Ex's Bet on Reconciliation Fails

Six years after Colten Rice ended our engagement, I returned home from my studies. During that time, Colten had just divorced Joanna Carpenter, the woman he thought was perfect for him. I overheard someone asking him, "Melina's back. What's your plan?" I'm Melina. Colten replied with a tone of certainty, "I got divorced, and she came back right away. What plan could I possibly have?" Another voice added, "She was pretty keen on Colten back in the day. She must've come back to give it another go." Colten made a wager with his friends that within a week, I'd be on his doorstep, pleading for a reconciliation. A week later, the news arrived—I was married. I even sent him an invitation to my daughter's birthday party. ============================== I caught sight of Colten Rice at "The Crestview" restaurant, a favorite spot for the city's affluent crowd.

Chapters

Chapter 1

Six years after Colten Rice ended our engagement, I returned home from my studies. During that time, Colten had just divorced Joanna Carpenter, the woman he thought was perfect for him.

I overheard someone asking him, "Melina's back. What's your plan?"

I'm Melina.

Colten replied with a tone of certainty, "I got divorced, and she came back right away. What plan could I possibly have?"

Another voice added, "She was pretty keen on Colten back in the day. She must've come back to give it another go."

Colten made a wager with his friends that within a week, I'd be on his doorstep, pleading for a reconciliation.

A week later, the news arrived—I was married. I even sent him an invitation to my daughter's birthday party.

==============================

I caught sight of Colten Rice at "The Crestview" restaurant, a favorite spot for the city's affluent crowd. As he walked ahead of me, his tall and sophisticated silhouette was hard to miss, even after all these years.

He went into private room 606, while I headed to 608, just next door.

As I passed room 606, the door was slightly open, and the quiet hallway amplified the conversation inside.

Someone asked him, "Now that Melina's back, has she tried to get in touch?"

Another person noted they'd seen me at the airport last week.

I recalled that day; a man had waved at me when I got off the plane. He seemed familiar, but I couldn't place him, so I gave a courteous smile.

Then it all came together: he was the son of Donald Rice's secretary, who had used that connection to become Colten's assistant after graduating.

Colten laughed heartily and said, "Just as I expected."

With curiosity, someone asked, "What did you expect, Colten?"

Another voice jumped in, as if reading his thoughts, "She went abroad for five or six years without ever coming back, and now that Colten's divorced, she's here again—what other reason could there be?"

The group was in awe, "Colten's quite the catch among the city's well-off young crowd."

I chuckled to myself. With his father’s gambling habits, the Rice family barely scraped the surface of elite circles—more middle-class than anything.

Then another voice chimed in, "I ran into Lucille Alexander this morning. She had a little kid with her and said it was her granddaughter."

"Is Melina married?"

Faces in the room showed confusion. No one had seen any sign of a wedding from me.

My husband and I just registered our marriage; we didn't throw a wedding bash.

Someone confidently stated, "We never got any wedding news. She's definitely not hitched. Her mom would be shouting it from the rooftops if Melina were really married."

The mood of the room picked up again.

"Same old ploy!"

Colten was full of himself, "I bet you, within a week, she'll definitely show up at my door!"

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I sat motionless in the living room of Alexander's penthouse, my eyes fixed on the massive screen that dominated the wall. The champagne in my glass remained untouched, growing warm in my trembling hand as I watched the man I'd given everything to slip a diamond ring onto another woman's finger. The camera zoomed in on Alexander's face as he smiled at Victoria Blackwood—that practiced, charming smile I once believed was reserved only for me. His voice carried through the speakers, filling our shared space with promises that were never meant for me. "With this ring, I pledge my future to you, Victoria." My fingers unconsciously drifted to my own bare ring finger, tracing the empty space where I'd once imagined his ring would sit. Three years of my life, trapped in this gilded cage, and what did I have to show for it? Bruises that had faded. A leg that still ached when it rained—a permanent reminder of my last failed attempt to escape him. On screen, New York's elite applauded as Alexander sealed his engagement with a kiss. Victoria's triumphant eyes seemed to find the camera—find me—as if she knew exactly where I was watching from.

Billionaire Modern Romance

8.5

Chasing His Divorced Wife

8.5

Elara spent three years invisible in her marriage to billionaire Damien Cross. When he hands her divorce papers, she disappears without a fight. Six months later, an accident steals Damien's memory of the past five years. He doesn't remember his ex-wife, but he can't stop searching for the woman with sad eyes who haunts his dreams. When he finds Elara thriving in Seattle, she refuses to let him back in. But this Damien is nothing like the cold husband she remembers, and as he uncovers their past, devastating secrets emerge. Can you forgive someone who doesn't remember breaking you?

Billionaire Modern Romance

9.5

He Destroyed His Own Empire's Creator

9.5

My husband, Colton, the Wall Street mogul, slid annulment papers across the table, coldly discarding me and our unborn child. He thought he was getting rid of a useless wife, but he was actually throwing away the secret architect of his entire empire. Now, I'm ready to make him pay for every insult, every lie, and every single secret I've kept. For three years, eight months pregnant, I secretly saved Colton's ten-billion-dollar company from collapse, enduring a cold, transactional marriage. One night, he shattered that illusion, serving annulment papers and callously discarding me and our unborn child. I signed, leaving luxury behind. Exposing his butler's fraud, I escaped. Colton later found his wedding ring gone and, on his desk, my SEC compliance fixes—proof I was his hidden genius. Blindsided, he realized he’d destroyed his own empire. His mother then called, gloating. The injustice ignited a fierce resolve within me. The next morning, I launched Kidd Legal Consulting. I'd use forty-seven folders of Farmer Capital's un-patched loopholes to force a fair settlement, securing my daughter's future.

Billionaire Modern Romance

8.2

Jilted Bride's Comeback: A Billionaire Queen

8.2

My wedding to Ethan Reed was just weeks away. After seven years, I was certain of our perfect future. Then, Ethan claimed "selective amnesia" from a head injury, forgetting only me. I tried to make him remember, until I overheard his video call. "Total genius move," he boasted to friends. His amnesia was a fake "hall pass" to pursue influencer Chloe Vance before our wedding. Heartbroken, I feigned belief. I endured his open flirting with Chloe and their taunting selfies. He mocked my distress, prioritizing Chloe's fake emergency. After an accident he caused, he abandoned me, injured, choosing to send Chloe to the hospital first. He even tried to cut me off financially. How could my fiancé be this cruel, calculating monster? His betrayal poisoned every memory. I felt like a fool for trusting such boundless cruelty. His audacity left me reeling. But I wouldn’t be his victim. Instead of breaking, a cold plan formed. I would shed my identity, become Olivia Carter. I would disappear, leaving him, my past, and his engagement ring behind forever, claiming my freedom.

Billionaire Modern Romance

8.8

My Engagement Dress Mailed To His True Love

8.8

I'd been in love with Tanner for five years, making him the center of my universe. But after he denied our relationship for the hundredth time, I decided it was time to let go. I stopped asking him to bring me to his friends' gatherings and, as he wanted, gave up my role as his secretary to his childhood friend and quit the job. I even sent our engagement dress to the woman he truly considered his fiancée. When he erupted in anger, I quietly responded, "Mr. Fox, we're just regular friends." Tanner’s past words were like a boomerang, now hitting him hard, while I learned that loving myself was more important than loving anyone else, and I wouldn’t look back. Walking down the deserted street in my four-inch heels, my mind was a haze. I didn’t see the bicycle coming until it knocked me to the ground. My knee was scraped, and the new shoes blistered my feet. The cyclist quickly jumped off, helping me to a nearby bench.

Billionaire Modern Romance

7.5

Reborn And Pampered: The Genius Heiress Returns

7.5

I am the biological daughter of the wealthy Fitzpatrick family, but I spent my childhood eating out of dumpsters. When I was finally brought back to the estate at age seven, I thought I would experience my parents' love. Instead, my biological parents looked at my dirty clothes with raw disgust. They only cared about Hallie, the fake daughter who lived like a princess. The moment I walked in, Hallie hurled a heavy ceramic cup at my head, slicing my hand open. "Get out of my house!" My father didn't even look at the blood. He raised his hand to strike me, accusing me of bringing trailer park rules into his home. In my past life, I dropped to my knees and begged for their forgiveness. I endured their abuse, hoping they would eventually love me. But they let the maids humiliate me, let Hallie steal my identity, and eventually threw me back onto the streets to die. Even my playboy Uncle Byron, the only person who ever showed me mercy, was driven to suicide by them. I didn't understand why my own flesh and blood hated me so much, or why a vicious liar deserved everything while I was treated like a jinx. Opening my eyes again, I was back on the exact day I first returned to the estate. As my father raised his hand to hit me, I didn't cower. Instead, I looked at the family patriarch and pointed directly at my notorious, alcoholic uncle. "I want him to be my new guardian."

Billionaire Fantasy Romance

Ex's Bet on Reconciliation Fails

Chapter 1

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