Obsession His Runaway Bride (Noelle and Adrian) novel Chapter 131

Chapter 131: Scorn

“I want the girl who kissed me without warning because it felt right. I want the woman who scoffs at herself because it’s safer than hoping. I want the one who wears boots instead of heels and armor instead of perfume. Because she’s survived more than most and still manages to find laughter in a world that tried to break her

He paused, letting the silence settle just enough to hold the weight of what he was about to

say.

Then, gently, he said her name.

“Grace.”

She looked at him, startled by how tender his voice had gone.

“I want you,” he continued. “In every version, on your worst days and your braver ones. I want the girl who still flinches at kindness but hasn’t stopped craving it. The one who apologizes for taking up space because no one ever taught her she was allowed to exist loudly.

Her throat tightened. She tried to look away, but he stepped in closer.

“I want the you who’s still healing. The one who doesn’t know what to do with softness but gives it anyway. I want the Grace who walks like she’s ready for war but looks at the world like there’s still something worth saving.”

Her breath caught, and he saw it-the part of her that wanted to run, the part that had only ever known love as something painful and sharp. But still, she stayed.

“You don’t have to be easy to love,” he said. “I’m not looking for easy. I’m looking for real. And Grace, you… you’re the most real thing I’ve ever known.”

Her lips parted like she wanted to speak, but the words failed her.

He stepped closer again, barely a breath between them now.

“You think you’re hard to love because you were always made to feel like a burden,” he whispered. “But loving you? It’s the most natural thing in the world. Like breathing.”

And then, after a heartbeat more, he added…

“So if you’re asking why I’m not mad… it’s because, Grace, everything you are… it all just makes me want you more.”

Her eyes glistened. Her chest rose and fell too fast.

And this time, when she scoffed at herself, it was different. It wasn’t bitterness. It wasn’t armor. It was disbelief, the kind that said she almost dared to believe he meant every word.

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Chapter 131. Scorn

And before she could even think of saying anything, he added once more.

“And I’ll keep saying it until you believe it too.”

+15 BONUS

The drive back was quiet not because there was nothing to say, but because everything that needed to be said had already been spoken in the stillness between them. Grace sat beside him in the car with her hand resting in his while her gaze turned toward the window where the city lights blurred like brushstrokes on glass. She wasn’t smiling, not exactly. But the calm on her face was something far rarer.

Keegan’s thumb traced gentle arcs across her knuckles, assuring her like he’d done all night.

When the car pulled into the long drive of the Sergeyev estate, Grace stirred slightly, lifting her head from where it had rested against the seat. The house stood under the glow of the moonlight.

As the car’s door opened, Keegan stepped out first, circling to her side before she even reached for the handle. He didn’t say a word and just offered his hand. And without hesitation this time, Grace took it.

The cold of the night touched her cheeks as they walked up the stone steps side by side. The gravel crunched underfoot, and the hum of cicadas sang somewhere in the trees.

But just when they thought the night had finally settled, a voice broke the quiet behind them.

“What a beautiful night to go on a date,” the man said dryly. “Especially after going AWOL from your own company for days.”

Grace stiffened instantly. Keegan tensed beside her before turning slowly, his jaw tightening with every word that followed.

Akim Sergeyev stood under the archway with his crisp suit an dark eyes clearly unimpressed. He leaned against the wall like he owned the place-which, in part, he once had.

His gaze slid past Keegan and landed squarely on Grace, sweeping over her with a slow, measured disdain that made her spine straighten and her fists subtly clench at her sides.

“So this is why you’ve been preoccupied lately,” kim said as a cruel little smile curled on his lips.

The mockery in his voice wasn’t even veiled. It dripped from every syllable like something

rotten.

Keegan shifted slightly just enough to place himself between Akim and Grace. His jaw flexed, teeth clenched tight. The tension in his shoulders was a warning in itself.

“Uncle,” he said in a low and even tone. “What are you doing here?”

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Chapter 131: Scorn

+15 BONUS

Akim tilted his head, pretending to examine the stars as if he hadn’t just shattered the quiet with contempt. “I could ask you the same. But I suppose we’ve outgrown pleasantries, haven’t we? I came to remind you of your responsibilities, dear nephew. Investors are growing anxious, your staff is in chaos, deadlines have been missed and where is the elusive Sergeyev heir?” He turned slowly toward Grace, his lip curling. “Out playing house with a stray.”

The word landed like a slap, but Grace didn’t flinch.

She was silent and still.

Not because it didn’t hurt but because she’d been called worse. Because surviving meant learning when to absorb a wound and when to strike. Her hands remained at her sides, fists curling only slightly.

But Keegan’s reaction was instant.

A sound like a growl built in his throat. He took a hard step forward, hand half-raised, the storm in his eyes breaking free.

Grace’s arm shot out, stopping him.

“Keegan,” she said in a firm voice. Her fingers curled around his wrist not in a pleading manner. “Don’t.”

It was the way she said it, not as someone afraid, but as someone who knew exactly what it cost to lose control. Her touch steadied him.

He exhaled sharply, grounding himself in her voice. In her restraint.

Akim scoffed. “Of course. She speaks now. What’s next, she’ll tell you how to run your company too?”

Keegan didn’t respond. He wouldn’t give the man that satisfaction.

But Akim didn’t stop. His sneer deepened.

“You were never built for this, Keegan,” he said with scorn. “All that power your father left behind, and this is what you do with it? Trade it for some sad-eyed girl with a blade and a sob story. You’re weak. Just like he was.”

And that’s when it happened.