House arrest

Daniel Brooke finally broke the silence "What is this Dad? I am not a kid anymore. You can't control me like this."

"Sit down first and listen carefully."

Daniel Brooke sat down on the chair opposite his father and shot a dissatisfied look at him without saying anything. Thomas Brooke sighed deeply and said calmly "You are my only son. I am worried about your safety. Stop doing things hastily. I told you to back off from this case but still, you are pursuing it. There is nothing left in this case and you are only making enemies out of it. Do you have any idea how dangerous Senator Michael Harrison is? Stop messing around with him."

Daniel Brooke rubbed his forehead in frustration and said "I can take good care of myself and I am not afraid of that Senator. His son is a criminal and I am going to punish him for his sin. No one can stop me this time. You just wait and watch."

"You are not going to listen to me, right? Ok. Then do as I say. Otherwise, I'll force you to back off." Thomas Brooke raised his voice again.

Daniel Brooke frowned and asked, "What do you mean?"

Thomas Brooke looked at his son and said coldly "Jasmine is coming back. I have talked to her father and you are going to engage with her as soon as she comes back."

“What?”

Daniel Brooke was stunned by this news and almost shouted in disbelief. He was thinking, once he finished this case he would engage with his beloved woman Lisa. He never thought of any other woman other than her. There were still difficulties to be solved between them but now Jasmine came in between them from nowhere. Jasmine Brown was his childhood friend. Her father Jonas Brown was Thomas Brooke's old friend. Recently Jonas Brown had become Mayor of 'X' city. For Daniel Brooke, Jasmine Brown was only a good friend and he didn’t have any feelings for her. Lisa was the only girl he loved. No one could replace her place in his heart.

"How can you do that? I am not going to engage with Jasmine."

He denied straightly without a second thought.

"This is the only way and there is no second option. I don't care whether you agree or not. If you agree then you can go to the court at the next hearing. Otherwise, you will be locked inside your room until the engagement."

Daniel Brooke became so angry that he slammed his fist on the table hardly and said glaring at his father "You are insane Dad. You can't lock me up."

"Dear son, I can do anything to protect you."

"Is this the way you protect me, Dad? Why do you want to lock me up? How long are you going to lock me?"

"Then back off. I won't lock you up."

"It is not going to happen."

"Then there is no option left."

"You can't lock me up. Just wait and watch."

Thomas Brooke got angry and slammed his hand hard on the table before saying "Men of Senator Michael Harrison are looking for you like a hungry hyena. They are ready to rip you apart. I'll not take any risk. End of discussion. Now go and rest."

Daniel Brooke's jaw fell apart and his eyebrows furrowed, dumbfounded, and asked helplessly "So you are going to house arrest me just because you are afraid of that Senator Michael Harrison?" He shrugged helplessly and rolled his eyes before saying "Unbelievable."

Thomas Brooke called his assistant David Allen without paying attention to his son and when David Allen entered the room he told him "Make sure that Daniel can't come out of his room without my permission."

Daniel Brooke was so shocked that he couldn't help but shout "But Dad you can't...."

Thomas Brooke interrupted him "David, take him to his room."

"Yes, Boss."

David Allen bowed his head and said "Master Daniel, please allow me to send you back to your room."

Daniel Brooke looked at David Allen contemptuously and said "I know the way to my room. You need not send me off."

He got up off the chair and left the study immediately after saying that. On the way to his room, he could sense that David Allen was following him. He grimaced and stopped on his track. He turned around to face David Allen and asked him coldly "Why are you following me?"

"Sorry, I am just following orders."

He chuckled bitterly and said, "Seems you are very loyal to my Dad." He fixed his gaze at David Allen and said indifferently "When Henry comes to meet me just send him in my room. Don't chase him away."

David Allen didn't say anything. He was just standing there lowering his head. Daniel Brooke sighed helplessly and strode to his room. The door was locked from outside once he entered his room and he cursed angrily "Fu*k..."

......

On the other side, as PCI was done successfully the people inside the ward were all happy. Helen Black also came to visit Mark Holmes and they all are chatting happily.

At the end of the day, after sending Helen Black home, Carl Black and Lisa came for dinner in a restaurant. They entered into a private room and sat down together on the sofa side by side.

Carl Black looked at Lisa with a smile and said "I saw you smiling after a long time. You look very beautiful when you smile. Your smile was the one which took away my heart and today was not exceptional either." He grabbed her hand, placed it on the left side of his chest, and said "Can you feel it? It's beating so fast."

He paused for a moment before he continued "Do you know why my heart is beating so fast? It is because of you. Whenever I see you happy I feel that I am the happiest man in the world, but when I see you sad I feel so much pain in my heart that I can't bear it."

He tightened his grip around her hand and continued "Lisa I want to fill your world with happiness. I want to erase all the sorrow of your life. Marry me Lisa and make my life meaningful."

Lisa was touched deeply. She was staring at him the entire time without blinking. Their eyes were locked intensely for a long time.

Then Lisa lowered her gaze, pulled her hand back, and said slowly "But Mr. Black you need to know more about me before we start our life together. You need to know about my past."

Carl Black cupped her face, placed a soft kiss on her forehead, and said hoarsely "I don't care about your past as long as you agree to marry me and start your life with me."

Lisa's eyes filled with tears hearing this and said with a shaky voice "Why do you love me so much?"

"You have no idea how much I love you, but I'll not force you to love me back. I believe one day you will definitely fall for me and I'll wait for that day."

Tears rolled down from her eyes and said softly "Mr. Black...."

"Shh..."

Carl Black wiped her tears with his index finger and said "Once uncle discharges from the hospital we will get engaged. What do you say?"

Lisa was choked due to an emotional outbreak. She lowered her gaze and nodded feebly. Carl Black pulled her into his embrace and whispered in her ears "I am relieved."

By then the waiter came to take the order. They ordered their food and started chatting on random topics. Carl Black was very happy and the smile on his face was not leaving for a second. Compared to him Lisa's expression was somewhat hazy. She was somewhat scared of Carl Black's simplicity and his truthfulness. He trusted her so much. She was scared that she might hurt him one day. If he found out about Daniel Brooke one day, would he trust her? Would he love her like this? She was very anxious when these questions crossed her mind. She was not in love with him but she admired him so much that she didn't want to hurt him even in her dreams. Just like him, she also wanted to fill his world with happiness. She was staring at his smiling handsome face who was talking continuously without stopping and couldn't help but smile.