The Wife He Never Meant to Love (Lila and Damon) novel Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Chapter 24

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Maddy leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs elegantly as the headlines continued to flood her screen.

Photos.

Speculation.

Comment sections burning with judgment.

She smiled.

Slow. Satisfied.

Exactly as planned.

Lila’s name was everywhere-painted in scandal, wrapped in disgrace. And by extension, Damon’s name was being dragged through the noise.

Maddy knew him well.

Damon hated unnecessary attention.

He despised media drama.

He had always preferred women who understood their place in public-calm, composed, invisible when needed. Women who knew when to step forward and when to retreat.

Not women who trended for the wrong reasons.

Surely, this would anger him.

Surely, he would see Lila as a liability.

With that pleasant thought warming her chest, Maddy rose and made her way to Damon’s office, heels clicking confidently against the polished floor.

She didn’t knock immediately.

Instead, she smoothed her hair, preparing herself for the scene she expected-papers thrown aside, sharp commands issued, fury simmering in the air.

She knocked once and pushed the door open.

But-

There was no storm.

No shattered glass.

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Chapter 24

No raised voice.

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Damon sat behind his desk, sleeves slightly rolled, eyes focused on a contract in front of him. Calm. Controlled. Completely absorbed in his work.

If anything, he looked… steady.

Unbothered.

Simon stood nearby discussing figures, and Damon responded with quiet authority, signing a document before moving to the next.

Maddy’s smile faltered-just slightly.

“Damon,” she greeted smoothly.

He glanced up briefly. “Maddy.”

No tension.

No irritation.

No visible anger.

She stepped inside, testing the waters. “I assume you’ve seen the news?”

“Yes.”

That was all.

She waited.

Nothing followed.

No criticism of Lila.

No frustration about reputation.

No complaint about being dragged into scandal.

Damon simply returned his attention to the documents before him.

The silence stretched.

Maddy forced a small, knowing smile.

So he’s burying himself in work.

Of course.

That was his way.

Chapter 24

If he wasn’t raging openly, it meant he had already detached.

He must be disappointed.

And disappointment, with Damon, was far worse than anger.

Satisfied with her conclusion, she adjusted her handbag.

“I won’t disturb you,” she said lightly.

“Mm,” Damon responded without looking up.

Maddy turned and walked out, heels echoing confidently down the corridor.

A slow smile returned to her lips.

She had achieved her goal.

The calm inside that office wasn’t indifference.

It was distance.

And distance, she believed, was the beginning of the end.

What she didn’t see-

Was the brief pause in Damon’s pen the moment the door closed.

Or the subtle shift in his eyes, darker now than before.

The office grew quieter after Maddy left.

Too quiet.

Damon signed another document-but his focus had begun to fracture.

His phone lay beside his hand.

Screen down.

Within reach.

Every few minutes, almost unconsciously, he flipped it over.

No new messages.

He placed it back down.

Five minutes later, he checked again.

Still nothing.

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Chapter 24

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Simon, standing across the desk reviewing quarterly reports, noticed the pattern immediately. Damon had never been the type to wait on anyone’s call. People waited for him.

Not the other way around.

Another glance at the phone.

Another faint crease between his brows.

“Did she reach out?” Damon asked casually, eyes still scanning a document.

Simon didn’t need clarification. “No.”

A pause.

Damon turned a page sharply.

Ten minutes later-

“Anything?”

“Nothing,” Simon replied, this time unable to hide the slight curve tugging at his lips.

Damon leaned back in his chair, jaw tightening. The earlier calm was fading. The pleasant mood from the morning had thinned into something restless.

She hasn’t called.

Not a message.

Not a complaint.

Not even a question.

The headlines were everywhere.

Her name dragged through mud. Ethan’s reputation tangled in the scandal.

And still-

Silence.

Damon’s fingers tapped lightly against the desk before he caught himself and stilled them.

“She’s stubborn,” he muttered.

Simon finally allowed himself a small, amused smile. “Or capable.”

Damon shot him a look.

Simon lifted his hands slightly in surrender. “You said it yourself. She’s not weak.”

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Another glance at the phone.

Nothing.

Now it irritated him.

:

He had told himself he would wait. That if she wanted him to step in, she would ask.

But she wasn’t asking.

She was handling it alone.

And that-

For reasons he didn’t fully care to examine-

Pissed him off.

The temperature in the room shifted subtly.

Simon felt it immediately.

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The air grew heavier. Damon’s movements sharper. The pen in his hand clicked once before he tossed it onto the desk.

It was almost comical.

Simon had known Damon for years. He had seen him negotiate billion-dollar deals without blinking. He had watched him dismantle rivals with calm precision.

But this?

This quiet restlessness over a woman who refused to ask for help?

That was new.

Simon couldn’t help it.

He smiled.

“For the first time,” Simon said lightly, “you look… impatient.”

Damon’s eyes narrowed.

“I’m not impatient.”

“Of course not.”

Damon stood abruptly and walked toward the window, sliding his phone into his pocket as if distancing himself from it would somehow restore control.

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“She can handle it,” he said firmly.

Simon nodded, still amused. “Clearly.”

Silence stretched.

:

Damon’s reflection stared back at him in the glass-controlled exterior, storm underneath.

He had waited for her to reach out.

She didn’t.

And for the first time in a very long time-

Damon felt restless because a woman refused to rely on him.

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Damon and Simon left the office in silence, the city lights streaming past as their car cut through the evening traffic. Damon’s jaw was tight, fingers gripping the steering wheel with a white-knuckled intensity. Simon, sitting beside him, bemused by the storm brewing beside him.

When they arrived at Silvermoon, Damon didn’t pause. He led the way straight to a private room in the back, thick velvet curtains sealing them off from prying eyes. Inside, he sank into a chair, swirling his drink with a sharpness that matched his mood. He was drunk, yes-but the liquor only seemed to sharpen his frustration.

“She hasn’t reached out,” he muttered, voice low and dangerous, barely audible over the faint hum of the bar.

Simon leaned back, trying to mask his surprise with a smirk. “Clearly, she wants to handle it herself. You taught her to be calm, composed…”

Damon slammed the glass onto the table, making the liquid ripple violently. “I didn’t teach her to drag someone else into scandal and then ignore me.”

The room fell heavy with silence. Even the faint music from the bar seemed distant under the weight of his

presence.

Finally, Damon pulled out his phone and dialed. The line connected immediately.

“Bryan,” Damon said, voice sharp and cold. “Check on Ethan. Make sure he suffers. And make it very clear- he doesn’t escape responsibility for this.”

There was a brief pause. “Yes, Mr. Damon,” Bryan replied, careful, measured, but the tremor in his voice betrayed the weight of the command.

Damon ended the call abruptly, sliding the phone across the table as if it carried some of his anger.

Simon and James, who had accompanied him, exchanged wide-eyed glances, utterly speechless.

No words. No laughter. Only the quiet realization that Damon’s fury-fueled by Lila’s silence—was something far darker than they had ever seen.

And in that private room, the three of them knew: Damon didn’t just want answers. He wanted consequences.

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