The Rose He Killed novel Chapter 260

Chapter 231: Paris News-2

We stayed locked together under the water for long moments, breathing heavily. I kissed her softly, tenderly, as the aftershocks faded.

Afterward, we dried off and stepped back into the cool air of the bedroom. Bella pulled a soft nightshirt over her head, and I slid into a pair of sweatpants.

I pulled her into bed on my chest, wrapping my arms around her waist and burying my face in the warm, clean side of her neck to cuddle and comfort her. As I felt her sigh,

“Stop thinking, Bella,” I murmured, my voice low in the dark room. “Turn your brain off.”

“I am trying,” she whispered, her hands coming up to rest over mine. “Every time I close my eyes, I just imagine the dinner. What if you and Sebastien don’t get along? What if the conversation is completely dry?”

“Then I will talk about corporate acquisitions until he begs for mercy,” I teased, kissing the warm skin right behind her ear. “I will explain the mechanics of international tax law until his eyes cross. That will buy us at least two hours of distraction.”

Bella let out a small, genuine laugh, her body relaxing against me. “Sebastien would probably love that. He told me he likes people who can hold their ground.”

“See? Nothing to worry about,” I said, rubbing my palm up and down her arm in slow, steady strokes. “You are safe. Grace is safe. Marcus Webb is locked away in a high-security facility and he will never get near this family again. Tomorrow is just a dinner with an old man who wants to see his daughter. Take a deep breath.”

She took a long, deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Thank you, Caleb.”

“Always,” I whispered. I kept my hand moving against her shoulder, keeping my rhythm steady and soothing.

Within minutes, her breathing finally evened out against my shoulder. Her body went completely soft, letting go of all the management and control she held onto during the day.

I lay awake a little longer, just listening to the quiet sounds of the house.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed on the nightstand. The small screen lit up the dark room. I reached for it carefully, keeping my movements completely still so I wouldn’t disturb Bella.

I unlocked the screen, the blue light stinging my eyes for a second, and looked at the notification. It was a message from Nadina Volkova, my European acquisitions director.

Nadina Volkova: Caleb, I know the hour, but this cannot wait for morning. We just received the final response from the French group regarding the Paris expansion deal. It is flagged as highly urgent. They have moved on Clause 4, Clause 9, and Clause 14 simultaneously. They are demanding a formal sign-off on these revisions before the morning market session opens at 09:00 CET, or they are threatening to walk away from the table entirely. We need an immediate decision.

I stared at the screen, my mind racing as I analyzed the text. The French group had moved on three

1/2

Chapter 231-Pan-News-2

Claim

separate clauses at the exact same time. It was a heavy negotiating tactic, or a direct signal that the entire deal was in deeper trouble than my team in Paris had let on.

Nadina was brilliant at her job. She knew my rules about late-night messages. She had sent it anyway, which meant she considered it a crisis, or she wanted me to see it as a crisis.

I quickly tapped out a short response, my thumb moving silently over the glass:

Caleb: It can wait. I will review everything at six in the morning.

The phone buzzed in my palm immediately. The three little dots appeared, and Nadina was already typing another paragraph. A long thread of text appeared on the screen, filling the display.

Nadina Volkova: *It cannot wait until six, Caleb. If we do not counter right now, the pre-market rumors will destroy our leverage. I have prepared two alternative structures to salvage the acquisition.

Option A: We concede the indemnity cap in Clause 4 but hold firm on the intellectual property rights in Clause 14.

Option B: We restructure the entire buyout as a tiered asset purchase over three fiscal quarters, which bypasses their new board restrictions entirely.

I need your specific sign-off on Option B right now so I can send the paperwork to France before dawn. If we miss this window, the deal is dead.

I looked at the glowing screen, then down at Bella’s shoulder rising and falling steadily against my chest. This was her first night of real peace since Marcus Webb’s arrest a week ago.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify