I Was His Secret Genius, Now I’m His Biggest Regret Chapter 21

I Was His Secret Genius, Now I’m His Biggest Regret Chapter 21

Daisy threw herself forward and hugged his leg. Beau slid from the bed to his side.

Clayton sat on the edge of the bed and gathered both children into his arms. In their bedroom, the shelves that had once been filled with Montgomery Distillery toys were half empty, looking bleak.

Daisy lifted her small face, her blue eyes full of a careful hope. “Dad, when is Mom coming back?”

“Does she not want us anymore?” Beau’s voice was muffled, thick with a sob.

A familiar dull pain spread through Clayton’s chest. He wanted to say something, but his throat was too dry.

“Is it because…” Daisy’s eyes reddened. “Is it because we broke her whiskey that she left?”

Beau buried his head even lower, his shoulders shaking.

“We were wrong…” he finally cried, his small face full of regret. “We were really wrong.”

Clayton couldn’t answer.

He could only reach out and wipe the tears from his son’s face, but they seemed endless. He heard himself speak, his voice hoarse and almost unrecognizable.

“No. Mom… she just needs some time. Dad will find her.”

He spoke very softly, as if convincing his children, but also, as if convincing himself.

In the days that followed, he hired the best private investigation firm in Louisville and spared no expense, all to find any trace of Ava.

The investigators were efficient. The results soon landed on his desk.

“We found her, Mr. Montgomery. Ms. Ava Chen registered a new company in Nashville, Tennessee, two months ago.”

Two months ago.

Clayton’s heart sank. He did the math. That was exactly when she had become silent and cold, no longer caring about the distillery.

From that moment on, she had been planning her escape. Step by step, with a frightening calm.

“Nashville?” He froze. Kentucky bourbon and Tennessee whiskey were old rivals. What was she doing there?

“Yes,” the investigator said, flipping through the file. “According to Tennessee business records, she founded a new whiskey brand.”

Clayton jerked his head up, almost thinking he had misheard.

“What?”

“A whiskey brand.” The investigator pushed a printed company registration toward him and pointed to the founder’s name. “The brand is called Angel’s Share. Founder and sole owner: Ava Chen. The first batch of product is about to launch.”