THE RUTHLESS BILLIONAIRE CEO DOCTOR HATED NURSE

Chapter 8:The Ruins of His Past

The office was too silent and cold, but Alex didn't notice. Papers strewn across the desk, his brain buried in memories that had never quite faded, his gaze fixed on the file before him. Though his fingers hovered over the papers, all he could see was the picture of his father, the former monarch of their realm. Now all that was left was ruins.

A unexpected voice pierced the fog of his ideas.

"Alex, we need those signatures," one of his aides shouted, but Alex ignored him, his eyes blazing with a rage only he could comprehend.

Though the door closed behind her, the soft sound of the photo frame collapsing caught his notice. A younger version of himself, smiling, his father standing proudly next to him, a relic from his past, caught his eye on the desk. The picture before all change.

As he lifted it, his hand reached out, quivering a little. The man in the picture, his father, seemed so distinct, so unbreakable. That was before the treachery, before everything had collapsed under their feet.

Alex muttered under his breath, his voice dripping with anger, contempt, and a hint of sadness, "I'll make them all pay."

The words were a commitment he had made to himself long ago. A pledge chiseled into his whole being. His father's collapse was not only the loss of riches and influence; it was the annihilation of what Alex had previously cherished.

When Melissa walked in, her footfall soft on the marble floors, the hospital was quiet. She had heard the whispers, the ones that depicted Alex as nothing but a harsh, uncaring guy. Yet there were times, times when she noticed something different, something raw under his frigid surface.

She was here tonight to face him, to grasp. She entered his office unannounced, as though entitled.

Though she saw the spark in his eyes as she entered, Alex sat behind his desk, the same unyielding shell of professionalism protecting him. He was still clutching the earlier-seen snapshot, which had so many unresolved issues.

For a minute, they simply stood there, both of them caught in a web of quiet.

You have been concealing this from me. Barely above a whisper but loaded with accusation, Melissa's voice shattered the calm. Alex, what happened to you?

Though he fast hid the weakness, his gaze flashed to her. You know nothing about me.

Though his tone showed some uncertainty, the words were harsh. A tiny fissure in the armor he so carefully donned. Melissa experienced it, and it caused her heart to throb in an inexplicable manner.

Softly approaching, she whispered, "You don't have to conceal everything from me." "You don't have to be this individual."

Alex, though, simply turned aside, his jaw tense. You have no idea what I have lost.

Hours had passed since their talk, yet Melissa couldn't get rid of the picture of Alex standing there, the snapshot in his hand, so completely exposed for the tiniest time. She had anticipated him to be impenetrable, resistant to any kind of frailty, but in that moment, he had allowed something to slip. Something genuine. Something humanistic.

Though the engine was running, she sat in her car thinking still in the hospital, still with Alex. What made her consider him like this? What was causing her inexplicable pull toward him?

You don't believe him, she told herself. You cannot.

But even as the idea crossed her head, she knew it was false. Least of all Alex, she had never completely trusted anyone. But there was something in him that spoke to her. He was not only a cool, calculating guy. He was more than that. There has to be one.

She sensed the change as she returned to the hospital the following day. The slight alteration in their relationship. Though just for a brief moment, Alex's typical cold attitude had mellowed. Walking past her, their eyes connected and for a little moment she detected something, doubt? Regrets?

He turned aside, back into his frigid, regulated shell before she could examine it more.

Her heart raced as she swallowed hard. "You won't let anyone get close enough to harm you again," she heard him grumble to himself just as she arrived at the door.

Melissa's eyes stayed on it; for the first time, she got it. She knew what made Alex behave as he did. But nonetheless, her heart extended to him.

I can't help it, but she had no clue how far she would go to know him better.

Melissa had never meant to snoop, but as she cleaned Alex's desk, her gaze fell on an envelope buried behind a pile of documents. Though scarcely readable, the handwriting on the front was her father's unmistakable script. Carefully opening the letter, she felt the weight of the words before ever reading them, thus her heart skipped.

Alex's father's letter was Reading the lines, Melissa's fingers shook as she assembled a narrative of sorrow and loss. Not only an apology, but also an admission of guilt had Alex's father penned. He had blamed his own son, Alex, for something far more profound, something concealed underneath the treachery; he had blamed more than just the business agreement for their family's collapse.

Melissa experienced an odd tightness in her gut. The father Alex loathed so much, the guy who had destroyed his life, wasn't only to blame for the devastation. The reality struck her like a wave as her eyes stayed on the paper. Her father, the man Alex blamed for all his agony, could not be the monster Alex had painted him to be.

What is this? Staring at the letter, she muttered under her breath. Her mind raced. Might this be the missing puzzle piece?

She heard footsteps behind her. Though it was too late, she swiftly crammed the note back into its envelope. Alex was already there, his cool, analytical eyes fixed on her.

Standing in the entrance, Alex's tall frame cast a shadow over her. The room grew colder as Melissa's heart raced. The letter's weight in her palms made her aware of his sighting.

"That letter," she began, her voice almost a whisper, "what did he mean by this?" What have you done?

Alex remained motionless, his face stone-cold. His stance was defensive as he folded his arms. Melissa, you believe you know everything; yet, there is much you do not know. His speech was quiet, almost under control.

Her interest drove her closer. What is it? Why keep it from me? All this time, I assumed you were upset because of what transpired, however,

"Because of what happened?!" Suddenly, his voice was piercing like a whip crack. You have no idea what I have gone through. My father left me to gather the pieces after he wrecked everything, everything. You believe your father is the issue? My own father is the one who wrecked my universe. His words came out in a rough breath, raw and full of suffering.

Seeing the fractures in his unbreakable wall made Melissa's heart tighten. The icyness he had displayed to her, the manipulation, the control—all of it sprang from the searing treachery buried deep inside him.

Alex said, his voice cracking slightly, "I can't forgive him." "Not ever."

Melissa's look softened as she considered the confession. This was not only about power or corporate interests. It was something far more intimate. She had been mistaken about him. Seeing the damaged guy behind the strong CEO caused her chest to constrict with an unnamed feeling.