The CEO's Secret Obsession-Chapter 114: Benjamin’s Weakness

[Private Room]

The room was quiet in the way only hospital rooms ever were.

Evelyn sat beside the bed, her fingers wrapped tightly around Alexander’s hand as if letting go might make him disappear again.

She hadn’t moved since they brought him in and hadn’t noticed the ache in her back or the sting in her eyes.

Then his fingers twitched.

At first, she thought she imagined it.

Her breath caught. "Alexander?" she whispered, leaning closer.

His lashes fluttered once, then again.

Slowly, painfully, his eyes opened.

Relief hit her so hard her chest hurt.

"You are here," he murmured, voice rough and barely there.

Her tears spilled instantly. "I am here," she said, squeezing his hand harder. "I am right here."

He tried to turn his head, frowned slightly. "Why do you look like you have been crying for a week?"

She let out a broken laugh through her tears. "Because you scared me half to death."

His thumb moved weakly against her fingers. "Sorry," he said quietly. "Didn’t mean to."

She leaned forward, resting her forehead lightly against his hand. "Don’t ever do that again."

A faint smile touched his lips. "I will try."

For a moment, it was just them—no machines, no fear, no chaos. Just the steady proof that he was alive.

"I need to tell everyone," she said softly, brushing her thumb over his knuckles. "They are all waiting."

He nodded, eyes already growing heavy again. "Don’t go far."

"I won’t," she promised.

She stood reluctantly, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead before slipping out of the room.

....

[Outside]

The moment she stepped into the corridor, voices surged.

"He is awake?"

"How is he?"

"Can we see him?"

Relief washed through the group as the doctor confirmed he was conscious

Margaret nodded once, decisive. "Everyone will see him but slowly."

Then she turned to Evelyn, her gaze soft but firm. "Are you okay?"

Before Evelyn could nod, people began filing past her—Pauline first, then Gregory, Melissa, Benjamin, even Olivia—each carrying their own fear and their own relief.

But Lucas didn’t move. He stayed right where he was.

When the hallway was empty, Evelyn’s strength vanished.

Her knees buckled slightly and Lucas caught her without a word, pulling her into a tight, solid hug.

That was all it took.

She broke.

Her hands fisted in his jacket as sobs tore out of her chest—ugly, uncontrollable, everything she had been holding in since the call.

"I thought I lost him," she cried. "I thought—"

"I know," Lucas murmured, holding her like an older brother would. "I know."

She shook in his arms, tears soaking into his shoulder. "I can’t—Lucas, I can’t—"

"You don’t have to be strong right now," he said quietly. "You already were when it mattered."

After a moment, her breathing slowed just a little.

Lucas pulled back enough to look at her, his expression softer than she’d ever seen it.

"You know," he said gently, "Alexander has always loved you. Even before he admitted it to himself."

She looked at him through swollen eyes.

"And now," he continued, smiling faintly, "I finally see how much he means to you too."

She nodded, wiping at her cheeks. "More than I knew."

Lucas huffed softly. "Good. Then hurry up and marry him already."

She let out a watery laugh.

"And just so we are clear," he added, "I am calling dibs on being the godfather."

She sniffed. "Already planning kids?"

"Hey," he shrugged, "after today? Life’s too short not to plan ahead."

She laughed again, weaker this time but real.

Lucas squeezed her shoulders once more. "He is going to be fine and so are you. You are not alone anymore."

She nodded, steadier now.

Together, they turned back toward the room—toward Alexander, toward everything that had almost been taken away and everything that still waited for them.

.....

[Inside the Room]

The room filled slowly.

Gregory spoke first, his voice low and careful. Melissa followed, asking gentle questions.

Pauline hovered near the bed, smoothing the blanket, touching Alexander’s shoulder like she needed to feel him solid beneath her fingers.

Margaret sat close, composed but watchful, her cane resting against the chair as if even illness wouldn’t make her retreat.

Alexander answered when he could with short replies, tired smiles. He reassured them without drama, the way he always did.

Benjamin stayed back.

He stood near the wall, arms folded, posture rigid, as though he were guarding himself rather than the room. No one asked him anything. No one needed to. His silence was louder than everyone else’s concern.

He watched Alexander carefully.

The IV line, the faint bruising at his temple and the way his son tried to sit up straighter the moment people crowded him.

Benjamin’s jaw tightened.

For a long moment, he said nothing. Then Alexander’s gaze shifted—just slightly—and found him.

"Dad," Alexander said, voice hoarse but steady.

That single word hit harder than the accident ever could.

Benjamin inhaled sharply before he could stop himself.

His hand clenched at his side.

For a split second—just one—his composure slipped. His eyes glistened, moisture pooling before he could look away.

He turned his face toward the window, pretending to study the city beyond the glass but his shoulders were tense as if holding back something dangerous.

There was emotion, vulnerability and fear.

And Olivia noticed.

She had been standing near the foot of the bed, wearing the appropriate expression, looking concerned, restrained and supportive.

But her eyes followed Benjamin’s movement with sharp precision.

The way his throat worked, the way his hand trembled before he shoved it into his pocket and the way his breath hitched, just barely.

She saw it all.

Benjamin Reid, the cold, calculating and unshakable man, was unraveling quietly in a corner.

And it wasn’t for the company or for the reputation or control.

It was for Alexander.

Something twisted in Olivia’s chest. It wasn’t jealousy, it was worse.

Threat.

She had always known Alexander mattered more. She had felt it in the small decisions, the unspoken priorities, the way Benjamin’s attention sharpened whenever Alexander entered a room.

But this?

This was proof, it was devotion.

If Alexander lived—and he would—Benjamin would burn the world before letting anything touch him again.

And that made Alexander far more dangerous than Olivia had ever calculated.

Benjamin finally turned back, expression locked down, eyes dry and voice firm once more.

"Get some rest," he told Alexander. "We will talk later."

Alexander nodded, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "I will."

Benjamin held his gaze for a beat longer than necessary then walked out of the room without another word.

Olivia watched him go.

And for the first time since marrying into the Reid family, she felt something close to fear settle deep in her bones.

Alexander Reid wasn’t just the heir, he was the weakness.

And weaknesses, if not removed, destroyed everything around them.

.....