The Ex-Wife He Can’t Have novel Chapter 56

"I'm your mother. Stop thanking me," Judith scolded affectionately.

Judith gave her a playful glare.

"By the way, have you seen Connor recently?" Judith asked.

Jillian's silverware froze mid-air.

She hadn't mentioned a single word about the art exhibition, terrified that the ugly truth would shatter her mother's heart.

"I saw him."

"Don't blame me for being blunt. I know Stella is a pitiful case, but Connor is your own flesh and blood. You absolutely cannot neglect your real son for someone else's kid. I won't stand for it," Judith declared fiercely.

"Of course I won't," Jillian muttered, staring down at her plate. The food suddenly tasted like ash in her mouth.

"Stella is only staying here for a few days. She'll be sent back to the hospital soon enough."

Jillian did her best to soothe Judith's worries.

"That's more like it."

After breakfast, Judith tried her best to entertain Stella.

Jillian sat down to tackle her workload, but her focus was completely shattered today.

Eventually giving up, she pulled out her phone and called Mallory.

"Has the rent issue been sorted out?"

"No." Mallory's voice was laced with utter defeat.

The landlord adamantly refused to back down an inch. However, during their argument, he let it slip that the only reason he hiked the rent so astronomically was because someone else had offered to pay that exact ridiculous price to lease the building.

If Mallory could match the offer, he was perfectly willing to give her priority.

The landlord was running a business, after all. His decision, while heartless, made perfect financial sense.

Jillian was ninety-nine percent certain the person artificially inflating the lease behind the scenes was Killian.

He was the only one capable of burning millions of dollars on a whim just to vent frustration for his mistress.

"I'm so sorry, Mallory."

"Why are you apologizing again? I already told you this isn't your fault. And honestly, if you look at the big picture, you're the real victim here."

Jillian's lips curled into a bitterly self-deprecating smile.

It was true. Killian was casually tossing around millions just to exact revenge on behalf of Sylvia.

And she, his legal wife, was forced to stand by and watch the entire humiliating spectacle.

When it came down to it, the emotional damage inflicted upon her was exponentially worse than anything Mallory was facing.

She prayed to god her ears were playing tricks on her.

But harsh reality dictated otherwise—it was unmistakably Sylvia Xavier.

She genuinely couldn't fathom how she managed to run into them literally everywhere she went.

Keeping her head ducked and her back firmly to them, Jillian quickened her pace to leave.

But after taking a few hurried steps, she couldn't stop herself from halting.

She lifted her gaze, staring into the full-length mirror strategically angled near the display window.

Just as she suspected, the man standing beside Sylvia was Killian.

Sylvia was personally selecting a designer tie for him.

Her slender, perfectly manicured hands picked up tie after tie, holding them up against Killian's chest to check the fit.

The sheer intimacy radiating between them made them look exactly like a happily married couple.

Jillian drew in a sharp breath. What exactly was she expecting?

She knew damn well that the man by Sylvia's side could only ever be Killian, yet she still masochistically forced herself to witness it firsthand.

She was practically plunging the knife into her own chest all over again.