The Billionaire's Mistake (Anya and Daniel)

Chapter 73: A much-needed talk

"Did they bully you, baby?" he began tentatively, breaking the quiet between them. "If they did, then you should definitely go. I will have you walk in like a star. Fifty bodyguards, eighty road clearers."

His words almost made her spit out her food.

"Road clearers?" she asked.

"They pat the crowd like the red sea for you," he said.

"Why would I want that?" Anya chuckled.

"For effect." He shrugged.

"I will look like a clown."

"You will look like a star. So, did they bully you?" he asked.

Anya shrugged, her expression unreadable. "Not really. I was just... ignored."

"Ignored?"

"They behaved as though I did not exist."

Daniel's heart clenched at her words, a pang of sympathy sweeping through him.

"Why?" he asked.

"I was a busy body. They would play pranks on people regularly. One time they took a prank too far and almost killed someone. No one was supposed to tell a teacher, but I told a teacher to call the police.

The firefighters came and got the girl out of the building before she ran out of oxygen. She survived, but she was in a coma for a few months. Her family withdrew her from school, and the students involved were reprimanded. Since then, they all agreed to pretend I don't exist."

He wished he could erase the years of loneliness and isolation she had endured, to shield her from the pain of feeling like an outsider. His anger was slightly hot.

"How is that not bullying?" he said coldly, squeezing her hand. "They ignored you because you

did not let them kill someone."

Anya met his gaze, a small smile tugging at her lips.

She could tell he was angry on her behalf. For some reason, she felt her heart sing. He was behaving unusually. He would call her baby at any moment and touch her when he felt like it. For some reason, she did not want to tell him to stop.

And as they sat there, hand in hand, Daniel seemed to go into deep thought. It was unsure what he was thinking about, but the mood became unknowingly soft and tender.

The sun had dipped below the horizon by the time Daniel and Anya made their way home, the sky painted in hues of purple and pink as dusk settled over the quiet neighborhood.

They walked hand in hand; Anya's dependence on Daniel hung over them like a hovering cloud as they approached the Shaw Family mansion.

As they stepped through the front door, Daniel couldn't help but feel a sense of contentment wash over him. He and Anya were becoming inseparable as the days grew. It could even be said.

him immensely. They greeted their parents first, with that she had opened her heart up to Wendy fussing over Anya, before they made their way up to Anya's room.

Chapter 23. A much-needed talk

Daniel led her to their bedroom, the familiar scent of lavender and vanilla enveloping them as they entered.

This room was basically theirs, as Daniel spent all his time there, only returning to his room to sleep.

He could not wait to take Anya back home. While Anya took off her jewelry, Daniel turned to Anya, his gaze searching hers.

"Anya, can we talk?" he asked.

Anya furrowed her brow, a flicker of suspicion crossing her features. Every time he started a sentence this way, she knew something was about to happen. "About what?" she asked.

He took a seat on the edge of the bed, patting the space next to him invitingly. Anya joined him, his hand finding hers instinctively as they sat in silence for a moment, gathering their thoughts.

"I've been thinking," Daniel began slowly, choosing his words carefully. "About us and our

future.

13

Anya's eyes narrowed slightly, suspicion creeping into her expression. "What about our future?"

Daniel stared at her for a while before speaking, "I think it's time for us to move.

Anya paused. Her mind was racing as she tried to process his words. "Move? But why?" Of all the things she had thought he would say, this was at the bottom of the list. For some reason, she had never really considered moving out of the family mansion. Daniel reached for her hand, squeezing it gently. "You don't want to move back with me?"

Chapter 21 A much-needed talk

Anya's heart ached at his words. He sounded as though she had said she hated him. "That's not it," she said.

"What?" he asked, and she paused. How was she to explain to him that she did not hold love for his house? It was the place where he ignored her the most, refused to have anything to do with her, and put her in a state of utter depression. When she thought of that house, she could not think of good things.

"I can't," she said coldly, her voice barely above a whisper. "That is the house you left me to stay in a lone day and night and even ignored me when I crawled on the living room floor in pain from my mother's death."

Daniel's breath tripped in his throat; his eyes squeezed shut for a bit before he opened and stared at her, his gaze searching hers. "You are right. I did stupid things in that house. We can't go

back there. As long as you are not too opposed to living with me again," he said softly. He worried that he would see hatred in her eyes when she looked at him. This was his greatest fear.

Anya hesitated, her gaze dropping to her lap as she struggled to find the words. "As long as it's not there," she said.

"It won't be there."

"You promise?"

Daniel reached out, tilting her chin up to meet his gaze. "Anya, that will never happen again. I want you to believe me."

Anya swallowed the lump forming in her throat, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "When we first got married and we moved into our own home... you didn't want to see me."

Daniel's heart clenched at the memory, guilt gnawing at him. He had been so consumed by his

Litions that he had neglected Anya, the woman he loved more

than anything in the world.

"I know, and I'm sorry," he said softly, his voice filled with regret. "I was stupid, too prideful, and an idiot. I let you suffer, so much so that I want to catch the past me and slap him. I've changed, and I want to make things right." Anya nodded, her gaze locking with his. "Yes, you are an idiot, very stupid, very stubborn. You behaved as if I did not exist."

Daniel's heart ached at her words, a wave of sadness washing over him. He had never realized the extent of Anya's pain-the scars left behind by their tumultuous past. But he was determined to heal those wounds, to show her that their love was stronger than any obstacle they faced. "Then we won't go back there," he said firmly, his voice filled with determination. "We'll find a new house, a place where we can start fresh together."

Anya's eyes widened in surprise, then deemed as she squinted at him suspiciously, a glimmer of hope flickering to life within her. "You would do that? For me? Really"

Daniel nodded, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Anything. Baby, anything at all you want, I will bring it to you at all costs.

Anya got under the covers and peeked out from underneath. "You will buy me a very big house. Then you will kneel on the washboard."

Daniel wrapped his arms around her, holding her close as they sat in the quiet of their bedroom. "I will." He found himself kissing the top of her head. This was the first time he had slept in her room. He held her in his arms as they both drifted to sleep. Chap 24 I MUST HAVE HIM

Chapter 74: I MUST HAVE HIM