Semua Bab My Best Friend's Dad: Bab 161 - Bab 166

Tristan's POV The shouting followed me all the way up the driveway. Questions were still thrown like stones. Accusations sharpened by lenses and microphones. My name was being mangled into headlines before I even stepped out of the car. “Mr. Crane, did you intimidate Grace?” “Are you planning to apologize publicly?” “Is it true she was underage when you-” I didn’t slow down. The gates slid shut behind me with a metallic finality that felt like oxygen rushing back into my lungs, but even then, the noise lingered, it was echoing, clinging to my skin like sweat I couldn’t wash off. Cameras flashed through the bars. Voices rose. It was a chant of speculation and judgment. I got out of my car, still ignoring those vultures. Walking up the few steps, I unlocked the front door, stepped inside, and slam

Tristan's POV I leaned back against the wall beside the front door, the coolness pressing into my spine, my head falling against the surface as if gravity had suddenly doubled. The courthouse air still clung to me, the heaviness and the suffocating air. The murmurs of reporters, the clicking of cameras, the whispers of strangers who thought they knew me still echoed inside my skull. I dragged a hand down my face. I scoffed at the thought that Rowan didn’t show. The judge had granted another chance, but the damage was done. The headlines would spin it as avoidance, guilt and fear. I pushed off the wall and walked further into the lounge. My phone rang. I took it out of my pocket. It was Cris. I swallowed before answering. “Hey.” Her voice came through sharp and strained. “Dad… did you see the news?” “No,” I muttered

Tristan’s POVThe study room felt smaller than usual. It wasn’t the size, the ceilings or the dark oak shelves lined with books I hadn’t touched in months, the faint scent of aged whiskey lingering in the air. It had always been my refuge. My control room, where I had spent years building my company.This evening already felt like a courtroom before the verdict as I walked out of my study room, down the hallway towards the lounge. I stood by the window, staring out into the dim stretch of my driveway, the world beyond it blurred by the weight pressing behind my eyes. My hand came up unconsciously, pressing against my chest. The ache was there again, it was dull and persistent, like something was tightening slowly around my ribs.The knock on the door shook me out of my ache and thoughts, I saw a car parked behind mine in the driveway. I walked towards the door and opened it.“Mr. Crane?” The man asked.“Yes, Reggie?” I confirmed. He was all professionally dressed.“Correct.” He replie