The Billionaire Ex-Wife's Return (Cynthia and Ethan) novel Chapter 102

#102

Chapter 102

Ethan’s POV

I took a deep breath and tried to conceal my anger.

I loved Bryan. We’d been friends since forever, who’d built our careers side by side, who’d been there for each other through every major life event. And sitting here, watching him bare his soul about his feelings for Cynthia, I tried to understand him.

Bryan didn’t know my actual feelings for Cynthia. He thought I’d never loved her, that I’d chosen Anna, that I was only with Cynthia now because of Amber. And he respected me enough to tell me this to my face instead of going behind my back.

That had to count for something.

Even if it was tearing me apart.

“Have you told Cynthia yet?” I finally brought myself to ask, my voice surprisingly steady despite the turmoil raging inside me.

Bryan shook his head. “No. Not yet. I wanted to talk to you first. Make sure you were okay with it.”

Relief flooded through me so intensely I almost sagged in my chair.

He hadn’t told her yet. That meant I still had time. Time to figure out how to stop this. Time to make Bryan see reason. Time to find a way to claim Cynthia as mine before he could make his move.

But what could I say? What argument could I possibly make that wouldn’t reveal my true feelings?

“Cynthia…” I started carefully, choosing my words. “She has a lot of men in her life and…”

“Please, Ethan.” Bryan cut me off, his voice firm but not unkind. “I wouldn’t want to speak ill of her with you again.”

What?

The fuck?

I wasn’t speaking ill of her. She was my wife, for goodness‘ sake. I was just trying to protect what was mine. Trying to make him see that pursuing Cynthia was a bad idea, that she was complicated, that there were too many variables…

But I couldn’t say any of that without revealing everything.

And Bryan thought I was about to trash–talk Cynthia the way we used to. The way I used to, back when I was too blind and stupid to see what I had.

The irony was suffocating.

“Bryan, leave Cynthia alone.” The words came out harsher than I intended, but I was past the point of diplomacy. I’d tried other alternatives and he chose not to try and understand.

Bryan’s expression shifted…surprise, then something harder. Determination.

“Uhm… I’m not sure I’ll be able to do that, Ethan.” He stood up, setting his glass down on the side table with deliberate care. “I will see you around. Do have a lovely night.”

He walked toward the door, and I sat there frozen, watching my best friend leave with the intention of pursuing my wife

The moment the door closed behind him, I almost threw my glass of whiskey at it. My hand was actually raised, ready to hurl it,

when…

My phone rang.

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#102

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The sharp sound cut through my fury, and I looked down to see Margaret’s name on the screen.

My assistant. Calling at this hour.

I picked up, already irritated, my voice coming out clipped and harsh. “Yes.”

She better have a valid reason for calling, or I was going to transfer all this anger directly to her.

“It’s about the Nikolai Cross you asked me to do the research on,” Margaret said, her voice professional despite my obvious mood.

That piqued my interest immediately. My anger at Bryan took a backseat to my curiosity about this man who kept appearing in Cynthia’s life.

“What about him?” I demanded. “What did you find?”

“Well, sir, it’s… extensive. Should I email you the full report, or would you like the highlights now?”

“Highlights. Now.” I stood up and began pacing, the whiskey sloshing in my glass. “Who is he?”

Cynthia POV

I woke up the next morning to the sound of voices downstairs.

Kevin and Julian.

I lay in bed for a moment, staring at the ceiling, dreading having to face them. Kevin would be curious about how my outing with Amber and Ethan went he always was when Ethan was involved, protective in that older brother way. And Julian…

–

At the sight of Julian, knowing what I now knew about him and Tony, about his secret relationship that he was forced to hide from our family, I just couldn’t pretend. Couldn’t act normal. The knowledge sat heavy in my chest, making everything feel awkward and complicated.

I needed to get out of here.

I hurried through my morning routine, throwing on jeans and a sweater as I didn’t have any class today till 12pm, pulling my hair into a quick ponytail. When I came downstairs, both Kevin and Julian were in the kitchen, Kevin making coffee while Julian scrolled through his phone.

“Morning,” Kevin said, looking up with a smile. “So how was yesterday? Did Amber have fun?”

“It was good,” I said quickly, grabbing my purse from the counter. “Really good. But I have to run – I’m going to be late picking Amber up for school.”

“Late? It’s only seven–thirty,” Julian said, glancing at his watch. “School doesn’t start until…”

“Traffic,” I interrupted, already moving toward the door. “You know how it is. I’ll see you guys later!”

I fled the mansion before either of them could ask more questions, my heart racing as I got into my car.

I couldn’t face Julian right now. Not with his secret burning in my mind. Not when I knew I’d probably look at him differently, treat him differently, and he’d know something was wrong.

The drive to Walker Mansion took about fifteen minutes, and with each passing mile, my anxiety grew.

When I finally pulled up to the familiar gates, the first thing I thought of was my mother–in–law, Grace.

I had not met her one–on–one since I’d left Missford for Paris three years ago. Honestly, I was quite confused about how to react upon seeing her. Apart from Anna and Ethan, Grace had been a substantial part of my pain while I was still in the Walker mansion. Her constant criticism, her obvious preference for Anna, her way of making, me teel like I would never be good enough for her son, it had all contributed to the slow erosion of my self–worth.

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I honked at the gates, my hands gripping the steering wheel tightly.

One of the security men approached, and as he looked through my car window, his face transformed from routine professionalism to absolute shock.

“Missus!” He was almost screaming.

I recognized him immediately, Mr. Lan, who had been working security at Walker Mansion since before I’d even married Ethan. He’d always been kind to me, one of the few people who’d treated me with basic human decency.

Of course, no one must have told him that I was still alive. He didn’t look like someone who knew how to use a smartphone enough to know what had been trending on the internet about my return.

“I can’t believe this is you!” Tears started streaming down his weathered face. “Misus, we thought…everyone said…”

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