Breaking Free, Loving Again -The Flash Marriage with Mr. CEO novel Chapter 136

Ryan jolted awake. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead as his chest heaved. His eyes darted to look around, struggling to adjust to the dark silence of his condo. The empty bottles lay splayed on the floor, evidencing his state. The remnants of the dream clung to him, so vivid and unrelenting, as if he could still see the scene unfolding before him.

The sight of Arwen intertwined in another man’s arms horrified him. She looked so … content, more at peace and happy than he had ever remembered her. But how could she be so happy with someone else? Who was that man? Was he the same one he had seen that day outside the hospital?

As he tried to figure that out, another flash of the dream surfaced in his vision—of that man. In his nightmare, he held her so close, with a soft, devoted look in his eyes, charming her into his chasm. And she was there happily following his lead, ready to surrender everything she had held precious to herself.

How could she?

He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to shake the image, but the emotions from the dream —the way she had looked at this man with a warmth in her gaze —refused to fade.

Ryan took a deep breath, rubbing his hand over his face as he tried to steady himself. "It was just a nightmare," he muttered, but couldn’t bring himself to believe, given how real it felt. Something very similar to jealousy felt like gnawing at his heart, raw and piercing, cutting through any denial he had harbored since she had left.

He reached for his phone instinctively, his hand hovering over the screen as he debated calling her. But then another truth hit him like a wave —she had blocked him. She had shut him long before he had realized.

As the stuffiness in his chest increased, he reached out for his glass that still had the whisky. Swallowing it hard, he tried his stop the ache in his heart but it didn’t ease. Instead, a knot of regret started tightening in his chest as he lay back against the couch, staring up at the ceiling.

Will the thing really not get solved if he explains everything? Is there really no turning back?

Though he knew the answer already, he still couldn’t bring his heart to accept it. How did he never realize that accepting it would be so tough? Where did he miscalculate?

Not understanding what he was feeling and why, he could only rely on drinking more to forget whatever was making him uncomfortable. With that, he poured another glass before swallowing it all in one go. His throat felt burning, but that burn was still bearable than what he was feeling in his heart.

***

The next day,

Arwen walked out of the wardrobe room when she heard her phone ring at the dresser. Her eyes darted to look over before walking to check. Seeing it was from someone she knew, she picked up the call to answer.

"Hello Carl," she answered before asking, "What is it?"