Marry Ex's Billionaire Uncle After Divorce (Aurora and Jasper) novel Chapter 206

Chapter 171: A Door Closing

(Aurora’s POV)

Behind me came a dull, quiet sound – both feet hitting the ground.

I turned.

Tiffany had stepped down from the railing. She was standing on the pavement, not moving, her arms at

her sides. Then she crossed the distance between us and reached out, pressing my hand briefly between

both of hers.

“Thank you,” she said. Very quietly.

She let go. She turned and walked away into the dark.

I stood there for a moment, then exhaled slowly and got back in the car.

Phineas looked at me.

“Why did you go over to her?”

I leaned back against the seat. I was quiet for a moment.

“When I saw her sitting on that railing,” I said, “I recognized it. It looked like me, a long time ago. That version of myself who was certain everything was finished and had no idea where the next day was supposed to come from.” I paused. “I just wanted to tell her that divorce wasn’t the end of the world. That

things do pass.”

Phineas didn’t say anything.

He reached over and drew me gently toward him, and pressed a kiss to my forehead.

“You don’t have to carry those old things anymore,” he said. “Because I’m here now.”

I closed my eyes for a second. The car hummed forward into the dark.

The dress was wrong. I could see it the moment I turned to face the mirror.

The fabric swamped me – layers of lace and tulle that had no idea what to do with a frame like mine. I

looked like a child playing dress–up in her mother’s wedding gown.

“No,” I said flatly, and reached back to find the zipper.

The sales assistant hovered near my elbow. “We have another style that might-”

“I’ve tried six.” I stepped out of the skirt pool on the floor. “None of them work.”

Phineas was leaning against the wall outside the fitting room, arms crossed, watching me with that

unhurried patience he seemed to have in infinite supply.

“Stop torturing yourself,” he said. “Find a designer you like and have something made.”

1/3

Chapter 171 A Door Closing

“Custom takes two months minimum.”

“So?”

I looked at him. “The welcome dinner is in two days, Phineas. We can’t just-”

Claim

“I had someone lined up,” he said. “A designer out of Paris. She was doing the whole thing from scratch,

just for you.” He paused. “She broke her wrist in a studio accident last week. Cancelled everything.”

I hadn’t known that. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because I was handling it.” He pushed off the wall. “Come out here and tell me what you actually want.

The silhouette, the neckline, the fabric. Give me something to work with and I’ll have someone here by tomorrow morning.”

“Phineas, you can’t just-”

“I can.” He said it without arrogance, just as a simple statement of fact. “Money is not the problem. It’s

never the problem. Stop treating it like one.”

I laughed despite myself. It came out a little tired, a little fond.

“Fine,” I said. “Let me use the restroom first. I need a minute.”

I handed him my clutch. He took it without comment, turned it over once in his hand, and settled back

against the wall to wait.

(Author’s POV)

Tiffany found a bench two blocks from the lake and sat down.

Her hands were still unsteady. She looked at them for a moment, then picked up her phone and called Chloe Langford.

It rang twice before Chloe picked up.

“I need a divorce lawyer,” Tiffany said. “The best one you know.”

A beat of silence. Then: “Oh my God. Are you serious? You’re actually doing it?”

“Yes.”

“Tiffany.” Chloe’s voice broke into something that was half–laugh, half–relief. “I’ve been waiting for you to

say that for two years.”

“I know. I’m sorry I made you wait.” Tiffany exhaled. “I need to tell you something. I was sitting on the railing by the lake tonight. I was actually going to jump.”

The line went completely quiet.

“Someone stopped me,” Tiffany said quickly. “A stranger. She said some things that – I don’t know. She was

blunt about it. Almost rude.” She paused. “It worked.”

273

Chapter 171 A Door Closing

“Tiffany.” Chloe’s voice had changed entirely. “If you had jumped-”

“I didn’t.”

“But if you had-”

“Chloe.” Tiffany kept her voice steady. “I’m fine. And I’m not going to think about it again. I figured

something out tonight.”

“What?”

Claim

“If I die, Zachary wins.” She said it plainly. “He’d be relieved. He’d probably take Quentin on a vacation to

celebrate. And I am not going to give that man the satisfaction.”

Chloe let out a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a sob.

“Where are you going now?” she asked.

“Home.”

“To the house? With him there?”

“My name is on the title deed.” Tiffany stood up from the bench. “I have no reason to leave. He can be the

one who’s uncomfortable.”

Chloe was quiet for a moment. “I don’t know how you went from that railing to this in one night.”

“I had help.”

“I’m sending you the lawyer’s number right now. He’s the best in the city.” A pause. “And Tiffany – when this is over, come back to design. You’re wasted on that family. You always were.”

Tiffany smiled. It was small and tired, but it was real.

“One thing at a time,” she said. “But yes. I think I will.”

Comments

LUCK DRAW >

Vote