Falling For My Ex's Dad (Clarissa and Gabriel) novel Chapter 175

Gabriel’s POV

I sat at the dining table, seething, the rage in me growing hotter every goddamn second.

Across the table, Adrian and Clairessa sat so close their arms brushed. He leaned in, whispering something in her ear. She smiled—smiled like she loved whatever nonsense he was feeding her.

My blood burned.

Her eyes met mine once. Just once.

Then she looked away like I didn’t exist. Like I hadn’t given her twenty-four hours to tell him the truth.

And judging by the way he looked at her—like she was some innocent angel who saved his life—she hadn’t said a word.

It was more than obvious she hadn’t told him a damn thing.

She was still pretending. Same as always.

But she had no idea what hell I’d unleash if she kept this up.

God… I was going to—

I couldn’t even say it.

Couldn’t bring myself to hate her, no matter how much I wanted to.

Especially not when she was sitting beside my son, touching him, smiling for him—and jealousy slammed into me like a punch to the ribs.

Shit. How could I still want the same woman my son was in love with?

How could I still ache for her?

Fuck…

She had him so tightly wrapped around her finger he couldn’t see straight. Infatuated. Lost. Blind.

He was caught in her web now, just like I had been. And Clairessa—she was the one spinning it. Seducing both of us. Playing both sides.

Lying through those soft lips.

I dug my nails into my palms beneath the table, forcing myself to stay put.

No.

No, this wasn’t Adrian’s fault.

She was the one who shattered everything.

The reason I couldn’t look at my own son without feeling betrayed.

And now she sat there, acting like she was innocent.

Like none of it had happened.

Like she hadn’t torn my goddamn soul apart.

And fuck—I had to do something before she ruined us both.

Just as the rage clawed closer to the surface, Gretchen’s voice cut in.

“So, Adrian,” she said, smiling brightly as she turned to him, “I’m dying to hear how you two met!”

Adrian’s face lit up, a boyish grin spreading as he looked at Clairessa.

“We met in our final year of college. First day of class. She embarrassed me right in front of the professor.”

Gretchen chuckled, turning to Clairessa. “Is that true?”

Clairessa gave a faint smile. “Adrian’s exaggerating. I didn’t challenge him—I just corrected an error in his answer.”

Gretchen gasped teasingly. “I like her already.”

“I’m sure you do,” Adrian laughed. “Claire had no mercy. She shredded my logic and nearly bit my head off.”

“I did not,” she murmured, still smiling. “You just didn’t get the question right.”

Adrian nudged her playfully. “See? Still challenging me even now. But that’s one of the things I love about her. She keeps me grounded.”

Love.

That word twisted in my gut like a knife.

Gretchen chuckled, then glanced at me—completely unaware.

Her eyes lingered for a second before drifting back to the two of them. She smiled wider, like she was watching the kind of couple people rooted for.

“Oh, she brings me joy you can’t imagine,” Adrian said, sliding his hand over Clairessa’s.

She stiffened.

I saw it.

But she didn’t pull away.

That was all it took.

I clenched my fists under the table, willing myself to stay calm—but it wasn’t working.

The urge to tear them apart screamed through my veins.

Clairessa tried to steer the conversation away, her voice tight and too polished. “Adrian, you’re being too generous. Really. Maybe we should talk about something else.”

“Bore?” Gretchen laughed. “No way! I’m hanging onto every word. I adore you already, Claire. I met her earlier in the kitchen—she’s a doll. I can’t wait to get to know her better.”

Adrian lit up like a goddamn fool. “She might seem shy now, but once you get to know her—she’s incredible.”

“Oh, I’m sure,” Gretchen added sweetly. “Welcome to the family, Claire.”

Clairessa offered a faint, uneasy smile. “Thank you…”

My chest tightened.

“Go on,” I said, slow and low, already bracing for the blow.

“She needs a place to stay,” he continued. “I’ll work at Storm Innovations—on one condition. She comes with us to Miami. She can stay in the apartment until she finds something. However long that takes. No pressure. No deadline.”

I stared at him.

Then at her.

The look of shock on her face? It had to be fake.

She knew exactly what she was doing.

Adrian was being played, and the idiot didn’t even see it.

But I wasn’t about to let it happen.

“No.” My voice was gravel as it scraped from my throat. “She’s not moving in with us.”

Adrian frowned. “Why not? It’s just temporary—she needs support.”

“Thank you, Adrian,” Clairessa cut in, her voice barely steady. “But your dad’s been kind enough to let me stay the weekend. I’ll figure it out.”

“No,” Adrian insisted, gripping her hand. “You don’t have to do this alone. We’re in this together.”

Clairessa looked overwhelmed, her lips parting like she couldn’t breathe, eyes flicking between us. “I—”

She tried to pull her hand away, but Adrian held on, his gaze soft and certain.

That was it.

I was done with this pathetic circus.

I shoved my chair back, the legs scraping hard against the floor as I stood, the table rattling from the force.

“My answer,” I growled, towering over them, “is fucking no.”

Adrian flinched like I’d struck him.

Clairessa went pale.

“She leaves,” I said, pointing at her like she was poison. “Once we’re back, she’s out.”

I glared at her like she’d burned down everything I had left. “When we get back to the apartment—she’s gone.”

And I turned, storming out of the dining room.

No explanations. No apologies.

Let them sit in that wreckage and figure out what the hell just happened.

I was done pretending.