Ex Wife's Collapse After Divorce novel Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Aurora’s eyes locked onto Ethan.

The entire cafeteria seemed to hold its breath.

Travis’s jaw dropped. Kevin’s chopsticks clattered against his tray. The guy next to Ethan made a sound like a deflating balloon.

Ethan’s stomach sank.

‘What the hell is she doing here?’

He was nobody in this building. A business associate who’d been here less than a month. And now the CEO of Stellaris International Trading was standing at his table, tray in hand, looking at him like he was the only person in the room.

“Is there a seat available?” Aurora repeated.

Everyone understood.

The guy sitting across from Ethan – Kevin – shot to his feet so fast his chair screeched against the

floor.

“Ms. Sinclair! I just finished – please, take my seat!”

His tray was still three-quarters full. Aurora glanced at his tray, then back at his face. Her smile widened.

“Thank you.” She set her tray down and settled into the chair with the ease of someone claiming a throne. Then, just as Kevin was turning to leave: “Starting this month, your base salary goes up by one thousand dollars.”

Kevin froze.

“Per – per month?”

“Per month.”

“Thank you, Ms. Sinclair! Thank you so much!”

He practically floated away.

The remaining colleagues exchanged glances. Envy burned through the table like wildfire. A thousand dollars a month for giving up a chair. Twelve thousand a year. Just like that.

But no one dared complain. Not with Aurora Sinclair sitting three feet away, her presence pressing down on the table like atmospheric pressure before a storm.

Forks moved faster. Conversations died. One by one, Ethan’s teammates shoveled food into their mouths at record speed, mumbled excuses, and fled.

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+15 Bonus

Three minutes. That’s all it took to clear a ten-person table.

Ethan set down his forks. “What are you doing here?”

His voice was low. Controlled. But the frown on his face was unmistakable.

Aurora picked up a piece of braised pork with her chopsticks, completely unbothered. “Eating lunch.”

“You know what I mean.” He leaned forward slightly, dropping his voice further. “I’m a regular employee here. You’re the CEO. And right now, ninety percent of this cafeteria is staring at us.”

Aurora took a bite. Chewed. Swallowed.

“You just closed the Whitfield account,” she said. “A deal three senior managers couldn’t land in six months. Can’t I have lunch with my star performer?”

Ethan opened his mouth. Closed it.

The reasoning was… technically sound. Publicly defensible. A CEO acknowledging an employee’s achievement over a meal – nothing scandalous about that.

But something about the way she said it – the slight curve of her lips, the warmth in her eyes that had nothing to do with business – made his instincts flare.

Before he could respond, Aurora’s expression shifted.

The confidence melted away. Her shoulders drew inward. She lowered her gaze to her tray, poking at a piece of tofu with her chopsticks like a child who’d been scolded.

“You know,” she said quietly, “being a CEO isn’t as glamorous as people think.”

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