The Ex Who Became His Obsession Novel Ch 30
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“What are you looking at?” The voice was unfamiliar a man’s–and it came without warning, low and close against Alyssia’s ear.
Alyssia spun around instinctively, stepping back on reflex. But behind her was a wall. Her back hit the cold panel of the air conditioning control. It chilled like the skin of a snake lying in wait beneath her blouse, coiled just below her nape.
The man was so close that if the hadn’t stepped away the moment she turned, her lips might’ve brushed his cheek,
It was Archer, the man the entertainment industry hall jokingly called the “heaven sent superstar”.
“Hi, nice to meet you” Alyssia forced the word out, unable to even offer a handshake at this distance,
She shifted slightly to the side, just enough to meet his eyes head–on.
A single drop of water slid off the tip of Archer’s hair and landed on Alyssia’s hand.
He had just taken a shower, his hair still damp and tousled. A bathrobe hung loosely off this shoulders.
Alyssia had to admit that he was striking. Even more so in person than on screen or in print
But up close, she could also see clearly that he was far from the modest figure his public image suggested.
His features, defined and sharply sculpted, held an aggressive quality, something in his bone structure that unsettled her, made her guard shoot up
Leonard used to make Alyssia feel unsafe too, but it was a different kind of danger. With Leonard, even at moments where he had his hand at her throat and pressed her into the edge of a windowsill, she’d felt an odd calm.
Perhaps that was the only real benefit of being with Leonard for thirteen years. She developed a fearlessness most people never could
But Archer, whom she was meeting for the first time, had every cell in her body firing rod.
That instinct was confirmed an instant later. As Alyssia moved to the side, Archer lifted an arm, bracing his palm against the wall next to her face, cutting off her escape.
That droplet of water had fallen from his hair because of that sudden, blocking motion.
“Are you a reporter?” he asked, his gaze sliding from her forehead all the way down to her toes.
Alyssia saw it immediately–the casual insolence behind his eyes. Her chest tightened with a strange, rising frustration.
The room had already felt too warm when she entered, but now, it seemed charged with something else, something close to heatstroke
“Mr. Harvey, I’m Alyssia from Vanguard Media’s entertainment division,” she said, holding up the press badge clipped to her chest. “Per the agreement with your team, I’m here to conduct an in–depth interview.”
“On” Archer tilted his head, narrowing his eyes as they lingered on her face. “How deep are we talking?”
A pulse of nausea rose in Alyssia’s throat.
Archer had gone from a mbody to explosive lame in the span of just three months.
Before that
as practically invisible – cast ipi minor dramas, always the side character with no name and no screen time
His breakout came from a historical romance that wasn’t moun meant to air when it did. Another A list drama had postponed its release due to post- production insues, and the network slotted Archer’s drama mas a last minute filler.
But it aired during a content drought, and his character–brooding, tragic romantic lead–landed like a match to dry grass.
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TU by Mon, 28 Juli
Chapter 30
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By the time the drama reached its finale, the female lead had gotten swept up in a real–life dating scandal. Thus, those crazy fans turned their affection solely to Archer..
Just like that, he reaped all the rewards. The entertainment industry hadn’t had a breakout star in nearly half a year. Archer filled that vacuum overnight, pumping adrenaline back into the slowing market.
He worked tirelessly, spoke little, and with investors backing him, kept a clean slate–no rumors, no scandals, no controversies. Critics and audiences alike would only praise him.
But now, face–to–face, Alyssia thought the man’s behavior made her sick.
“Ms. Clairmont, how would you like to intery
interview me?” Archer murmured, leaning in closer, What had once been a hand braced on the wall was now a
His tone was smooth and coaxing–meant to sound seductive. “I’m open to any method.
Alyssia lifted her gaze and met his without a hint of retreat. Her voice came cold and flat. “Mr. Harvey. Why don’t we sit down and speak like professionals?”
For a moment. Archer froze
There was something in Alyssia’s eyes–a sharp clarity, like she’d already dissected every layer of him and found nothing worth protecting
Her tone wasn’t loud, showing no anger in it. Just an eerie, matter–of-fact calm, like a scalpel sliding through a mask.
Archer’s throat tightened. A strange pressure prickled across the back of his neck, like he’d just been pinned by a predator at the top of the food chain,
But when Archef looked again, he could swear he saw a faint blush blooming across Alyssia’s cheeks
And thinking back, Archer recalled there was a touch of sultry rasp in her tone.
Composure and chaos, reason and seduction, clarity and allure–all of it intertwined in harmony within her, blooming like a dangerous flower.
Archer suddenly felt that today’s assignment might just be the most enjoyable one he’d had in a while.
e gleam in his eyes
“Ms. Clairmont, with a face like yours, isn’t it a bit of a waste to be just a reporter? His tone turned teasing, almost playful, but the g betrayed the hunger behind the words.
Alyssia replied coolly, “If I weren’t a reporter, how else would I get to interview you?”
Her expression remained composed, and yet, Archer noticed that the tip of her nose was dotted with sweat, and the flush on her face had crept down to the base of her neck
Archer thought, ‘Interesting. I just arrived, and the heat in the room is unbearable even to me. She can even stand there with such calmness?”
“You don’t look will, Mr. Harvey,” Alyssia said, arching her brows. Her voice carried a note of mockery, edged with dry amusement. “Shall we move to a different room for the interview?”
Teah, good idea! Archer suddenly leaned in and reached out, attempting to scoop her into his arms. “Let’s go somewhere more private. Somewhere we
He’d had enough of waiting
Archer might we been famous for only a few months, but he’d spent years muddling through the shadows of the industry. Beautiful women were nothing new to him. And yet, he’d never encountered someone to irresistible..
He couldn’t understand that hat body was clearly under influence of the drug, and he could see the signs. Yet her mind remained devastatingly lucid.
Archer thought, “Whether I conquer her, or she conquers me, the idea is thrilling ”
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10:59 Mon, 28 Jul VG.
Chapter 10
But the fantasy shattered before it could take form.
A bowl of pain fore from his throat as he staggered back, clutching his arm in agony
He didn’t even see her move clearly. Before he could make sense of what happened, another wave of blunt force came crashing down. This time, her fists few square to his head with brutal precision. Archer fell face–first onto the floor
Outside the room, his assistant heard the commotion and rushed toward the door.
The second the assistant opened it, a plastic bag–clear and heavy with a bundled–up cell phone–slammed directly into his face.
Screaming, the assistant squatted down, covering his eyes in shock and pain.
“GCxt her… Someone catch her…” Archer’s voice canie strained and broken as he crawled on the floor.
hen he lifted his head, there was a visible dent on his forehead, the skin around it darkened as though burned
His assistant stared in disbelief. “Oh my! Archer, what happened to you?”
Hearing the noise, Archer’s agent and several staff come bursting into the suite. “Archer? Are you alright? What happened? Where’s the reporter?”
Supported by his men, Archer shouted, “Get that bitch back! She can’t get away!”
Some staff immediately ran out to chase Alyssia. However, by the time they came to the hallway, Alyssia was nowhere to be found.
Two people helped Archer up and laid him on the couch. He was shaking with rage as he grabbed a phone. He dialed a number and forced his voice to soften the moment the line connected. “Milena, I’m sorry I couldn’t get it done…
“What happened?” Milena snapped on the other end. “Wasn’t everything already arranged? Are you completely useless?”
Archer didn’t dare talk back. Instead, he scrambled to salvage what pride he could. “She was drugged. She should’ve been out of it. But she brought a weapon S–She hurt me and ran…
“idiot,” Milena spat. “You’re worse e than useless. Do you want to be forgotten or buried? Just say the word, and I’ll make it happen
Archer opened his mouth to explain further, but the line had already gone dead.
“Worthless idiot! Can Leven handle a simple job.” Milena was pating furiously in her office when suddenly, she froze. “Oh no. No, no, no. This is bad.”
She clutched her head, panic creeping into her voice. “I sent Loon over to catch them in the act
Her chest tightened with dread as she thought, “Archer said Alyssia was drugged. What if she ends up crashing straight into Leonard, and he… Na, can’t let that bitch benefit from this
“Mr. Rivera, should we go up? Joseph asked in a low, cautious voice. His hand was clenched tightly, a crumpled note balled in his palm
He cursed himself inwardly. “Cod, I’m such an idiot. They said it was a note from Ms. Clairmont, meant for Mr, Hivera. I just handed it over without even Banking But who would’ve guessed what it actually said
Inside the car parked j fury.
just outside the hotel, Leonard sat like a man carved in stone. A cold storm brewed in his eyes. His entire body radiated suffocating
He thought with hatred, Trading)
g your body just to land an eclusive interview with some popular star, huh? Alyssia, is there anything you wouldn’t stoop
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10:59 Mon, 28 Jul G
Chapter 30
His mother’s words echoed in his ears–how she told him he never treated Alyssia well enough and never gave her what she deserved.
He wanted to get his mother here right now and let her witness how they had spoiled Alyssia.
Suddenly, Joseph gasped. “Sir, look. It’s Ms. Clairmont.”