Don't Mess with the Girl with Candy novel Chapter 1868

"So you see, Grandfather..."

Channing looked up, meeting the old man's eyes as he spoke with heavy, deliberate emphasis. "I don't want to lose her. And I can't afford to lose her."

She was the sole pillar holding up his entire mental sanity.

If anything ever happened to her, he wouldn't survive it.

Alaric opened his mouth, but something seemed lodged in his throat, rendering him completely speechless.

Because of their toxic family environment, his grandson had grown up extremely insecure, isolated, and prone to dark obsessions.

He had known since Channing was a little boy that his mind wasn't entirely whole or normal.

But over the past few years, he seemed to have improved vastly, displaying the emotional depth and reactions of a well-adjusted man.

"If that's the case, why haven't you told the girl everything?"

Alaric's expression turned serious as he demanded, "Tell her how much you've done for her. Tell her how long you've loved her."

"What good would that do?" Channing shook his head, a bitter smile touching his lips. "Can I really compete with a dead man?"

Besides.

Ari really had been by her side for years, and he had died saving her life.

From the bottom of his heart, Channing was deeply grateful to Ari.

He never intended to completely erase or replace the boy's place in her heart.

All he asked for was that Coralie would save a tiny, quiet corner of it just for him.

"I didn't expect a punk like you to be such a romantic."

Alaric's lips twitched into a fond smile. "You've got a bit of my old flair in you."

"What do you mean?" Channing asked instinctively.

"Your grandmother had a heart of pure stone back in the day."

Overcome by nostalgia, Alaric recalled his own chaotic courtship. "I knelt outside her door for three whole days before she finally agreed to give me a chance."

"Three days?"

Channing pursed his lips, highly doubting the pampered patriarch could have endured such hardship for that long.

"Well, when I say three days, I really mean a few hours spread out."

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