.

She had clothes on but somehow, where he touched seemed to burn through her shirt, making that spot feel hot.

"Mr. Hawthorne," she called, her heart skipping a beat when he dipped his head towards her.

Since she despised Theodore, she was still married to that bastard. She couldn’t bring herself to cheat while still being married to him.

Darien paused, blinking at her as if he’d already come back to his senses.

He was about to say something when someone suddenly interrupted them.

"What was that?" The contractor panicked when he saw the metal on the floor. "I’m sorry about this, sir. I’ll quickly get it fixed."

Darien turned to the contractor, his scowl evident on his face. "If you’d been doing your work well then this wouldn’t have happened. What if I wasn’t here to protect her? Then, what would have happened?"

The contractor looked down, unable to make eye contact. His lack of work ethic nearly cost him the life of the woman near his boss. He didn’t know what relationship they had with each other but a life was a life at the end of the day.

"I’m so sorry sir," he apologized once again but this time, Darien wasn’t having it.

"Don’t bother. Your apology isn’t going to rewind time and fix your mistakes. You’re fired. Don’t bother coming here tomorrow. I’ll have someone else replace you and fix your mistakes," he said without an ounce of emotion evident in his tone.

The contractor’s eyes widened with regret. He was aware he’d taken his work lightly because Darien never came to oversee the whole thing but he didn’t think he would be fired on the spot.

"Sir..."

He was about to apologize but Darien gave him such a stern look that he knew that apologizing wasn’t going to fix anything.

He simply nodded and turned to leave with a scoff and a promise to get back at Darien.

The entire time, Adeline didn’t say a word, not because she didn’t have anything to say, but because Darien was still so close to her.

Since she appreciated him for taking her out of the way, she still needed her personal space.

"I think I should leave. It’s already getting late," she said, pushing Darien slightly away on the chest.

He looked down at the spot where she touched, frowning deeply.

"Alright," he said. He received a phone call and excused himself to pick it up.

Adeline used that opportunity to leave. Since she only brought his car, she would need a cap to head back to the hospital and get her car.

By the time Darien was done with his phone call, Adeline had already disappeared. There wasn’t time to dwell on where she went—he had to return to the company for an emergency board meeting because apparently, his uncle still wasn’t pleased he was sent out on the day Adeline had come with her proposal.

Darien was supposed to return to the hospital first. His bandages had moved due to the friction when he pulled Adeline away, and it hurt with the slightest move. But handling his uncle’s shenanigans was more important.

Upon reaching the board room, he met a handful of board members, all in their forties to fifties, his uncle, and then Eric, his uncle’s son.

His eyes darkened at Eric, knowing fully well the latter didn’t own enough shares to give him access to the company, talk more of entering the one room where important decisions about the company were taken.

But Darien didn’t say anything.

He simply took his seat silently, and one of the board members didn’t waste any time and started spilling out their discomfort.

"Darien, you know you can’t sign any form of partnership with the Donovan corporation without consulting either of us."

"It’s still under consideration," Darien said, his gaze on the board member who looked very displeased by his action. He glanced at his uncle who was already looking at him. "You didn’t have to do this Uncle. It makes me think that you don’t trust me."

Mr. Hawthorne glared at Darien with gritted teeth but didn’t say anything.

"This is my company and I wouldn’t run it down to the ground—"

"You say that but you’re considering signing a partnership deal with a rival company we’ve had a feud with for years without consulting anyone," Eric butted in.

Once Darien made eye contact with him, he realized he shouldn’t have said anything.

"What now? Do I have to come to you to ask for permission before deciding for my company?" Darien questioned with sarcasm evident in his tone.