Chapter 99 You Think You Can Use My Patent
“You’re…” Chloe’s gaze dropped to the pillow in his hand, suspicion flickering in her eyes. Surely he wasn’t thinking what she thought he was.
“I’d like to sleep in your room tonight,” Brian said.
“Why?” Chloe asked.
“I get scared being alone in my room. You’re my bodyguard, so you’ll protect me, won’t you?”
Chloe nearly choked on her own saliva.
Brian, scared? She had watched him take down a pack of armed men without breaking a sweat and disarm someone with a gun to his head as if it were nothing.
And now he was saying those words with a perfectly straight face.
“Don’t you have bodyguards outside your room?” she asked. A few of the Steele family’s bodyguards had come along to the island to ensure his safety.
“They’re not you. You’re the only one I trust,” he replied.
Chloe was momentarily speechless. With a long sigh, she finally said, “Fine. You take the bed. I’ll sleep on the couch.”
After all, she was his bodyguard now.
“I’ll take the couch,” he said instead, setting a pillow down before stretching out on it.
Chloe didn’t argue further. “Good night, then,” she murmured, glancing at him.
ぐ
“Good night.” He gave her a faint smile.
She found herself staring at the gentle curve of his smile. Recently, his smile had appeared more often, a sharp change from the coldness he once carried.
Chloe closed her eyes and drifted to sleep, but Brian didn’t. He remained on the couch, sitting upright, his gaze fixed on her as she lay on the bed.
She probably thought he was afraid of being attacked. But the truth was, his fear was for her.
He was terrified something might happen to her and even more afraid that she might go back on the promise she had made to him. He feared her offer to give him a chance was nothing more than a fleeting thought.
Loving someone, he realized, brought with it a whole new world of fears. He wondered if Liam had felt the same way when he loved Emily all those years ago.
But unlike his father, he wouldn’t end up in misery.
Liam’s actions had only driven Emily to hate him more.
Brian, on the other hand, would make sure Chloe loved him even if it meant using this body and this face to win her over.
His hand stilled, fingers brushing the old, jagged scars across his back. He had kept them as a constant reminder to himself, but now he feared Chloe might find his scarred body repulsive.
“Chloe… please don’t be disgusted by me,” he whispered, his voice barely audible in the stillness of the
room.
The next morning, Chloe and the man she had just pinned down, Brian, were staring at each other in wide- eyed shock.
“Sorry, I wasn’t fully awake. I didn’t realize it was you,” she muttered, cheeks warming.
When he’d leaned over the bed while she was half–asleep, her instincts had kicked in the moment his
hand reached toward her.
She hadn’t snapped back to full awareness until after she’d already pressed him flat against the bed.
“It’s fine,” Brian replied easily. “I was only trying to wake you up. But if you ever feel like pinning me down
again, I won’t complain.”
What a brazen thing to say!
Chloe’s ears flamed.
If any other man had said something like that, it would’ve sounded like a corny pickup line. But with Brian’s dead–serious expression, the words set her imagination spinning.
Maybe there was a reason the magazine had named him the man most women want to dominate.
“Ahem!” Chloe cleared her throat and stood, eager to change the subject. “You should head back to your room and get ready. I need to freshen up too. Isn’t there an investment conference on the island today?”
“Yes,” Brian said. “Interested?”
“Me?” She gave a small smile. “Not really.”
Lena’s Skyline Tech had no immediate plans to expand into Yarfdale, and she would be returning to Corvessia to continue working for her company, rather than staying in Yarfdale or joining Quall Group.
Naturally, she had little interest in the investment conference for the island development project.
Still, she was aware that the Steele family was involved in the project and that Brian had come to Yarfdale for that very reason.
“What if I told you that the proposal Curtis is submitting to the Yarfdale government uses a patent you
filed while you were married? Would you still have no interest?” Brian asked.
Chloe froze. “How do you know that?”
“Is it really that hard to find out?” he shot back.
Chloe laughed at herself. She had asked a foolish question. With the Steele family also involved in the
island’s development, it was obviously easy for Brian to access that kind of information.
In the end, Chloe attended the government–hosted investment conference alongside Brian.
When Willow saw Chloe walk in with Brian, her expression immediately soured. “Brian, why did you bring
Chloe to the investment conference? She’s just a retired soldier. What could she possibly understand
here?”
A half–smile tugged at Brian’s lips. “If you can understand it, she certainly can.”
Willow’s gaze hardened. “Even if you’re interested in her, you’re giving her far too much credit.”
“How I see Chloe is none of your business,” Brian shot back.
Willow could only grit her teeth in frustration.
Shortly after, Curtis and Sonya arrived in the conference hall.
Upon seeing Chloe, Curtis‘ eyes narrowed. “Chloe, what are you doing here?”
“If you can be here, why can’t I?” Chloe shot back, a sarcastic smile tugging at her lips.
“I’m here on behalf of Green Tech. And you… who are you representing? Your friend’s Skyline Tech isn’t even on the government’s list of companies attending this conference,” Curtis said.
“You’re planning to use my patent. Shouldn’t I be here to see it for myself?” Chloe replied.
Curtis‘ face darkened instantly. How did she know?
He glanced at Brian, standing beside her. Clearly, Brian was now backing her, and kicking Chloe out would
be impossible.
“When we divorced, we agreed that the patent was developed after our marriage, which means I have the right to use it!” Curtis insisted.
Sonya interjected, “Chloe, you were so quick to agree to the divorce terms. And now that Curtis wants to use the patent, suddenly you’re having second thoughts? I knew a woman like you would go back on her word. But even if you refuse, it doesn’t matter. Everything is governed by the law!”
Sonya’s eyes gleamed with anticipation, eager to see Chloe’s frustration.
What did it matter if Chloe was talented enough to create a patent? Curtis could still use it, and all the profits would belong to them.
Chloe met Sonya’s malicious grin with cool disdain. “I never said you couldn’t use it. But do you really
Chapter 99 You Think You Can Use My Patent
think my patent is something you can actually use?”
