The Billionaire Ex-Wife's Return (Cynthia and Ethan) novel Chapter 93

Cynthia’s POV

I pretended I didn’t see them.

Bryan and Devian stood in awe near the collector’s section, their shopping bags hanging limply from their hands, staring at us like we were ghosts who’d materialized in the middle of their afternoon.

I kept my eyes fixed on the manga shelf, my fingers trailing over the spines without really seeing the titles.

“Uncle Bryan! Uncle Devian!” Amber’s excited voice cut through the tension. He bounded over to them, completely oblivious to the awkwardness saturating the air.

I turned away, moving deeper into the store. Away from the stares. Away from the questions I could feel hanging in the air.

“Mom, look at this!” Amber appeared at my side, holding up a manga volume with a triumphant grin. “It’s the one I’ve been wanting forever! The one where…”

He launched into an animated explanation about plot points and character development that I barely understood. But I nodded along anyway, grateful for the distraction.

“That sounds exciting,” I said, keeping my voice steady even though my chest felt tight.

Through the corner of my eye, I saw Ethan and his friends moving toward a corner, discussing with them out of ear shot. Of course, Ethan needed to explain himself to them. He obviously needed to justify why he was here with me. Why he’d been caught in this compromising position of playing happy family with his estranged wife.

Just like always.

The thought settled over me like a familiar, suffocating blanket.

This was exactly how it had been during our marriage. Ethan would act one way when we were alone. He’d ask me to make him coffee. Request a shoulder massage after a long day. Occasionally, very scarcely in the first few years of our marriage he’d make love to me, though it always felt more like obligation than desire.

But the moment his friends appeared? I became invisible.

I remembered one particular dinner party at our house. I’d worked all day preparing an elaborate meal, wanting to impress Ethan’s friends. When I’d brought out the appetizers and placed a hand on Ethan’s shoulder, just a small, unconscious gesture of affection, he’d stiffened immediately.

Later, after everyone left, he’d pulled me aside.

“Don’t do that in front of people,” he’d said, not meeting my eyes.

“Do what?”

“Touch me. It looks… needy,”

I’d felt like I’d been slapped. At first, I’d told myself he just wasn’t the public display of affection type. Some people weren’t. It didn’t mean anything.

But then I realized Anna was allowed to touch him whenever she wanted. She could hug him in front of his friends. She could press kisses to his cheek, lean against his arm, laugh at his jokes with her hand on his chest.

All while I stood there, the actual wife, watching my husband accept affection from another woman that he’d rejected from me.

Like he wanted me to see. Wanted me to know my place.

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The memory made anger surge hot and sharp through my chest.

“Mom?”

Amber’s voice pulled me back to the present. He was looking at me with concern, the manga volume still clutched in his hands.

“Are you okay? You look mad.”

I forced the anger down, smoothing my expression into something softer.

“I’m fine, sweetheart. Just thinking about something. Do you want to get that manga?”

His face lit up immediately. “Really? You’ll buy it for me?”

“Of course.”

His excitement was infectious, momentarily pushing aside the darker thoughts swirling in my mind.

“Yes! Thank you, Mom!” He hugged the book to his chest like it was treasure. “Can we also get volume two? And maybe three?

They’re a series and…”

“Let’s start with one,” I said gently. “If you like it, we can get the rest next time.”

“Deal!”

We made our way to the counter, where a young employee with purple hair and multiple ear piercings greeted us with a cheerful

smile.

I noticed Ethan, Bryan, and Devian were still engaged in what looked like an intense conversation. Ethan looked like he was being interrogated, he must be trying to convince them that he was with me only because of Amber.

“I’d like to pay for this, please,” I said, sliding my credit card across the counter.

Ethan approached almost immediately, noticing I was about to pay, gave his card to the attendant but it was too late.

“I’ve got it.” I said with a small smile,

Who said I didn’t have my own money now?

I wasn’t that helpless housewife anymore, dependent on her husband’s credit cards for every purchase. I had my own restaurant.

I could buy my son a manga without needing Ethan Walker’s permission or his money.

The employee processed the transaction quickly, handing me back my card with a smile.

“Have a great day!”

“Thank you.”

“Ready to go?” I asked Amber, deliberately not looking at Ethan or his gawking friends.

“Yeah! I got the manga, Dad!” Amber held up the bag proudly.

“That’s great, buddy,” Ethan said, his voice strained.

“Why don’t you go wait by the car with your mom? I’ll be there in a second.”

I followed Amber as he jogged out of the mall.

As I stood by the car watching Amber flip through his manga, my phone buzzed in my purse.

I pulled it out and saw Pierre’s name flashing on the screen. Pierre never called unless it was urgent.

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“Pierre?” I answered, stepping slightly away from Amber.

“Ms. Cynclair, I’m sorry to bother you, but we have a situation.” His voice was tight with stress. “The customer volume has tripled since the incident was resolved. Tripled. We’re completely overwhelmed.”

I thought that was supposed to be good news, but he sounded worried. “What do you need?”

“We need an AI model for data analytics. Something to help us analyze diner preferences, improve personalized service, manage reservations more efficiently. Our current system can’t handle this volume. We’re losing potential bookings, and the staff is drowning in manual work.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. “How urgent?”

“Very. If we don’t implement something within the next few weeks, we’re going to start disappointing customers. And after everything we’ve been through, we can’t afford that.”

“I understand. Let me handle it.”

“Thank you. I knew you would.” He sighed with relief. “I’ll send you the specifications we discussed with the IT consultant.”

We hung up, and I stood there staring at my phone.

My first instinct was to call Nathaniel. He’d helped me so much already and I’d hate to constantly be a bother to him. I hesitated, my thumb hovering over his contact.

Why was I always running to Nathaniel for everything? I was perfectly capable of handling this myself.

My gaze drifted back toward the anime store, where through the glass windows I could see Bryan still engaged in conversation with Ethan and Devian. Bryan ran Renaissance Group which was one of the leading tech companies in Missford.

“Name your price for the apology and consider it done.” He had said back at the grocery store, and now I have gotten a way to

use him.

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