I Was Keeping Her Alive While Her Fiancé Tried to Destroy Me Chapter 07

I Was Keeping Her Alive While Her Fiancé Tried to Destroy Me Chapter 07

Preston stood frozen, one hand pressed against his cheek. He hadn’t seen that coming.

“Are you out of your mind?! Didn’t Clara tell you? I’m Preston, her fiancé!”

Leo opened his mouth to answer, but I shifted in his grip, and the movement tore something open inside me.

The coughing hit again, worse this time.

Leo’s attention snapped back to me.

“Julian, hang on. Just hang on. I’m getting you back to her.”

Something dark crossed Preston’s face.

The smile was gone. Preston stepped into Leo’s path and signaled the bodyguards to close in.

Leo had flown the helicopter alone, with no backup and no crew.

With me in his arms and the bodyguards blocking him, he had no choice but to stop.

His voice went low and lethal.

“I said get out of my way.”

Preston brushed it off with a thin smile.

“I need to bring him back myself. What if this whole thing is an act? He could try something on you during the flight, some hypnotic bullshit, some trick, and everything I’ve done today goes to waste.”

“Besides, we’re going to be family. I’ll be your brother-in-law. Let’s not start things off on the wrong foot.”

“I get that he tricked you too, so I won’t hold that against you. But you still need to apologize. I can’t just let that slide.”

“The Sterlings and Bennetts are equals. Respect matters. That doesn’t change no matter who’s in the room, not even your grandfather.”

Leo set me down gently.

Then he turned to face Preston and the bodyguards, and his entire demeanor turned dead cold.

“You almost killed Clara, and you’re standing here talking to me about respect? The Bennetts are done with the Sterlings. Permanently.”

“You won’t move? Then I’ll make you move.”

The last trace of Preston’s smile died.

“He’s as deluded as the rest of them. Fine. If I have to beat some sense into him to make him see I’m doing this for the Bennett family, so be it.”

“Have it your way.”

He waved the bodyguards forward. “Don’t rough him up too much. He’s still Clara’s brother.”

The bodyguards fanned out around Leo, pulling their punches.

That was a mistake.

Seconds later, every one of them was on the ground, groaning.

Leo stepped over them and walked straight at Preston.

“It’s just you now. Still want to try?”

Preston’s whole attitude changed in an instant. The grin was back, desperate this time.

“Clara mentioned you trained. Didn’t realize you were this good.”

“That was just a test, by the way. Nothing personal.”

“But this guy, he really is…”

“Shut your mouth! Say that again and I’ll break your jaw.”

He was done talking. Leo carried me to the helicopter, the driver right behind us, and nobody tried to stop him this time.

Before the door closed, Leo looked down at Preston one last time.

“My grandfather already knows what you did. If you want the Sterling family to survive this, you’ll go back by yourself and face what’s coming. Otherwise, I promise you, it’ll be worse.”

The helicopter lifted off.

Leo flew us back to the venue as fast as the chopper would go.

The second we touched down, Leo had a medical team waiting on the tarmac.

Clara’s grandfather had been pacing the landing zone. The moment he saw me, bloodied and barely standing, his face turned to stone.

“Leo, what the hell happened?! Who did this to him?!”

Leo’s eyes moved to a man standing at the edge of the group, Winston Sterling, Preston’s grandfather and head of the Sterling family.

“Grandfather, Preston did this. He’ll be here soon enough. Let him explain it to your face.”

Clara’s grandfather turned slowly toward Winston.

“Winston. Your grandson has a lot to answer for. And if I don’t like what I hear, I’m tearing your entire family apart.”