After I Stopped Loving Him (Isabella and Ethan) novel Chapter 2

Natalie Gates always wanted more. She married Jordan Lane but couldn’t stand seeing Ethan with anyone else. She kept him hanging on, always finding ways to stir up trouble for Isabella and challenge her behind the scenes.

There was never any real friendship between the two women. If anything, things only got worse until they became full-blown enemies.

That day on the stairs, Isabella didn’t push Natalie. Natalie slipped on her own, but immediately blamed Isabella, claiming she’d been attacked.

Jordan and Ethan both took Natalie’s side, no questions asked. Jordan didn’t even let Isabella speak before he hit her and threw her out of the Lane Estate. He made it clear that anyone who dared befriend her would be his enemy too.

Just like that, Isabella lost everything in Cabinda. Her only lifeline was Ethan. Without him, she was done for.

Ethan was furious too. He scolded her, froze her bank accounts, and kept her locked away in his private villa. She wasn’t allowed to leave, wasn’t allowed to spend a dime.

She tried everything. She cried, begged, tried to explain, but none of it mattered. Ethan wouldn’t listen. Eventually, she just gave up. When he finally said, “If you can live with this, fine. If you can’t, we’ll get a divorce,” she agreed.

After the divorce, Isabella was left with absolutely nothing. No money. No home. Nowhere to go except to her best friend.

But on her way there, someone kidnapped her. She couldn’t see their faces. She had no idea who they were. After everything she’d been through, they killed her and dumped her body in the wild. By the time anyone found her, her body was already decomposing.

The person who came to identify her wasn’t her mother. It was Ethan, the man who’d only ever used her as a pawn.

Both Ethan and Jordan had their gardens landscaped this way. It was obvious how much they both loved Natalie. Ethan especially seemed completely devoted.

But none of that had anything to do with Isabella anymore. In this new life, she made a decision—she’d just be a quiet, comfortable wife. She was done with love.

She couldn’t get divorced yet. If she did, Cynthia would definitely push her into marrying someone else, and she couldn’t go back to the Lane family either. She was still vulnerable.

So, for now, she would stay. Whether Ethan loved her or not didn’t matter anymore. She would hide behind his name and enjoy the security that came with it. If he wanted to love Natalie, fine. As long as her allowance showed up in her account every month, she’d be content.

She’d save up that money, and one day, she’d use it to start a new life all her own.