The Don Tore Up Our Divorce (Gemma and Cassian) novel Chapter 278

Chapter 278

Reyna’s POV

Last night, after that humiliating trip to return Cassian’s stupid card, I came back to Rhett and turned on the waterworks.

A few strategically shed tears about my “fragile health” and that fool was eating out of my hand. He actually gave me money! Shopping money to “cheer me up“, as if a new handbag could fix the mess my life is in.

But it’s all part of the plan. The Opal Group banquet is in a few days. Every important person will be there, which means Cassian will be there.

I’ve already pestered Rhett until he managed to scatch up two invitations. My plan is perfect: I’ll stand there, elegant and poised on Rhett’s arm, and casually announce I’m his girlfriend.

Apart from the fact that he won’t be able to digest it, Cassian can’t possibly ship his best friend’s girlfriend off to another

country.

As long as I stay in this city, with poor, pathetic Rhett as my shield, I’ll still be in Cassian’s orbit. There’s still a chance.

So when my phone rings and his name flashes on the screen, a jolt of pure triumph shoots through me. See? He can’t stay away.

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I take a deep breath, letting it ring twice more. I must sound calm, unaffected.

“Hello, Cassian?”

He invites me to dinner. Just like that!

“I’d love to,” I say, not a moment of hesitation in my tone.

Gemma’s POV

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The number hangs in the air between us in the bank’s air–conditioned chill. Three million five hundred and seventy thousand.

I turn to Cassian, my voice a low, disbelieving whisper. “Reyna had the card for just over a year, and she managed to spend it all?”

He presses his lips together, a clear admission of ignorance. He never saw the card before Grandpa gave it to me. He never bothered to check the balance when I gave it to him, assuming it was between the two of us.

“At the very least, there were tens of millions in the card initially. The monthly sponsorship amount is fixed at 50 thousand. Even with calculations, the balance shouldn’t be just three million, right? Where has the rest of the money gone?”

I watch as the realization dawns on him, his expression

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darkening like a storm cloud.

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The logic is inescapable. The card was in her possession, with no password. The bank didn’t steal it. There’s only one answer.

Leaving the bank, the silence of his Rolls–Royce feels suffocating. I sink into the cool leather of the backseat, the anger sitting like a hard, cold stone in my chest.

I stare at his profile in the rearview mirror. Call Reyna.‘

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I must retrieve every last penny of those millions that have gone missing. I will not let that woman steal from those children, from a decision I made in a moment of panic and hope.

I will not.

He makes the call, his voice carefully casual as he invites her to dinner. When he hangs up, he turns to me, a strange, almost playful look on his face. “Honey, I’ve done as you said!”

The word “honey” feels like a spider crawling on my skin. I rarely see him act like this, and it’s always a performance. He’s using his charm as a tool on her, and he must feel a bit wronged by it.

Well, he should. If Reyna wouldn’t meet up unless Cassian invited her, then he’s the necessary bait in this trap.

Just a short stop at home to change, and we drove to the

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overpriced cafe I chose for dropping this bombshell.

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I spot her immediately- dressed in white, and tucked into a corner booth by the window, looking like she’s auditioning for the role of the tragic angel.

Her face lights up like a beacon the second she sees Cassian. Then her eyes land on me, following a step behind him, and her expression curdles.

The sweetness evaporates into pure, unadulterated spite.

I slide boldly into the seat across from her, my gaze locked on hers, not missing a single micro–expression. This feels less like a conversation and more like a showdown, the lady of the house confronting the mistress who’s been pilfering the silver.

Cassian, Gemma… why did you ask me out today… is there something you want to talk about?

The performance is so transparent I almost want to applaud. Why is Reyna still pretending to be innocent even at this point?

If you’re here to ask about my plans to go abroad, I’m sorry to say I can’t leave for now!

She adds, preemptively defensive. A cold smile touches my lips.

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