CHAPTER 437: CHAPTER 437 HE’D LOVE THAT

Sebastian had never felt this way before. Not for any woman.

This restlessness in his chest, the way his eyes searched for her in every room, the way her laugh—rare and soft—echoed in his head hours after she left... this was something else entirely.

And yet, the reality of it stung worse than anything.

She was married.

The woman he wanted—the only woman who’d ever made his cold, numb heart stir—belonged to someone else.

He sat at his desk long after the others had gone home, staring blankly at a document he couldn’t read. His thoughts kept circling back to her. Miss Lilith Parker.

He’d noticed something, though. A pattern.

She always stayed late.

Always worked overtime.

Even when there wasn’t much to do.

And more than once, she didn’t leave until after he had.

The idea planted a wild seed in his mind. What if she likes me too?

No. That’s impossible.

She’s married. She loves her husband.

He scoffed under his breath, annoyed. Still, he stood up and walked to her work station.

The light was on.

He pushed open the door gently. "You’re still here?" he asked, trying to sound casual.

Lilith looked up. Her hair was slightly messy, a strand falling across her cheek. She pushed it behind her ear and smiled faintly. "Just finishing up," she said, her tone smooth.

There was a flicker in her eyes. Amusement. Like she already knew what he was thinking but she covered it well.

Sebastian leaned on the doorframe, watching her fingers glide over the keyboard. "Do you... always stay this late?"

"Not always." She tilted her head. "Only when I feel like I should."

His eyes narrowed. "And why do you feel like you should?"

"Why do you?" she countered, rising from her chair with a small smirk.

He stepped aside as she walked toward the elevator. She pressed the button. Neither of them spoke.

The doors opened.

They both stepped in.

Silence stretched between them as the elevator hummed softly. Then it jolted slightly, a slow stop between floors.

And Sebastian couldn’t hold back anymore.

"Tell me about your husband," he said suddenly.

Lilith turned her head slowly to look at him, knowing amusement flickering in her eyes. "Again?"

"I just want to know what kind of man he is," Sebastian said, his voice clipped. "The man you chose."

Her expression changed—something unreadable moved in her features. "He’s... complicated."

"I’m sure," Sebastian muttered, bitterness leaking into his voice. "Does he make you laugh? Take care of you? Does he even deserve you?"

Lilith’s breath hitched.

Sebastian stepped closer, his eyes locked on hers.

"I can’t stop thinking about you," he confessed lowly. "And I hate it. Because you’re married. But I can’t help it. When you’re near me, I feel like I’m alive again."

He reached out, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. His hand lingered.

Then he leaned down and kissed her.

Soft. Hesitant. Yet desperate.

But before he could deepen it, Lilith pulled away.

She looked at him..not angry, but sad.

"I’m married," she whispered.

He stepped back, clenching his fists.

"Then let me meet him," he said after a pause, his voice tense.

Lilith blinked. "What?"

"I want to meet your husband," Sebastian said, jaw tight. "Face to face."

There was a pause. Then she nodded slowly, reached into her bag, and pulled out a small notepad.

She scribbled something on it and handed it to him. An address.

"He’d love that," she said with a faint smile.

And before he could say anything more, she stepped out of the elevator and walked away.

***

That night, Sebastian couldn’t sleep.

He lay on his bed, one arm draped over his forehead, staring at the ceiling. The city lights flickered through the blinds, painting shadows across the room. But even in the silence, his mind refused to rest.

He kept hearing her voice—"He’d love that."

And now, it was like his chest couldn’t breathe.

Tomorrow was a holiday. The office was closed. And Lilith had sent him a message in the evening:

"Dinner at my place tomorrow? 6:30 PM. He’s home."

He reread it over and over again, like the words might change the next time.

His chest ached.

Why does this feel like heartbreak?

Why does it feel like I’m about to lose something I never even had?

He knew she was married. From the beginning, she had never hidden it. She wore that silver ring like a line he should never cross. But he had crossed it. With his thoughts. His dreams. His kiss.

And now he was going to meet him—the man she chose. The one she loved. The man who got to call her his.

Sebastian sat up, running a hand through his hair in frustration. He walked to the mirror, stared at his reflection.

He looked tired. His collar loose. His jaw tense.

"Get it together," he muttered to himself.

But deep down... he was terrified.

What if the guy was kind? Charming? What if he was handsome, successful, everything Lilith deserved?

What if She was happy with him?

Sebastian didn’t know if he could take that. Seeing them together. Seeing her soft smiles directed at someone else. Hearing her laugh with him. Watching their hands intertwine.

A thousand thoughts swirled in his head, and none of them brought him peace.

He turned off the lights and tried lying down again. But his eyes remained open. His mind kept replaying every moment they had shared.

The way she looked when she entered the room—confident, composed.

The way she paused before smiling at him, like she knew how much it affected him.

The way she pushed him away, but never with anger—always with something else in her eyes. Something unreadable.

Maybe... just maybe... she feels it too.

But she’s married.

And that should have been the end of the story.

Still, Sebastian Carter had never backed down from anything in life. Not in business. Not in war. Not even in love.

And this time... he wasn’t ready to walk away.

Even if it broke him to see it. Even if it crushed every part of him.

He would go to that dinner.

He would meet her husband.