"Well, I guess there was no point in faking it since we're taking everything underworld related. Did you really think the business could survive without James' underworld power?" Alisha snarled at the three idiots. She saw Susanna shaking and felt a touch of pity. "I'll give you an out Susanna. You can get out of all of this right now all you have to do is leave Bryan. Divorce him and I'll set you up for life." Susanna's eyes rose up quickly and everyone could tell she was considering it an option, who wouldn't? However, she tightened her grip around her husband's hand and smiled shakily. Everyone could see that she was convincing herself it was the way to go.
"I-I love him enough... he's the reason why." She felt tears fall from her face as she realised she gave up a life of stability for Bryan and she began wondering if it was worth it. She turned to him for reassurance in her decision but found his eyes focused on the screen, staring so intently at this small computer as if it were everything that mattered to him. Why won't he look at me with those eyes? She found herself asking. He doesn't even love me. "But he doesn't love me, nor does he need me. I'll take this out. Goodbye, Bryan." He seemed to have realised her words only the second she let go of his hand, the one she had savoured for so long.
"What?" He seemed to process what had happened and stared at the woman who loved him dearly's tearful eyes. "Susanna? You're leaving me when I'm at my lowest? What kind of woman even are you?" He began to berate her and the torment could be seen on her face. Everyone felt badly for her, even James who she had just thought of murdering.
No one had noticed the Senator who had snuck up behind them and had been watching the scene unfold. He sighed when he heard Bryan insults, which hadn't ended, and suddenly his deep voice enveloped the room. "What kind of person hurts their one supporter for choosing to love themself for once? You're the worst kind of scum, Bryan Montez. Everyone can see you're in love with Alisha and even then this lady, Susanna was it? Stuck by your side and was even about to murder someone for you, yet you choose to hurt her when she realises that you're not worth it? You suck, dude." Everyone was surprised to see the Senator there, save Alisha who felt oddly calmed by his presence, especially James.
"Senator Rodrigo?" He realised that his daughter's power had grown immensely since he last saw her, the man behind her was someone the entire country wanted to run for Presidency, if Alisha was connected to him then the possibilities for her business growth were endless. "Wh- Alisha, what's happening? What are you planning on doing?" His senses were still sharp and seeing his own daughter there made him question the possibilities of what could happen.
"What's happening is very simple, dear James, you're losing everything. Well, you're losing your business. All you'll be left with is your house and a few thousand a month so you can survive." Her sneer left chills down his back however he was just as stubborn as she had always been.
"Eliza, you wouldn't do this to me, your only father, would you?" He still saw love in his daughter's eyes and it was true, she did love him. However she also knew which side she wanted to be on.
"Dad, I'm the reason you're keeping your house and monthly income." She responded with a long sigh. "Why couldn't you have been a good man? Why must you destroy the lives of everyone around you?" She questioned, her eyes glassy.
"What do you mean? I love you Eliza! I would never destroy your life." Everyone knew that this was the most honest he would ever be, perhaps the only person he would ever love was Eliza. Even Diana realised that James would simply never accept nor love her because to him, she was flawed. She had taken years of therapy so that she could accept the fact that she was not in fact flawed yet one look or comment from him would destroy her self-image.
Diana had realised how toxic James was when they slept together for the first time in years, a few months after Alisha thought she had reunited them. She was honestly terrified of what could happen, it had taken her a long time to allow Bryan to get his way with her and she had deep seated issues with James. Issues that made her trust him less than any other human still alive. Her hesitance made him angry and before he could stop himself he had yelled things that confirmed her doubts and worries. The next day he was met with the same cold marriage he had thought he could finally escape, it seemed that fate simply didn't agree with him. No, perhaps the problem was him, him and his stubbornness, his lack of acceptance, and worst of all his lack of empathy. "You will never find true love, James. Never." Her words didn't matter to him because he had a thousand women served to him on a platter, yet his thoughts would fall back to only one.
Diana, love isn't made for a man like me. He would think. Perhaps it was true, love simply wasn't made for a man like him.