From Ex-Convict To General

Chapter 4

DORIAN'S POV

"I only rot where I choose to, Olivia."

The words rolled out of Dorian’s mouth composed and low, but the silence they left behind was deafening.

Olivia’s chest rose and fell snappily. Her hand shook around the wine glass she still held, but she refused to let it show. She leaned forward, her eyes narrowing with scorn.

"You think a clever sentence is going to erase the fact that you're a criminal?" she spat. "You’re a convict. You’re nothing. Don’t think appearing here in a cheap borrowed suit changes that."

Dorian’s gaze didn’t waver. His lips twitched into the faintest hint of amusement. "I see you’re still good at convincing yourself of lies."

Olivia’s jaw tightened, heat rising in her cheeks. Her instinct was to slap him, to demand how he had gotten out, to demand answers but with Leonard Kane sitting just behind her, watching everything, she would not give Dorian the pleasure.

Leonard finally rose from his chair, sliding one hand casually into his pocket as he approached. His smile was polished, his tone smooth.

"Well, well," Leonard said. "So you’re the infamous ex-husband."

He extended a hand, all charm. Dorian looked at it for a moment, then at Leonard’s face, and let the hand hang in the air.

Leonard chuckled softly and withdrew it. "Not much for pleasantries, I see."

Olivia folded her arms, her voice cold. "Leonard, ignore him. He’s not worth your time."

"Oh, on the contrary," Leonard said smoothly, his eyes never leaving Dorian. "I find him... interesting. Tell me, Mr. Ford, how does a man step out of prison and into a place like this? Alvero’s doesn’t exactly open its doors for just anyone."

Dorian’s reply was relaxed, almost casual. "Some doors don’t need unlocking. They open themselves."

Leonard slanted his head, studying him. For the first time, the easy charm in his eyes darkened, replaced by a flicker of analysis.

Olivia caught it, her stomach tightening. She spoke quickly, eager to cut through the tension. "Enough of this. Leonard, come back to the table. He doesn’t matter."

Dorian’s gaze flicked to her, steady, unreadable. "If I don’t matter, Olivia, why are you still quivering?"

Her throat closed. She forced a sharp laugh and turned on her heel, marching back to the table. Leonard lingered a moment longer, his smile returning.

"You’re full of riddles, Mr. Ford," Leonard said softly. "But this city doesn’t reward riddles. It rewards power and money. And only one of us has that."

Dorian’s eyes met his. "We’ll see."

Leonard smirked and returned to his seat.

Their dinner resumed, but the atmosphere in Alvero’s was no longer the same. Conversations quieted. Heads turned, sneaking glances toward the man who had dared to disrupt the poised Miss Steele and the formidable Leonard Kane.

Olivia tried to ignore it. She picked at her food, sipped her wine too quickly, and told herself she didn’t care that Dorian sat across the room like a cloud that refused to vanish.

Leonard, however, was restless. He feigned composure, asking Olivia questions about Steele Enterprises, smiling at her quick replies, but his gaze drifted back to Dorian again and again.

Finally, Olivia sighed in irritation. "You don’t have to entertain him. He’s no one."

Leonard chuckled. "If he were no one, Olivia, he wouldn’t carry himself like that. Men who are nothing don’t make others quiet when they enter a room."

Olivia stiffened but said nothing.

Leonard leaned back, sipping his wine. "But don’t worry. If he oversteps, I’ll handle him."

Olivia forced a smile she didn’t feel. For some reason, the thought didn’t comfort her.

Suddenly, a murmur rippled through the restaurant. A low hush, like a breeze passing over a field. The waiters strengthened, their trays shaking slightly. Conversations broke mid-sentence.

Olivia frowned, glancing around. "What’s happening?"

Leonard’s expression shifted instantly. His body straightened, his polished mask cracking with something rawer, anticipation.

A whisper reached their table, carried on nervous lips. "Alder Mark... Alder Mark is here."

"He rarely comes out, whoever he's meeting must be important"

Olivia blinked. The name tugged at her memory. Her mother had spoken it once, almost in a whisper, a name heavy with importance. A man who moved like smoke through the halls of power, whom even billionaires waited years to meet.

Her heart skipped. Here? In Alvero’s?

She looked at Leonard and her blood chilled. The charming, untouchable CEO looked like a boy waiting outside a locked door. His hands wriggled, his eyes fixed toward the entrance with a hunger she had never seen in him.

"Alder Mark," Olivia repeated under her breath. "The one mother..."

Leonard didn’t answer. His jaw was tight, his gaze burning. For months he had tried to meet Alder Mark, tried every connection, every favor, every bribe, nothing. Tonight, fate had delivered the impossible and the restaurant doors opened.

Alder Mark walked in without guards. Not that he needed any. He carried power like a veil, invisible yet undeniable. His suit was plain, dark. His steps were unhurried, but each one commanded the air around him.

The restaurant practically bowed, staff scattering to make way. The soft hum of the restaurant died to nothing.

Leonard rose to his feet instantly, smoothing his jacket, his smile wide but his eyes sharp with desperation. This was his chance.

Olivia rose too, almost by reflex. The weight of Alder Mark’s presence was overwhelming. She didn’t fully understand who he was, only that the room itself seemed to bend around him.

But then she noticed something strange.

Dorian hadn’t moved, he didn't stand to bow. He sat calmly at his table, his expression unreadable, his gaze fixed on Alder Mark, not with awe, but with recognition.

Olivia’s stomach twisted.

Alder Mark walked deeper into the restaurant, his eyes passing over faces without pause. He ignored Leonard entirely, as though the polished CEO were invisible.

Leonard’s smile faltered. He stepped forward slightly. "Sir, I’m..."

Alder didn’t even glance at him. His eyes stopped elsewhere, on Dorian Ford.

The silence cracked like glass. Olivia’s breath caught. Leonard froze, his mouth still half-open, his jaw almost on the floor.

Alder Mark walked directly toward Dorian’s table. The restaurant parted around him, the hush turning into stunned disbelief.

Dorian rose slowly to meet him. Their eyes locked, and in that moment Olivia felt the ground change under her.

Alder’s lips curved faintly.

"General Ford," Alder Mark said evenly, his voice carrying to every corner of the room. "Walk with me. We have unfinished business."

Olivia’s heart slammed against her ribs. Leonard’s hand curled into a fist under the table, his knuckles turning white.

The restaurant erupted in whispers and Dorian only gave the faintest smile.