The CEO's Rejected Wife And Secret Heir novel Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Chapter 14 – Damien’s Obsession

Damien POV

The whiskey burned going down, but not enough to numb the ache in my chest.

I stared at my phone screen, at the message I’d sent hours ago. Still no response. Just those three devastating words she’d typed earlier: You have nothing.

My hand tightened around the glass until my knuckles went white.

"Mr. Blackwood?" My assistant’s voice crackled through the intercom, pulling me from my spiral. "Your 9 AM with the Tokyo investors is in fifteen minutes."

I glanced at my watch. 8:47 AM. I’d been sitting here all night, drinking and staring at my phone like a pathetic fool.

"Cancel it," I said, my voice rough from lack of sleep and too much whiskey.

"Sir, they flew in specifically"

"I said cancel it." I ended the call with a jab of my finger.

The city sprawled below my penthouse office, morning light glinting off the glass towers. Somewhere down there, Aria was starting her day. Maybe having coffee Maybe with that bastard Lucas Hayes.

My jaw clenched at the thought of his hand on her waist, the way she’d smiled at him.

I pulled up my laptop my fingers moving across the keys. I needed to know everything about Aria’s rise. Everything about Monroe Global.

The preliminary reports from my investigators sat in my inbox, mocking me with their subject line: Aria Monroe - Initial Findings.

I clicked it open.

What I found should have impressed me.

It terrified me instead.

Aria hadn’t just survived after I threw her out. She’d built an empire from absolutely nothing.

The timeline made my stomach turn.

Three years and eight months ago: Last confirmed sighting in New York pawning her grandmother’s necklace.

Three years and seven months ago: Found working as a waitress at a small café in London. Pregnant.

My hand froze on the mouse. Pregnant.

Three years and two months ago: Gave birth at Royal London Hospital. Took three weeks maternity leave, then returned to waitressing.

I did the math quickly, my heart hammering. Nine months before that birth... that would have been right around when she left me.

The baby could be mine.

No. The baby was mine. I knew it in my bones, felt it in the way my chest constricted with every breath.

I kept reading, my hands shaking now.

Two years and ten months ago: Enrolled in night classes at London Business School while working double shifts. A friend—Dr. Olivia Grant—helped with childcare.

Child. They mentioned the child but gave no details. No name, no gender, no photographs.

Two years and six months ago: Hired as junior analyst at Sterling Investments despite having an infant at home. Made them three million dollars on her first merger prediction within two months.

I leaned back in my chair, running a hand through my hair. Three million. On her first try.

I’d known Aria was smart during our relationship. I’d seen her reading in the library—complex business theory, economic journals, market analysis. But I’d been too blind, too wrapped up in my own arrogance to pay attention.

Too convinced she was just another woman trying to trap me for my money, thanks to Vivian’s poison in my ear.

One year and eleven months ago: Promoted to senior analyst. Turned down three higher-paying offers to stay at Sterling.

One year and four months ago: Left Sterling to found Monroe Global with two million in venture capital she’d secured herself. Investors included three Fortune 500 CEOs who’d worked with her at Sterling.

Present day: Monroe Global valued at $800 million and growing. Thirty-seven successful acquisitions. Zero failed deals. Based in Silver Springs with offices in London, Dubai, and Singapore.

I stared at the screen, my throat tight.

She’d done all of this alone. While pregnant. While raising a child. With nothing but her intelligence and determination.

While I’d been here, drowning in guilt and whiskey, telling myself there was nothing I could do.

My phone buzzed. A text from Marcus: I hear your wife is quite the businesswoman. Built her empire while you were busy destroying yours. Poetic, don’t you think?

I ignored him, opening a new search window instead.

"Aria Monroe child" I typed, hitting enter.

Nothing. No birth announcements, no social media posts, no school records. She’d kept the child completely hidden from public view.

Smart. If anyone knew she had a Blackwood heir, the vultures would circle.

I tried another search. "Aria Monroe family."

Still nothing recent. But I found older articles from four years ago.

Monroe Family Business Saved by Blackwood Alliance

Vivian Monroe and Damien Blackwood Spotted Together

Aria Monroe Blackwood Missing After Family Scandal

I clicked on the last one, my stomach churning.

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