Broken Bond: Between Vices and Virtues (BL)
Chapter 235 - 21: Nathaniel, not Steve

Chapter 235: Chapter 21: Nathaniel, not Steve

Killian got up from bed, but his body almost slid down the floor from sore. He had to breathe in a few times, before daring to stand again.

He glanced around, realizing that it was a different room from last night. The sheets were clean too, and so was his body, except those red marks all over. His face turned red after everything they did last night replay on his head.

"Killian... you’re so..." he muttered to himself, feeling ashamed of his boldness.

He searched for his clothes but couldn’t find them, so he ended up using one of the bathrobes in the bathroom.

"I wonder where this place is. Is this Sir Steve’s house?" Killian asked as he walked to the door. His footsteps echoed in the hallway, and Killian felt like he was the only person inside that massive house.

He went downstairs, searching for the deputy director. When he heard voices coming from the left wing, he headed there without hesitation. His footsteps were light, he was a bit shy and flustered from the events of last night, but he was happy.

He just spent his heat with a man he likes, so he felt contented and in a good mood. But that mood vanished when the voices finally became comprehensible to him.

"I’ve already filed a case, but should I proceed with it?"

Killian’s feet were glued on the spot. That’s the voice of the chairman! But why did he sound so polite? Unconsciously, his heart began to pound faster. The same voice suddenly echoed in his head.

"Master, don’t! You might kill him!"

Why... did the chairman call him like that? Slowly, fear crept into his chest.

"Yes. What he did warrants a heavier punishment. Also, are those chocolates sold legally?"

Killian stood frozen, his breath catching in his throat as he listened to the conversation between the two alphas. It was like someone had reached into his chest and gripped his heart, squeezing it tight.

"Yes, chairman. It is an aphrodisiac sold in an online market, typically for alpha-beta couples. It was made for betas who want to mate with alphas or experience what’s it like to be an omega in heat. But to omegas, it is a heat-inducer."

Chairman... Killian’s mind whirled, the pieces of the puzzle crashing into place in slow, painful succession.

He felt dizzy, his hand reaching the wall for support as he realized the implications.

Steve Williams—the one he spent a steamy night with—was not the deputy director. He was the chairman!

Chairman Nathaniel Horace. Killian felt so dirty all of a sudden. It was because everyone knew that the chairman of Horizon was already married and even had kids.

And he...he just slept with that man.

The man who had stolen his heart, the man who had gently held him last night, whispering sweet things into his ear. The man he had shared his most vulnerable moments with.

That man he believed his mate... was married.

He never suspected, because his finger wasn’t occupied. It wasn’t there. Still, he should have asked, but—

"Have you found a place?"

Killian jolted back to reality.

The air felt thin and it felt like the walls suddenly closing in around him. He couldn’t breathe. He felt played, manipulated, fooled. He had fallen in love with someone he didn’t even know. His mind raced back to every moment they shared, every glance, every touch.

How many lies had Nathaniel told him? Was their connection real at all, or was it just another game for someone as powerful and untouchable as the chairman of the company?

His heart thudded painfully in his chest as anger and hurt flooded his veins, warring with the deep affection he still felt for his boss—Nathaniel Horace—the man who wasn’t supposed to exist in his world, the man who was way, way out of his reach.

Yet, there he was, in that man’s house, in his life, tangled in his heartstrings.

Killian was always straightforward and honest, yet at that moment, he couldn’t barge in and confront Nathaniel. What he wished to do...was leave and disappear.

Someone like him...isn’t supposed to be in that place.

Killian’s feet carried him soundlessly back down the hallway, every step feeling heavier as if gravity itself was betraying him. His legs were weak and his body was sore, but the emotional weight crushed him more than his physical exhaustion.

Back in the room, he leaned against the closed door, his heart pounding, a thousand thoughts racing through his head. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror—disheveled, the red marks on his skin evidence of last night’s passion.

Shame crept up his neck, staining his cheeks. How could I be so foolish? There’s no way a man like that, who sits at the top, will want me genuinely...

He wanted to cry, but for some reason, tears won’t fall. They froze inside, just like his heart growing colder and colder.

Everything about last night now felt tainted—what once brought him warmth now left him feeling cold and hollow.

He thought he had shared something real with him, something intimate, but now all he felt was a sense of betrayal. He had let himself go in a moment of vulnerability, and now he didn’t even know who that moment had been with.

Nathaniel saved his life...but only to kill him by his own hands.

"I-It’s...s-so painful...ngh..." Killian hit his chest slowly, lightly, as if telling his heart to unfreeze, to let him release those emotions that slowly suffocated him. Unconsciously, his pounding became heavier, faster, still the physical pain could not drown the feeling of his tightening, heavying chest.

It would have been easier if he had passed out from beating himself too much and woke up from that nightmare. He slammed his chest hard until his own arm grew numbed and he felt so...exhausted.

The sound of approaching footsteps made him stop. His breath hitched as he heard the door creak open.

Nathaniel stepped into the room, his expression soft and unreadable. He moved with the same quiet grace that had drawn Killian to him in the first place, and it only made the ache in Killian’s chest sharper.

"Killian," Nathaniel said softly, his voice gentle as he crossed the room toward him. "How are you feeling? I didn’t want to wake you earlier. You were sleeping so peacefully. I seemed to have lost my control last night. Did I hurt too much?"

The tenderness in his voice stung. Killian fought the urge to flinch. He had to act normal. He couldn’t let Nathaniel know he’d overheard the conversation. Not yet. Not when he wasn’t ready to confront the truth.

"Hm. You did," Killian said, forcing a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Nathaniel looked ashamed. He took Killian’s hands gently and apologized. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be so rough. Where does it hurt? Should I call a doctor? Or do you want to go to the hospital right now?"

Killian shook his head. He lowered his gaze and they landed on those big hands that roamed his whole body last night. He swallowed the lump in his throat and replied, "No. I’m fine now. I just... I was just thinking I should probably head home for a bit."

He pulled his hand from Nathaniel’s grasp and tightened the bathrobe around himself, hoping to hide the tension in his body and pretending like everything was fine.

Nathaniel’s brow knitted together, a flicker of concern crossing his face. "Home?" his voice echoed, much lowered and colder, which made Killian flinch. "I’m afraid that’s not possible."

"What?" Killian’s stomach twisted.