Falling For My Ex's Dad (Clarissa and Gabriel) novel Chapter 163

Gabriel’s POV

I gripped the edge of the desk in my home office, holding it firm like it was the only thing keeping me grounded.

I needed to act. Needed answers. The damn truth

I grabbed my phone and hit the contact for Clayton—my PI.

He picked up on the first ring.

“Clayton,” I growled the moment I heard the click.

“I was just about to call you,” he replied, voice tight—strained in a way that was unusual.

“What did you find?” I demanded, not even bothering with a greeting.

There was a pause. “Gabe…” he began, and that hesitation told me everything.

Clayton never stalled. Never stumbled.

He was a blunt, straight-to-the-point bastard. If his tone had changed, I knew the news was going to rip through me like a blade.

“Just tell me,” I snapped.

“This finding might shock you. I don’t know how to—”

“Bloody hell, speak, Clayton. Now!” I barked. His delay was shredding what little patience I had left. I already knew—I just needed him to confirm it.

“It’s... it’s going to hit hard.” Another pause. Then finally—

“The man in the picture you sent me... he’s your son. Adrian. And from everything I’ve found, both of you have been involved with the same woman. For months.”

Silence. Deafening.

My heart wasn’t just beating—it was slamming against my ribs like a war drum.

I didn’t speak. I couldn’t. Because I’d just seen it with my own eyes. Adrian in my kitchen, grinning like a fool while introducing her. Clairessa. Barefoot in my kitchen, like she fucking belonged there.

Clay’s voice broke through the storm in my head. “Gabe? You still there?”

“Yeah,” I croaked, throat dry. I had to remind myself to breathe.

“My reports show she dated Adrian for over two years. They broke up when he cheated on her. Not long after that, she started working at Storm Innovations.”

I sat down slowly on the edge of the desk, fingers locked around the phone like it might stop me from losing my mind.

“Everything suggests that getting close to you wasn’t coincidence,” Clayton continued. “It was calculated. Precise. Seduction, trust—manipulation. She played you. And she played you well.”

I swallowed hard, the rage climbing higher with every word.

“What are her motives? What does she want?” I asked, my voice low, cold. “Is she working for someone? A rival? Is she trying to steal intel from the company? Use me to take it down?”

“We don’t know that yet.”

“Clayton,” I snarled, blood pounding in my ears. “I’m not paying you thousands for maybes and half-baked theories. I want names. Motives. Proof. I want the whole damn puzzle laid out on my desk.”

“I understand, Gabe. Give me until the end of the week. I’ll get you what you need.”

“No. Friday. Not a damn hour later.”

“Done.”

I ended the call without another word.

I stared at the blank wall, trying to calm the inferno inside me.

Every cell in my body wanted to confront her. To drag the truth from her lips. I wanted to see her flinch when I told her I knew.

But Adrian was still here. And I wasn’t going to let him witness what I was about to become.

No—I needed her alone.

“You can’t just barge in here when I’m half-naked!” she protested, wrapping her arms around her chest.

“There’s nothing left to hide,” I replied coldly, slamming the door shut behind me. “Nothing you haven’t handed to me willingly—over and over again. I’ve seen every inch of you. Tasted every moan, every shiver. Don’t waste my time pretending to be modest now.”

She flinched, her breath catching in her throat as she backed away instinctively.

But I didn’t let up. My feet moved with hers, closing the distance.

My eyes betrayed me before anything else. They swept over her like they always did—hungry, possessive. I fought back the urge to place wet kisses on every inch of her skin as I slammed into her over and over again.

Fuck. I hated how my body reacted to her.

I hated how, despite the rage, lust coursed through my veins.

It took everything in me to tear my gaze away and focus on her face instead.

“You’re being cruel,” she whispered. “And what if Adrian walks in? Please… Gabriel.”

Her voice—low, breathy, pleading—only made me angrier.

“My son?” I laughed bitterly. “You mean the one you strung along while fucking me behind his back?”

Her face drained of color. “Gabriel… it’s not what you think. I can explain—”

“Oh, you will,” I hissed.

“I sent Adrian out on a wild goose chase because I needed you alone. You’d better start talking, Clairessa, or I swear to God, I’ll make you regret the day you crossed my family. I’ll make you bleed.”

She backed up until her spine hit the wall, her chest heaving.

“It wasn’t intentional…”

I stepped in until my chest nearly touched hers, bracing my arms on either side of her head, caging her in.