Billionaire's Accidental Wife

Chapter 37

Chapter 37 Christie welcomes us to the living room. As we sit on the sofa, Dave takes another long

breath before speaking. “I feel like we left a lot of things unanswered the last time we saw each other. I

don’t think anything was cleared up in the midst of all the yelling and screaming. But first and foremost,

Christie, I need to apologise for Sebastian’s harsh tone toward you. I can’t claim to know what he was

thinking at the time, but he had no right to speak to you in that manner.”

“He is an asshole, Dave, and the way he treated Christie is the same way he will treat those workers in

Kenya.” The animosity in my voice is clear.»

“Listen, Chelsea, I know you’re angry.” He turns away from Christie and looks back at me.” But I need

you to understand that I still care about you deeply and that everything we had was real. The truth is I

know all about my partner’s activities in Kenya. But I’m not as involved in it as you think I take care of

the paperwork. But it doesn’t have much to do with me. He partners with other companies for the

equipment and works with some corrupt Kenyan leaders to ensure cheap labour and even exploit

children. He holds separate business meetings to make sure no one in the company finds out. I just

drafted the contracts.”

“That doesn’t mean you’re innocent,” Chelsea spit as he dropped his head in shame.”

“No, you’re right. It doesn’t. But he’s my partner. I don’t have the heart to go against him.”

For a moment, the room is silent. I am not angry and neither is Christie. I think we both feel sad for

Dave and how conflicted he feels. “Dave, come with me. I want to show you something.

I entangle my fingers with him in a simple yet electrifying move. We hadn’t spoken in a long time. His

skin is soft and silky, as I recall, and he immediately relaxes as he feels it. I walk him to a huge box

labelled Kenya in the centre of the chaotic living room. It houses all of my images, letters, and

mementoes from my trip, as well as lesson plans and gifts from my pupils. It is my most valuable

property, yet I rarely show it to anyone.

I dig through the box and quickly find a stack of pictures. “Wow, is this Kenya? It’s gorgeous… “Dave

says, breathless. I show him pictures of the gorgeous landscape with its rolling hills, deep valleys and

lush fields. But the picture he holds is one of my favourites. It showcases the Kenyan landscape, with

the sun shining brightly on the horizon while a few elephants mill about in the background. “I took this

picture on a break from one of my classes at the orphanage. Isn’t it beautiful? This was my view every

day and I never tired of it.” “I wouldn’t tire of it either. It’s beautiful.” I smile at him, quite smitten by his

childlike awe over the photographs. “I bet this is the side of Kenya your partners never speak about or

care to see.”

“You know Sebastian has never been to Kenya, right?”

“WHAT!” I shouted. My head whips around and then darts to Christie, who shares the same

expression. “Are you serious? He’s never even been there and yet he’s planning an operation?”

He operates everything from London. He says Kenya is too dirty for him.”

“I can’t believe that…” Christie says, looking horrified by what she has heard. I feel my blood

boil, but I try my best to control it. Dave is not my target and I cannot allow myself to attack him for the

faults of his partner.

“Are these your students?” I stare at the picture in Dave’s fingers. I am so transfixed by the people in it

that I take it from him and immediately begin to feel the tears well in my eyes. Their faces are dark and

their clothes are old and tattered, a symbol of their troubled childhood.x “Lada was the smartest girl in

my class. She had to travel the furthest distance, and she was always on time, despite not having any

shoes. Her partner died in a mining accident a few miles from the orphanage. Her sister took his death

extremely hard. She was unable to bear the burden of having to take care of three kids on her own.

She was both unemployed and uneducated. But she was a fighter, though. She battled with the heads

of the mining company and even the government for compensation, but they refused.” My face floods

with tears as I desperately try to finish the story, but I am too overcome with sadness. I completely

forgot that this picture was in the box.x”A few days after this photo was taken, we got a call from one of

Lada’s neighbours, telling us that Lada’s sister had hung herself from a tree. I guess she just felt that

was her only way out,” I cry. “I drop the picture and feel Dave’s strong hands caress my shoulders, the

sensation easing my pain somewhat.” I’m sorry, Chelsea,” he whispers. I rest my head on his broad

shoulders and am comforted by his presence. It feels wonderful to be so close to him again. “Dave, we

need to stop Sebastian. Look at this!”

I sift through the stack of photos until I come to the one I need. “This picture is an aerial shot taken from

a hike just a few days before I left. It’s the result of a mining company’s activities. They destroy the land

and leave the landscape to wither. Look, it’s completely red and the air is polluted as well because the

water and solid waste are everywhere. Rivers and valleys are a deep red colour. The red water often

seeps into the pipes of people’s homes and even the orphanage. The kids drink it without realising that

the water is contaminated and they become sick”>

“My goodness, Chelsea. I had no idea…”

Well, it’s hard to see the damage from over seven thousand miles away. Sebastian will destroy the

land, Dave, and make communities sick. And he doesn’t even care!” “You’re right. We need to stop

him… together.”

“Damn right we do,” I answer forcefully, quite enlightened by his proposal. I don’t think you should get

involved with this, Chelsea. It’s too dangerous. And no offence, Dave, but I’m not sure we can trust

you.” Christie’s voice startles us both. We turn around to face her. “I assure you, Christie, I’m not

ruthless like Sebastian. In fact, I’m nothing like him. Chelsea has opened my eyes to a side of Kenya I

never knew existed. The people, the communities, the workers, their families… they’re all at risk. We

can’t allow him to hurt them.”

“He’s right, Christie. We have to do something, and we have to do it now.

Christie nods, but I know she is not entirely convinced. The pain from her breakup with Sebastian still

haunts her too much. But with her approval or not, I will do whatever it takes to save my beloved

Kenya.

Christie goes to bed a few hours later, leaving Dave and me alone in the living room. His

unexpected arrival has triggered a flood of emotions in both me and Christie.

We also discussed the past, specifically why he pushed me away a year ago.”I did it to protect you,

Chelsea.” Since what happened at Sebastian’s safe house, I’ve been pursued not only by my enemy

but also by the authorities, and Sebastian assisted me by going into hiding for months. Then an

innkeeper told us about the important documents she stole from Sebastian’s former associates, and

Sebastian became obsessed with them. “We dug deeper and discovered it as part of the documents.

Then Sebastian sold it for millions of dollars, and the Russians, as well as Americans, wanted us to

locate the last remaining documents that were very important in American history, which I can’t divulge

any further We started the company, a fake mining company in Kenya, with the millions we had

because our data pointed us there. The documents were buried in their mountains, but Sebastian

became greedy when he discovered that mining there would make the company more money than

treasure hunting. Then he used your sister, so I can’t say no to him. You two become his leverage.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me?” “I don’t want to burden you with all my problems, Chelsea. I want you to

be safe above all.”

He must have figured out that we would come back to London for a fresh start. After all, I did tell him

how upset I was over Christie selling it when she moved in with Sebastian. As we sit on the sofa, the

chemistry reignites between us. I tremble at how close we are to each other. My stomach is full of

butterflies, and my heart is racing with nervous excitement. Last night I endured hours of insomnia, my

mind relentlessly spinning with thoughts of him. And now, at this moment, he is mere inches away from

me. Without notice, he rises to his feet and leans casually against the front door. My heart sinks. Inside, Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

I am pleading with him to not open it and leave.

There is still so much that I want to say. But there appears to be sadness in his eyes that I have never

seen before, and I desperately want to uncover the reason behind it. He faces me, his demeanour shy

yet needy. It was almost like a coy lost boy again, desperate to be loved. It melts my heart and I fight

the urge to throw myself into his arms. I get up and join him at the door. All feelings of anger and

resentment towards him have completely dissipated, and I am consumed with passion and desire. I

desperately want him to stay. I cannot bear for him to go. His body seems stiff and tense like he is

nervous. Time seems to stand still as we continue to stare into each other’s eyes. “So… Are you going

back to Sebastian Mansion tonight?”

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