LOST LOVE

ATTACK

**James’ POV**

I rented a house for Elena and me. After the divorce, my life has changed dramatically. The house I shared with Cat is now hers alone. I moved out of the penthouse, which was in Catherine's name.

I was stripped of the company head position, and my father suspended me from the office. Now, I’m just an ordinary employee, and people are laughing at me both behind my back and to my face.

My bank account is dwindling by the day. Everything is happening so fast, and I can’t keep up. But I have to endure all of this for the sake of my baby.

Sometimes I think about Catherine. She was a nice girl, a good friend, and a wonderful wife. But then Elena came between us, and my focus shifted to her. It was wrong, I admit that. But I got a baby out of it, and that’s my happiness now.

Daniel, Victor, and Selin reached out to her. They want to be friends with her like before, but she blocked their numbers. These three have always been my friends, supporting me in every decision I made. That’s what friends are for, right? But now they want to patch things up with Catherine. Honestly, I want to talk to her too, but that was part of the condition: I have to stay at least six feet away from her. Still, I know Catherine—she must be missing me terribly.

“Eli, baby,” I called out to Elena. She came in with a handful of fast food.

“Yes, honey, lunch is ready,” she said, showing me the takeout. Elena doesn’t know how to cook, so we order food most of the time.

“Is it okay to eat street food? You’re pregnant,” I asked, worried about our baby’s health.

“It’s fine,” she said, opening the boxes.

“Eat healthy food too, Eli,” I reminded her.

She didn’t respond, lost in her world of food.

“Aren’t you eating?” she asked, glancing at me.

“No,” I replied. I wasn’t in the mood to eat and got up from the bed.

“Are you going somewhere?” she asked, still focused on her meal.

“Yeah, I’m going to see Dad and ask him to take me back,” I said. I’m his son; he can’t just cut off our blood relationship.

“Then I’ll come with you,” she offered, but I knew they wouldn’t welcome Elena.

“No. I’ll go first and talk to them. Then you can come,” I said. She understood and didn’t push the matter.

**At My Parents' House**

“Mom,” I called as I walked into the house. She came out of the kitchen, smiling when she saw me.

“James,” she said happily. I knew Mom would always be on my side.

“What are you doing here?” My dad’s voice cut through the air, his veins bulging with anger.

“Dad,” I called out to him.

“I told you to stop calling me Dad,” he snapped. I know he’s furious, but I’m still his son, and this is my right.

“Jordan, is that how you treat your son?” Mom asked, turning to him.

“I haven’t said anything about your decision. If you want to praise what he did, then go ahead. But don’t expect my support,” Dad said, walking out of the room. Clearly, he hasn’t changed, so it would be a bad idea to bring up anything about the company.

“Son, how is that girl?” Mom asked, sitting down on the sofa. I joined her.

“She’s fine, Mom,” I said as she took my hand in hers.

“How many months is it now?” she asked.

“It’s going to be one month,” I replied.

“Have you seen Catherine since?” she asked, catching me off guard. Everything reminds me of her, so I deliberately avoid anything related to her.

“No,” I said quickly.

“She was a nice girl,” Mom said softly. I know that better than anyone.

“Have you thought about going back to her?” she asked.

“Mom?” I questioned, surprised.

“She was the best thing in your life. When the baby is born, you should ask for Catherine’s forgiveness and live with her. Then your father will come around,” she advised. I know Catherine loved me deeply and wanted to be with me.

Just then, Susan came downstairs.

“Who’s this?” she asked loudly, looking at me.

“Hello, Susan,” I greeted her.

“Hello to you too, my wonderful brother,” she responded, sarcasm dripping from her words.

“Susan, you’re not interested in the business, right?” I asked. I know she’s always wanted a free life, which is why Dad handed the business to me.

“Yeah,” she replied.

“Then maybe you could talk to Dad. You don’t have to take on this burden,” I suggested, hoping she’d refuse the business, so Dad would have to give it back to me.

“Let me see if I can handle it or not. Don’t worry, James. You can spend all your time with your baby and its momma,” she said with a mocking tone.

Why did she pity me? Her eyes were full of mockery, calling me a fool without saying a word.

I didn’t want to stay there any longer. I finally understood that I was an unwanted guest in this house.

---

**Catherine’s POV**

I walked back to my car, clicking the remote to unlock it. As I reached for the door handle, I saw a man with a knife approaching me through the side mirror. I froze in fear. He aimed for my stomach, but just in time, a hand pulled me away. I looked up to see Dominic, my boss, standing protectively in front of me. The man slashed at Dominic instead, catching his hand.

The attacker quickly fled. I looked at Dominic’s hand—a small cut, but blood was already flowing. I hurried him back to the office where we had a medical kit.

I grabbed some cotton and applied antiseptic, pressing it gently against the wound. I blew on it occasionally to ease the sting. I’m usually terrified of blood, but I couldn’t let go of Dominic’s hand. He got hurt protecting me. But who would want to attack me?

“Does it hurt?” I asked, blowing on the wound again.

“Yeah, a lot,” Dominic replied, his face contorted with pain.

“I’m sorry. It’ll get better soon,” I reassured him, trying to comfort him.

His hand was strong. After cleaning the blood, I saw that the wound was small, so I carefully bandaged it.

“Everything’s okay now,” I said, looking at him.

“But it still hurts,” he said, his voice strained.

I checked the kit. “There aren’t any painkillers left,” I said, worried.

“I heard a kiss can reduce pain,” he suggested, his eyes twinkling mischievously. I widened my eyes in surprise. Did he really want me to kiss him?

“You want me to kiss this wound?” I asked, unsure if he was serious.

“If it’s too much, don’t worry about it. The pain will go away on its own,” he said, though his expression was still tense. After all he did to protect me, a kiss on the hand seemed like a small gesture.

I hesitated for a moment, then gently pressed my lips to his bandaged hand.

“Okay, I should get going,” I said, standing up and heading back to my car.

I made it home, but the day’s events kept replaying in my mind. He aimed the knife directly at me, but I don’t have any enemies here.

---

*Please like if you enjoyed the chapter. Don’t forget to comment with your thoughts.