CEO’s Regret After I Divorced (Serena and Ryan) novel Chapter 147

Chapter 147: Chapter 147 Are you really not considering remarriage?

Author’s POV

Kane nodded slowly, processing her request. After she left his villa, he immediately dispatched people to investigate that suburban project.

"Hold on," Kane called to his assistant before they left. "Look into Sophie Su as well. Find out who she’s been closely associating with lately."

He wheeled himself to the window, watching her car disappear down the driveway. "Why would she suddenly want to work with me again?" he muttered, eyes narrowing with suspicion.

Kane didn’t trust Sophie one bit. He knew better than anyone that beneath that angelic face lurked a serpent’s heart.

"Be discreet during your investigation," he instructed his assistant. "Ryan absolutely cannot catch wind of this."

"Yes, Mr. Blackwood," the man replied with a slight bow before leaving.

Kane’s position was precarious at best. If the Blackwood matriarch wasn’t protecting him, Ryan would have eliminated what little influence he had left. Under such circumstances, Kane had been keeping a deliberately low profile, minimizing his presence within family affairs.

And now Sophie had brought trouble straight to his doorstep.

"Might as well make the most of this opportunity," he thought, drumming his fingers against the armrest of his wheelchair.

The project files proved difficult to obtain. Ryan’s people were everywhere inside Blackwood Enterprises now. Kane had to pull significant strings and eventually bribed a clerk from the project department to steal the files for him.

As his assistant reported their findings, Kane’s expression grew increasingly cold.

"What about Sophie? What did you find?" he demanded.

"Sir, Ms. Sophie has been in frequent contact with Lucian West, CEO of Celestial Gems. I suspect—"

Kane shot him an irritated look. "You only suspect?"

"While we don’t have concrete evidence, considering Ms. Sophie’s recent activities, they’re very likely working together. As for what they’re planning, I couldn’t determine."

Kane let out a derisive snort. "Of course. Sophie never could sit still, could she?"

"How much do you know about this Lucian West?" he asked, leaning forward in his wheelchair.

"Sir, I only know that Mr. West is the CEO of Celestial Gems, an overseas jewelry business. He has quite a reputation and considerable influence. He’s... something of an enigma."

"That’s public knowledge!" Kane snapped, his eyes flashing with anger. "Useless! Go dig deeper—I want everything, right down to his darkest secrets!"

"Yes, Mr. Blackwood. I’ll get on it immediately."

After dismissing his assistant, Kane took a moment to compose himself before opening the decade-old project files.

The suburban development project wasn’t just familiar—he’d been directly involved in it.

At that time, the person in charge hadn’t been Kane but rather his older brother—Ryan’s father. Though Kane was already an adult then, his brother had treated him like a child, pretending to involve him in the project while merely humoring him.

Naturally, Kane had resented this and insisted on giving orders anyway.

His brother, being straightforward and good-natured, had only warned him a few times after noticing his interference. But Kane had played a double game, appearing compliant while secretly offering terrible advice to the project managers.

As Kane flipped through the files, he could clearly see the records of the project lead’s various decisions—decisions that he himself had actually made.

He let out a cold laugh and closed the file.

If he remembered correctly, the business partner from that project had gone bankrupt shortly afterward.

Sophie wanting to investigate this specific project? Someone must be pulling her strings.

After a moment’s thought, Kane fixed his suspicions squarely on Lucian West.

---

Serena’s POV

After my check-up, I rested for two days at Ryan’s estate before returning to Dreamland Studio. The moment I walked in, Maya excitedly shoved a stack of order forms into my hands, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm.

"Serena, your reputation has absolutely skyrocketed after that celebration party! Look at all these new orders—more than our last two months combined!" she gushed.

I took the files, flipping through each page with a little surge of pride swelling in my chest. "Really this many?"

"Are you actually questioning my counting skills?" Maya pretended to be offended. "Don’t worry though, your designs are worth double now. Unless clients are willing to pay premium prices, these standard orders can just go to the team."

She leaned closer, gently patting my shoulder as her tone shifted to concern: "How was your rest these past two days? As long as you and baby are okay, that’s all that matters."

"We’re both fine," I nodded, but couldn’t help worrying, "But with all these orders, can the studio keep up?"

"Fine."

He ended the call abruptly after that single word. I stared at my phone screen, letting out a soft sigh. Typical Ryan response—disapproving but not directly interfering.

Several hours later, with afternoon sunlight streaming warmly into my office, I was dozing on the couch, half-asleep when I sensed someone at the door. I was too tired to open my eyes.

"Mr. Blackwood, aren’t you going in?" Maya’s voice drifted in.

"Serena’s resting. Is there something I can relay to her?"

I heard Ryan’s voice soften: "Is she participating in the design competition?"

"No, she’s judging it," Maya corrected, her tone playful. "That’s quite different. What, Mr. Blackwood doesn’t approve?"

"Her traveling to San Francisco alone isn’t safe," Ryan stated his concern directly.

"She’ll have assistants with her the whole time, and people specifically looking after her," Maya reassured him, adding, "Besides, judging really isn’t strenuous—it’s mostly just evaluating designs, which is what Serena does best and enjoys most."

Even through the door, I could sense the warning in Maya’s words: "If you try to stop her from doing this, she might get angry with you!"

"Hmm." Ryan responded simply.

I continued pretending to sleep, listening to their conversation outside my door. Eventually, Ryan left without coming in to disturb my rest. His consideration touched something in me.

When I woke up, Maya immediately came over, embellishing the story of Ryan’s visit.

"You should have seen his worried face! He looked like he was afraid you’d run into trouble the moment you stepped outside!" Maya described dramatically.

I couldn’t help laughing. "Was it really that bad?"

"Absolutely! He stood at your door for a full five minutes, just watching you sleep through the glass. The scene was..." Maya winked, drawing out her words.

After teasing me for a while, she suddenly turned serious: "Honestly though, Ryan is treating you really well these days. You must have noticed too, right?"

I found myself smiling involuntarily, feeling heat rise to my cheeks. "Let’s talk about something else."

"Serena, in a few months the baby will be born. Are you really not considering remarriage?" Maya cut straight to the point. "Even for the baby’s sake..."