An Unlikely Goddess: The Ex-Wife's Revenge

Liam was dressed to the nines. Dark-blue dress shirt, black tailored suit, and a jet-black tie-sharp and restrained. He looked at Elaria with a faint smile. "Mind if we grab a coffee together?" Elaria gave a light smile after a pause. "Sure." Liam set his briefcase down. As he sank into the leather seat, a waiter showed up promptly. "What would you like to drink, sir?" Liam tapped the table with his slender fingers. "Blue Mountain." "Of course," the waiter replied and walked away. Once he was gone, Liam leaned back, instinctively reached for cigarettes, then frowned slightly and gave up the idea, glancing over at Elaria instead. It had been a while... and something about her felt different. She wore a soft-toned wool dress about the color of milk tea, slim-fitting but modest. Her long black hair flowed freely, with no showy jewelry-just a delicate chain brushing against her pale collarbone. She looked calm and gentle-Liam couldn't help but think of a smooth, glowing pearl. "You meeting a lawyer today?" "Business over coffee, Mr. Collins?" They spoke almost at the same time, which made things briefly awkward. Luckily, their conversation was cut off by the waiter bringing Liam's coffee. He nodded politely, took a slow sip, and finally spoke again. Instead of bringing up the divorce case, he changed the subject. "Heard you ran into Mrs. Harmon from Aurvista recently? Word is you two hit it off." Elaria gently stirred her cup, voice soft. "How'd you hear about that?" Liam kept his eyes on her. "Her husband's an old family friend. Technically, I should call him Uncle." Elaria gave him a surprised look. "That's news to me. Sebastian's never mentioned that." At the mention of Sebastian, a strange silence fell over them. Being a lawyer, Liam picked up on her discomfort and smoothly shifted topics. "Also heard you're planning to start something of your own? Looking for a place?" Elaria gave a quiet hum. "Yeah, thinking about it." He slid a gold-embossed card across the table toward her, eyes calm but watching closely. "A friend owns this property-middle of the courtyard in the Lumen Tower. Great spot for art, 800 square meters, $120k a year." Elaria took the card- That price for that location? More than fair. She didn't brush off Liam's offer. Sure, Liam and Sebastian were close, but in Caelmoor's upper circle, connections were everything. Doing anything meant being in that same loop. And whether it was Liam or anyone from the Richards family, burning bridges wasn't a smart move. Elaria offered a slight smile. "Thanks. I'll owe you one." Liam caught her smile-there was a strange tug in his chest. He kept his expression cool, though, that signature lawyer poker face. "Anytime." Outside the floor-to-ceiling window, sunlight spilled in, catching the tip of Elaria's nose. The light stung a little. She gently rubbed the spot, face turning just slightly to the side, bringing out a faint flush on her fair skin- She looked soft, very feminine. Liam's eyes lingered, almost like by accident, though clearly there was something deeper behind it. Outside the café... A luxurious black Rolls-Royce Phantom was parked by the curb-glinting under the sun, classy to the bone. Sebastian sat inside, eyes fixed on Liam and Elaria- His childhood friend and his wife. Sebastian wasn't clueless. The way Liam looked at Elaria? Yeah, that wasn't just casual. Only a man truly interested would have that kind of intensity in his gaze. If his memory served him right, Liam had always been a workaholic-never once serious about a woman.The first time he genuinely felt something, and it had to be for his own wife. Sebastian didn't know if he should be pissed off or secretly flattered by Elaria's allure. Even her style had changed-ditch the stiff suits, now she looked effortlessly tempting, like she'd dressed up for a date. The feeling in his gut was anything but pleasant. He pulled out his phone and dialed her number. As soon as she answered, his voice was cold, "Where are you?" There was a pause before she spoke. "Do I need to report to you now? Sebastian, we're getting divorced." "That's just your idea," he shot back immediately. Elaria let out a bitter laugh. "Really?" She kept her tone as steady as possible, trying hard not to lose it. "I'm useless to you now, right? Can't we just end this with some dignity? Sebastian, honestly, I can't even..." "Elaria!" He cut her off, panicked, his voice rushed-like he couldn't bear to hear what she was about to say. Those two names flashed through his mind-Ryan, Isabella. What they used to dream about. But without kids, was there even a point to continue? In that instant, a strange wave of longing hit him so hard he didn't know what the hell he really felt for her. Before either could say more, her phone rang again. It was the lady looking after her grandma. Without hesitation, she hung up on Sebastian and answered the other call. The voice on the line was frantic. "Miss Grace, it's bad!" "A woman came by-she said something that triggered your grandma's heart condition. Thank God her meds were within reach or I can't even think what would've happened..." Elaria's face went sheet-white. She ended the call and turned to Liam. "Something urgent came up. Sorry, Mr. Collins, we'll have to talk later." Seeing how pale she looked, Liam hesitated, clearly torn about letting her go alone. But Elaria was out the door in a flash, too rushed to even notice Sebastian parked nearby. Inside and out of the café- Two men caught each other's eyes through the glass. Sebastian's dark gaze was sharp and cold. Guys like them didn't take kindly to people making moves on their wives-especially not childhood friends. ***** Elaria rushed into the hospital. Grandma was stable now, already asleep post-medication. Elaria leaned over her, gently brushing strands of silver hair from her face, expression soft and full of care. "Miss Grace," the caretaker called gently. She straightened up slightly. "Let's talk outside." They stepped out into the corridor. The woman told her everything in a low, urgent voice, "It was some young girl, pretty shallow overall. Came in and claimed she's carrying Mr. Richards' baby, said you should step aside. Your grandma got so furious, her heart just gave out." "And when she saw something was wrong, the girl ran-just left her there struggling." "I swear, there's camera footage. I'm not making this up." Elaria's hands were shaking uncontrollably. But she forced herself to stay calm. "Got it. Please watch over Grandma while I handle something." The woman nodded, assuring her not to worry. After getting everything settled, Elaria walked toward the far end of the hallway. Sunset rays filtered through the windows, casting a red glow on her figure. She looked like she was walking through fire-her face etched with disappointment in the world. She could give up love, give up Sebastian, give up everything else- But not Grandma. Never her. Grandma was her last line- And now, Bianca had crossed it.