Fake Mating To My Ex's Powerful Enemy

Chapter 269: Chapter 269 When Friends Call You an Idiot

Christina’s POV

"If you cut any deeper, you’ll lose a finger." freewёbnoνel.com

"What?" I looked up, blinking away my daze.

Fabrizio gently took the blade from my gloved hand. His expression was concerned. "You’re distracted. Not exactly the best mindset for working with sharp objects that could sever tendons."

"Sorry." I stripped off the gloves and stood, suddenly feeling claustrophobic in the workshop. "I need some air."

"Come to Café Loufoque with me. I’m dying for a noisette, and you look like you could use a caffeine IV drip."

"Sure."

We stepped out of the workshop. Even with my mind trapped in a fog of Hudson-related anxiety, something felt off about the office.

"Where is everyone?" The open-plan space was eerily quiet, with half the desks sitting empty.

"On vacation," Fabrizio said with a casual wave. "April is always slow. Most people save their time off for now."

"Oh." I followed him into the elevator. "I’ve never seen you take a day off."

"I’m the boss. Can’t afford those luxuries." He smiled, eyes crinkling at the corners. "But if you decide to stay, you can have mine. I’ve got months’ worth piled up."

"Still trying to poach me, huh?" I attempted a smile. "Thanks, but I’ve got my studio."

"We could join forces."

"Funny you say that. I’ve made up my mind. I’m signing the joint venture papers."

His head snapped around so fast I worried he’d hurt himself. "You are?" His eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas morning. "That’s brilliant."

I nodded, feeling the first genuine spark of excitement I’d had in days. "I’d already decided. Just needed to move some money around."

The money Dominic had been transferring to me on Hudson’s orders every month remained untouched, sitting in a separate account like radioactive waste I refused to handle.

Now that I was preparing for a future without Hudson, I definitely wasn’t about to start using it.

"You’re being ridiculous," Akira growled. "Hudson wouldn’t just..."

"Not now," I cut her off. Between my savings and income from the studio, I had enough to cover half the investment.

"This calls for a celebration," Fabrizio declared, changing direction and pulling me down a different street. "Proper food. Not just coffee and croissants."

"You’re paying."

"Of course." He found a table at a chic bistro and ordered for both of us. "I’ll send over the share purchase agreement this afternoon. Get a lawyer to look it over."

"Will do."

Fabrizio studied me. "If I didn’t know you better, I’d think going into business with me had depressed you."

I forced a smile. It felt fake, so I gave up and shrugged. "It’s not that. I’m just tired."

"I’ve been working you too hard," he said, sounding genuinely guilty.

"No, I love the work." I couldn’t exactly tell him I felt like my engagement was falling apart. So I said, "I’ll probably be spending more time in Paris. Might even move the studio here."

"Yes!" he said, actually snapping his fingers. I’d never seen him do that. "I wanted to bring it up, but figured I’d sound too eager. You’ve no idea how happy that makes me."

I raised my glass. "Cheers."

At least Fabrizio’s offer was real, solid. Something I could build on without worrying it would disappear.

Hudson had been back in Highrise City for two days. We’d called over the weekend, gone through the motions. "How was your day?" "Did you eat?" "Sleep well?" "Goodnight."

But I could feel the act on both ends. Our conversations felt like rehearsed lines from a bad play.

He seemed distracted. Like something was bothering him, weighing down his usual confident attitude.

A few times, he started to speak, then changed his mind, swallowing whatever he’d been about to say.

He had that look. Nervous, guilty. Like someone about to deliver bad news they’d been avoiding.

I didn’t push him. The wolf in me wanted to howl, to demand answers, but my human side knew better.

"You should ask him directly," Akira insisted. "This isn’t like you, avoiding confrontation."

"I’m not avoiding," I argued silently. "I’m giving him space to figure things out."

"You’re scared," she said bluntly.

When he was ready, he’d tell me. But the signs were all there. He’d stopped asking about the wedding dress. Never asked for my guest list. The honeymoon talk had gone cold.

Fabrizio, ever the gracious host, didn’t pry, but he must have sensed something was off. After a long lunch, we went back to the office.

I signed the share agreement and transferred the money.

Just like that, we were business partners.

I shoved thoughts of Hudson into a mental drawer and got back to work, sketching out a new collection using plique-à-jour enameling.

Work, work, work.

It was the only thing keeping me grounded right now, stopping me from spiraling into a pit of relationship anxiety. freēwēbηovel.c૦m

But once I left the office, I was back to being that hollow, floating version of myself. Lost in a foreign city without an anchor.

Ysolde knew me too well. The silence on the phone barely lasted a second before she attacked.

"Spill."

I didn’t want to.

I’d been dreading this call. Ysolde had a way of putting into words things I couldn’t bear to admit to myself.

But she wasn’t the type to let anything go. Like a wolf with a bone, she’d keep digging until she got what she wanted.

"Tell me over the phone, or I’ll fly to Paris and drag it out of you in person."

I sighed, flopping back on the hotel bed. "I... I don’t think there’s going to be a wedding, after all."

Silence. I could practically hear her brain processing.

Then. "Start from the beginning. Tell me everything."

So I told her everything. The woman in the red dress, the almost-kiss, the sudden call that pulled him away, the way they’d flown back to Highrise City together.

And the sinking feeling that this woman meant more to Hudson than anyone else ever had. Including me.

"He hasn’t said anything," I said, my voice small. "But I can feel it. A breakup’s coming."

I heard footsteps on her end.

"You going somewhere?"

"Just stepping onto the balcony," she said. "Need some air. Then I can tell you..."

She paused.

Then shouted, loud enough to make me yank the phone away from my ear. "YOU BLOODY IDIOT!"

"I like her," Akira commented dryly. "Straight to the point."

"Excuse me?" I sputtered.

"You. Are. An. Idiot," Ysolde said slowly like she was talking to a particularly dense child. "Alpha Hudson is crazy about you. Any wolf with functioning eyes can see it."