Chased By My Billionaire Ex-husband
Chapter 166: She Was There For Me!

Chapter 166: She Was There For Me!

Evander’s POV

Faith? She wanted me to have faith in her?

I did. I always had faith in Claire—but not in myself. How could I, when I had become a monster capable of hatching the most twisted plans without a second thought? What was I even thinking of doing?.

I stared at the phone screen for a long moment, the message glaring back at me. I wanted to say so much, but my shame held me back. In the end, all I could manage was a single reply:

"Hm."

Pathetic. That was all I could say to her after everything.

Moments later, a notification popped up. That was a text from Damian. His words were straightforward yet laced with frustration. He explained how Claire was like a sister to him, someone he was protecting because I had asked him to.

I clenched my jaw, as I felt dumb and stupid.

"What the hell was I about to do?" I muttered under my breath, gripping my phone tightly.

I couldn’t do it anymore, standing there and looking at my cell phone. So, I went to the parking lot, got into my car, and drove without any destination in mind.

I drove aimlessly on the road. I couldn’t go home. Not like this. Eliam didn’t need to see me in such a condition, and luckily, Caspian had already taken him for the night. Maybe Caspian knew. Maybe he could sense the turmoil I was drowning in.

My phone buzzed again, but I ignored it. No texts, no calls— nothing could pull me out of this guilt.

After what felt like hours of aimless driving, I finally returned home. I called the butler as I parked, instructing him to send all the staff away for the night. I needed to be alone, completely alone.

The house was eerily quiet when I stepped inside. Too quiet. The emptiness echoed around me, and the bright lights made everything feel unbearably stark. It was suffocating. The sparkling walls, the spotless floors—everything mocked me, reminding me of the life I didn’t deserve.

I dragged myself to the living room and sank onto the couch, burying my face in my hands. My chest felt tight, the loneliness pressing down on me. The light was too bright, too pure for someone like me.

I didn’t deserve this. I didn’t deserve her.

The thought clawed at my mind, and before I could stop myself, I got up and went to the main circuit board. With trembling hands, I flipped the switches, cutting the electricity.

Darkness engulfed the house. And strangely, I felt relieved since I couldn’t see anything, not even my shadow.

I went to my room as I sat on the floor, surrounded by the emptiness and the quiet. The dark walls seemed to close in on me, and for the first time I realized that I wasn’t a man deserving of Claire’s faith.

I was just a man lost in the dark.

In the end, I resorted to my old habits—wine and cigarettes, my so-called perfect escape. They had always been my companions during my loneliest nights, numbing the pain when I had no one to turn to. But tonight, it wasn’t just loneliness gnawing at me—it was guilt, pure and suffocating guilt.

I drank glass after glass, hoping the alcohol would blur some of my thoughts, but it seemed my body refused to cooperate. I smoked until the room was shrouded in a thick, suffocating haze, but the emptiness inside me remained.

Until... she came back.

Claire.

For a moment, I thought I was hallucinating. Could it really be her? Or was my mind playing cruel tricks on me? I pinched my arm hard, feeling the sharp sting of pain. It was real. She was here.

The dim beam of her flashlight lit up the darkened room, pulling me back to reality a little. My breath hitched, and an overwhelming wave of emotions crashed over me. Relief, longing, shame—it all blended together, leaving me trembling.

I couldn’t hold back. I knew I shouldn’t, not when I was like this, but I couldn’t help myself. She was here. She had come back to me, and all I wanted was to hold her, to feel her warmth, to tell her how much I loved her and how much I believed in her.

I rose to my feet with shaky legs, but the alcohol had taken its toll. My steps were unsteady as I staggered toward her. Finally, I wrapped my arms around her from behind, resting my forehead against her shoulder.

But then I caught a whiff of myself... I was smelling smoke and booze.

I quickly pulled away, feeling ashamed. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve to see me in this state. I braced myself for her to leave, for her to turn her back on the mess I had become.

But she didn’t.

Instead, Claire stayed. She gently asked to talk, as her voice was soft and understanding. But her eyes looked scared in the darkness. I knew she hated it. She had always been drawn to light, to warmth. She was as pure and radiant as moonlight, and I—well, I was the darkness threatening to swallow her whole.

"I... I want to talk where there is light," Claire said in a low tone.

Without a word, I reached for her hand and guided her outside, to the garden. The cool night air brushed against my face. Under the pale glow of the moon, she looked ethereal, a beacon of everything good I didn’t deserve.

While I could still smell the stench of smoke and alcohol clinging to me like second skin. It was unbearable.

Claire’s POV

I stood there, stunned at how adorable Evander looked. When I told him to shower, he didn’t argue—just rushed off like a child eager to obey. He did what I was told him to do.

This wasn’t the Evander I knew. The strong, intimidating man now seemed fragile and lost.

As I waited, I wrapped my arms around myself, replaying the look in his eyes—so full of shame and longing.

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