The Day I Walked Away My Empire Began novel Chapter 265

Lucie sat there for a long moment before finally blurting out, “Elio, I’m serious. I’m actually mad at you right now.”

Elio looked at her with an exaggeratedly innocent face. “Hey, you kissed me first. I just kissed you back.”

“You… you know that’s not—”

“That’s not what?”

She threw up her hands. “Never mind. I can’t even explain it to you.”

He just grinned. “No need to explain. I’ll just take it as proof you’re head over heels for me.” He started the car, clearly pleased with himself.

Lucie was left speechless, a jumble of feelings twisting inside her. Elio was just as infuriating as Steven, just in a completely different way. He was the kind of trouble she knew better than to mess with.

“It’s really late and nothing’s open. Want to grab some noodles?” Elio asked, breaking the silence.

“Yeah, sure.”

A little while later, he pulled up in front of an small noodle shop—the only place still open on the street. They went inside, ordered some noodles and a few snacks, and found a quiet spot to sit.

“Just eat something simple,” he said, nudging her to dig in.

“Mm-hmm,” Lucie replied, picking up her chopsticks.

When they finished, Elio drove her back to the hospital.

Lucie hesitated, then said, “Elio, you should really just go back to your hotel. You don’t have to stay here with me.”

He shot her a gentle smile. “It’s fine. If anything happens, I want to be here to protect you. Seriously, I’ll just crash on the couch in the waiting area.”

“No way. I’ll ask the nurse to bring in a folding bed.”

“That works too.”

A few minutes later, a nurse wheeled in a fold-out cot. Elio stretched out on it, making himself comfortable, and stayed by Lucie’s side for the night.

***

The next morning, the internet blew up with scandal after scandal about Heath International.

[Heath Entertainment Casino: Suspected Arson After Guest Loses $10 Million and Jumps From Rooftop]

[Room 2808 at Heath Entertainment Rumored Haunted, Multiple Guest Deaths]

[Heath Entertainment’s Architecture Designed to Drain Patrons’ Luck]

Steven woke up and, as usual, checked the news. He’d seen these stories swirling for days now, though the uproar had started to quiet down. At this point, nothing surprised him anymore.

Then he saw headlines about his own marriage—and nearly choked on his own breath.

Steven’s chest felt heavy. “Let’s wait a bit.”

“Why?”

“The main thing right now is Cody. I haven’t decided how to announce his parentage yet.”

Bria smiled kindly. “Why make an announcement at all? We don’t have to say anything about Cody. Even after we get married, I can raise him as his stepmom.”

Steven was silent, not knowing how to respond. The truth was, he wasn’t ready to go public with the divorce. With all this negative press, announcing his split from Lucie could destroy Heath International’s reputation.

His phone buzzed again. The vice president was calling.

“Hello?”

The VP’s voice was tense. “Mr. Heath, bad news. The official order just came in. We have to shut down Heath Entertainment immediately and can’t reopen until we pass inspections.

“I’ve already released a statement saying we’re closing for renovations to keep customers calm, but that won’t last long.”

Steven pushed himself upright in bed. “Mr. Heath, you need to come back and take charge.”

“I’ll be in New Amberton this afternoon,” Steven replied, then hung up, feeling more overwhelmed than ever.

Heath International’s main business was gaming, and the top five casinos in New Amberton all belonged to him. Heath Entertainment was the biggest name—the one that brought in the most money.