The Ex Who Became His Obsession novel Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Before Alyssia could leave the room, Leonard had already taken out his phone. “Joseph, come up,” he ordered directly. “And call the police. An employee at Rosewood Manor has been stealing.”

At the sound of his words, Eloise’s face drained of color. Her knees buckled, and she fell to the ground again. “Mr. Rivera, no,

1-

“Anything you have to say, say it to the police.” Leonard’s voice wasn’t loud, but it was enough to silence Eloise. “From the looks of it, this isn’t your first time.”

Joseph hurried up the stairs. “Mr. Rivera, the police will be here shortly.”

Leonard then instructed, “And make sure to check out this maid and see if there’s anything else like this in the house. I can afford to hire people at Rosewood Manor, but I can’t afford to keep parasites.”

Joseph waved his hand, and the bodyguards hauled Eloise, now weak and limp, out of the room.

Leonard then turned to Alyssia, his tone indifferent and casual. “Happy now?”

Alyssia was first taken aback, then almost laughed out loud. She actually smiled at him, “Mr. Rivera, how you handle your maid is none of my concern. As long as you’re happy about this, that’s all that matters. I’m just an outsider, not important.”

Joseph’s eyes widened in disbelief, and he could hardly believe his ears. He thought, ‘Is this really the same Ms. Clairmont who was so docile and cautious around Mr. Rivera?‘

A dark cloud of frustration and impatience spread across Leonard’s face. “Have you lost your mind these past few days? If you’re sick in the head, take some medicine. What’s with the sarcasm?”

He stepped forward and grabbed Alyssia. For some reason, he felt like she wasn’t just throwing a tantrum. She was acting strangely, strangely enough that even Leonard, who usually didn’t pay much attention to her, could notice it clearly.

But Leonard couldn’t understand the reason behind it, nor did he care to. He pulled Alyssia roughly to his side, her shoulder colliding with his chest. “Enough, it’s late,” he said.

Normally, he only needed to say half of what he meant, and Alyssia would understand. For example, it was late, and it was time to rest.

Leonard thought Alyssia should get what he meant. After all, despite her seeming dull in many things over the years, she had always managed to satisfy him in this regard.

But to his surprise, Alyssia immediately pulled her arm from his grip, glaring at him coldly. “Mr. Rivera, if you’re not blind, you shouldn’t be deaf, right? You didn’t hear a single word of what Eloise just said?”

By the time Eloise had mocked Alyssia, the sound of water in the bathroom had already stopped. Alyssia knew Leonard must have fully witnessed Eloise’s humiliation of her. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have so easily condemned Eloise.

Alyssia thought, “Though Leonard doesn’t love me, he still has a bit of conscience and fairness, but I’m not grateful. I won’t be grateful to him anymore. This fairness is what I deserve. He’s been unfair to me in so many ways in the past.

‘Did I ever hold it against him? Now, all he’s doing is returning a tiny bit of what’s due to me. Does that mean I’m supposed to cave in again and thank him for something that’s rightfully mine?‘

“So what do you want?” Leonard took a step closer to Alyssia, his eyes cold. “Are you really going to ruin a maid’s life over a

necklace?”

1/3

Chapter 16

He pondered, ‘Is reporting Eloise to the police not enough? Is an investigation not enough? Is Alyssia really this ruthless and unforgiving?‘

“Alyssia, don’t push your luck,” Leonard said frigidly.

Alyssia looked at him as if he were a stranger. For the first time, she realized the vast gap in understanding between them.

She mused, ‘I once fantasized about marrying Leonard with this kind of disconnect between us?‘ After letting go, Alyssia couldn’t help but find herself laughable.

She opened her mouth, and the self–respect that had grown back finally overcame the last remnants of her fading shame. She smiled, her voice as light as a breeze, “Mr. Rivera, I’m not your plaything.”

They had already broken up. This was the choice Leonard had given Alyssia.

Leonard’s brows furrowed deeply. “You can’t even handle a maid gossiping about you? Didn’t you major in journalism? Aren’t people in your field supposed to have thick skin? What, you’ve suddenly grown a backbone after all these years of being a pathetic doormat?”

Alyssia simply stared at Leonard, her gaze complicated for a moment. She thought, ‘How did I ever put up with him? He’s always been this harsh, never cared if his words cut deep–and I tolerated it for thirteen years?

‘He said I was pathetic, and I don’t even have a comeback. Because he’s right. I was pathetic. For years, I bent over backwards with no self–esteem just to stay close to him!

After a long moment, Alyssia finally laughed, “Mr. Rivera, you’re absolutely right. Unfortunately, I’ve only just understood such logic today.”

This time, Leonard studied her for a moment, as if assessing her. “Fine,” he said, his tone surprisingly softened, actually giving in for once. “I’ve already punished Eloise. No one will gossip about you anymore.”

“Isn’t she being punished for stealing? What does that have to do with gossiping?” Alyssia retorted.

“Enough.” Leonard suddenly erupted in anger. “How much longer are you going to drag this out? It’s a trivial matter, so when will you stop bothering me about it?”

His concession wasn’t to allow Alyssia to push further, but to get her to let go of it. Leonard thought, ‘What I hate most is her greed, the way she always pushes for more–and now she’s doing it right in front of me.‘

But what really fueled his anger wasn’t just that. It was the fact that Alyssia was suddenly slipping out of his control, that she actually had the nerve to reject what he saw as a rare moment of kindness–his version of compromise.

Alyssia, however, smiled even more lightly, and it was even sharper than before. “So, to you, this is just a trivial matter?” she questioned.

She ignored Leonard’s increasingly cold expression. “Please don’t make such a big deal out of this trivial matter. You can brush it off as you always do.

“Forgive my petty nature, but I can’t. As for my own mess, just leave me to it as usual. You don’t have to worry about me.”

Leonard was nearly driven mad by Alyssia’s calm yet biting attitude. He gripped her wrist, lifting her up, and lowered his voice. “Didn’t Eloise get it right? Aren’t you just a plaything…”

Just as he said that, Leonard suddenly paused, catching a glimpse of someone who shouldn’t have been here out of the corner of his eye.

Leonard demanded, “What are you still doing here?” His glare at Joseph was murderous.

2/3

(15)

Joseph was so scared that every fiber of his being trembled. “Mr. Rivera, Mrs. Rivera arrived, and she brought Ms. Johnson and Charlie with her. They should still be in the living room downstairs.”

Leonard froze for a moment, then his anger flared even more. “Why are you just telling me this now?”

Joseph looked wronged. “Mr. Rivera, Mrs. Rivera didn’t let anyone come up to inform you. I only came up because you

asked me to-”

Leonard shoved Alyssia aside and quickly headed downstairs. Halfway down, he stopped, turned, and glared at her with stormy eyes. “Watch your mouth. Got it?”

As he reached the middle of the stairs, Beatrice’s soft, soothing voice echoed up as she said, “It’s wrong to resort to violence. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure that the one responsible for this will apologize to you.”

Upon hearing the footsteps, Beatrice immediately turned and scolded, “Look at what you’ve done. Where the hell are your

manners-”