My Billionaire Ex-husband Won't Call It Quit
I was just eighteen when I mistook a business deal for a fairy tale, letting a schoolgirl crush blind me to the truth. My prince charming? He turned out to be more of a wolf in an Armani suit.
Now, five years and a thousand broken pieces later, I've rebuilt myself into someone I barely recognize, a CEO, a survivor, and most importantly, a mother to my beautiful son Griffin. I thought I'd buried the naive girl who once dreamed in a garden. Apparently, the universe had other plans.
My ex-husband's back, claiming he's changed and wanting a second chance. And then there's James Drake, a billionaire with scars that match my own, who makes me wonder if my heart remembers how to beat for something other than revenge.
Between poisoned flowers showing up at my office and threats creeping too close to my son, I'm learning that success is the best revenge, if I can stay alive long enough to enjoy it. They say love is sweeter the second time around, but can I trust it when betrayal wore the face of love once before?
One thing's certain: I'm not that naive wife anymore. And this time, I'm playing for keeps.
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Chapter: CHAPTER 39St. Regis Hotel – Grand Ballroom – 9:02 PM Next Evening The St. Regis ballroom glittered with old money and new power, crystal chandeliers casting prismatic light over New York's elite gathered to celebrate the union of Vanessa Coleman and Harrison Montrose IV. Three hundred guests in black tie and couture gowns, air heavy with perfume and privilege. Security was tight—guest list checked twice, IDs verified, metal detectors discreetly disguised as art installations.None of which had prevented me from securing an invitation under the name Alexandra Coleman—my legal name, as Michael had recently been so eager to remind everyone. The invitation that had arrived three weeks ago, addressed to me at my old penthouse (long since sold), forwarded through a series of old addresses until it reached me yesterday. A power move from Vanessa herself, Michael's beloved niece who had never forgiven me for leaving her uncle, for tarnishing the Coleman name with my "betrayal."The chandeliers trembl
Last Updated: 2025-04-17
Chapter: CHAPTER 38Alex's Penthouse – 11:18 PM The Connecticut safe house had been a diversion. After confirming we weren't followed, James had driven Griffin and me back to Manhattan, to my penthouse in a building with security that rivaled most government installations. Six hours of emergency meetings had followed—with my legal team, with Sally and the executive committee, with my brother Elliott via secure video link from Singapore.The hot shower pounded against my shoulders, washing away some of the day's tension as steam clouded the marble bathroom. I leaned my forehead against the cool tile, allowing myself exactly sixty seconds of weakness—of fear, of rage, of the bone-deep exhaustion that came from knowing this battle with Michael would never truly end.Sixty seconds. Then I straightened, shut off the water, and wrapped myself in a robe. Griffin had fallen asleep hours ago, exhausted from what he believed had been an exciting adventure, not understanding the genuine danger that had precipitat
Last Updated: 2025-04-16
Chapter: CHAPTER 37West Borough Elementary – 2:47 PM The autumn afternoon light filtered through the changing leaves as I sat in my Tesla, parked across from West Borough Elementary's redbrick façade. The school's clocktower chimed the quarter-hour, sending pigeons scattering against the cloudless sky. I'd arrived early—a habit formed from years of preparing for the worst—but today, something felt different. A prickling at the back of my neck. The same warning system that had alerted me to Michael's betrayals years before.I glanced at my watch—thirteen minutes until the final bell. The car's climate control hummed as I scrolled through the day's emails, keeping one eye on the school entrance. A flurry of congratulatory messages about Lane International's Airbus deal. Three board members requesting "private conversations" following yesterday's confrontation. A carefully worded inquiry from The Wall Street Journal about rumors of a Coleman Corp lawsuit.My phone rang, the school's number flashing on th
Last Updated: 2025-04-15
Chapter: CHAPTER 36Alex POV Lane International Boardroom – High Noon The air conditioning couldn't combat the sweat beading on Richard Maxwell's brow as he slid the document toward me across the polished expanse of our conference table. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, Manhattan shimmered in the midday heat, a concrete and glass mirage that seemed to undulate in the September humidity. I could see our company logo reflected in the windows of the building opposite—strong, clean lines forming an 'L' that represented everything I'd built from the ashes of my previous life. "Alex... the board feels this merger makes strategic sense." Maxwell's voice carried the strained neutrality of a hostage reading a prepared statement. Though he'd been with Lane International since its inception—had been one of the few who believed in me when every door in the business world mysteriously slammed shut—his eyes couldn't quite meet mine now. Behind him, the remaining board members sat in various postures of disc
Last Updated: 2025-04-14
Chapter: CHAPTER 35Michael's knuckles were white around the whiskey glass as the projector displayed Alex's Hong Kong tax records. The ice had long since melted, diluting the eighteen-year Macallan into something weak and tepid, much like his legal team's excuses. The boardroom felt like a war room, the pre-dawn darkness pressing against the windows, the city lights below reflecting off the glass like distant artillery fire."There," he rasped, stabbing a finger at the screen where a series of transactions glowed in accusatory blue. "That transfer from Lane Holdings LLC. Trace it."His lead attorney, Bernard Walsh—who'd been with Coleman Corp for twenty-two years and had buried enough bodies to populate a small cemetery—swallowed hard. The man's immaculately pressed shirt was beginning to show stress wrinkles around the collar, and sweat beaded at his temples despite the frigid air conditioning. "Sir, if we get caught digging into foreign tax structures without reasonable cause—""I pay you to not get c
Last Updated: 2025-04-12
Chapter: CHAPTER 34Maria's fork clattered against her plate loud enough to make their youngest daughter flinch. Claire, twelve years old and already hypersensitive to the atmospheric pressure changes that preceded her parents' storms, hunched her shoulders and fixed her gaze on the uneaten salmon on her plate. The dining room's chandelier cast sharp shadows across the table, highlighting the lines of tension etched into everyone's faces. "You've been staring at that phone for twenty minutes," Maria hissed, her voice low but edged with the sharpness of a blade that had been sharpened too many times. Michael didn't look up from the Lane International stock ticker, the blue glow illuminating the angles of his face. The stock had risen another eight percent since opening bell. "Business," he replied, his voice flat and automatic, a recording he'd played so many times it had lost all meaning. "Bullshit." Maria slammed her wine glass down, ruby liquid sloshing onto the white tablecloth like blood seeping t
Last Updated: 2025-04-11
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