[CONTENT TEMPLATE HERE]
Chapter 830:
The words stung. But Crawford turned it over and found he wasn’t particularly worried. Easton was a lawyer. In terms of wealth, influence, and history with June, Crawford held every advantage. With Cole’s legal claim finally gone, no one else posed a real threat.
The ember in his chest rekindled, burning steadier and hotter than before. He would have her. Whatever it cost.
He finished his whiskey and slid a black card across the bar. “Do something for me,” he said, his voice settling back into its usual register of quiet command. “I want all the clinical trial data for Apex Bio’s new drug — the one set to release next month. And everything on their main competitors p>
Lucas looked at the card and smiled. “What are you planning? Playing the white knight, clearing her path p>
Crawford stood and adjusted his jacket. “No. I’m going to show her who the only man capable of standing beside her actually is p>
He turned and walked out, his bearing radiating an air of absolute certainty — and missing entirely the flicker of pity and unease that passed across Lucas’s face as he watched him go.
Crawford turned, one hand already in his trouser pocket, his posture easy and assured. His fingers were nearly on the door handle when Lucas’s voice stopped him.
“Crawford. Wait p>
𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗻
Crawford paused without turning, glancing back from the corner of his eye.
Lucas set down his glass. His expression was more serious than Crawford had seen it in years. “I consider you a friend, so I’m going to give you a piece of advice. Stay away from June Erickson p>
Crawford turned around fully, a mocking smile on his face. “Are you serious, Lucas? Cole is finished p>
Lucas shook his head, his voice dropping low. “He’s not finished. What you see is what he wants you to see. Why do you think he agreed to walk away with nothing p>
Crawford frowned. “Because Eleanor forced him p>
Lucas let out a short, humorless laugh. “Eleanor? She can strip his titles, but she cannot make Cole Compton surrender a single penny. He gave everything up voluntarily p>
That landed. Crawford held his ground, but something in him shifted. “So what? He has nothing now p>
Lucas moved closer, his voice barely above a whisper. “Because he discovered a secret. Something so profound he was willing to destroy himself to atone for it. He believed the woman he had loved for seven years was Alycia — but he was wrong. The one he should have protected with his life was June. He had the wrong person, Crawford. For three years, he was tormenting the woman his dead brother loved most p>
The truth of the substitution struck Crawford like a physical blow. He understood now. Cole’s divorce hadn’t come from indifference. It had come from a love so deep, and a guilt so crushing, that it had broken him.