The Billionaire's Ego: My Ruthless Divorce

I had been a "decoration piece" for Kenton Parker for three years, a contract wife bought to pay off my father's gambling debts. I lived in a cold penthouse, making his coffee and answering his phones, while he treated me with the clinical indifference of a stranger. On our third anniversary, I waited alone at the city's most exclusive restaurant, only to see a news alert flash on my phone. Kenton wasn't coming. He was caught on camera at a hospital, looking at his "friend," ballerina Blanca Donovan, with a raw, frantic worry he had never once shown me, not even when I fell down a flight of stairs. I finally snapped and filed for divorce, citing his "irreversible erectile dysfunction" just to destroy his massive ego. I thought I was free, but Kenton retaliated with a cruelty that left me breathless. He froze every bank account I owned and had his secretary smash the last photo I had of my mother. He reminded me of the five-million-dollar penalty in my contract-money I didn't have. "You don't get to leave until I say so," he roared, dragging me into his office. He used my father's life as a leash, forcing me to play the part of a doting wife at his family's Hamptons estate to please his sick mother. He wanted to starve me out until I crawled back to his side. I couldn't understand how a man could be so heartless. He didn't want my heart, yet he refused to let me go, treating my life like a line item in a corporate merger. He wanted to keep me as his prisoner while he spent his nights with another woman. But Kenton made one fatal mistake. He thought I was just a broke, submissive secretary with nowhere to turn. He didn't know that I was "Vee," a world-renowned art restorer with a secret legacy and a six-figure commission waiting for me. As we shared a bed in the Hamptons and he pulled me against his chest, whispering that I was "his," I didn't feel comfort. I felt the cold, hard spark of a woman who was finally ready to burn his contract to the ground.

Chapters

Chapter 9

The partition was up. They were alone in the back of the car.

Kenton opened the small bar and poured a scotch. He didn't offer her one. He downed half of it in one swallow.

"Withdraw the petition," he said. He didn't look at her.

"No."

"Carleigh, be reasonable. Mother is sick. If she finds out we're divorcing, it could kill her."

"Then maybe you shouldn't have given me a reason to divorce you." Carleigh looked out the window at the passing autumn foliage.

"I told you, Blanca is a friend. She has no one else."

"She has an agent. She has fans. She has a family in Ohio. She doesn't need my husband holding her hand at midnight."

Kenton slammed the glass down into the holder. "You are obsessed with her."

"I'm obsessed with dignity, Kenton. Something you clearly lack."

He turned his body toward her. "You think you can survive out there? You think your little 'secretary skills' will pay for your lifestyle?"

"Watch me."

"And the ED clause? You're going to humiliate me in court?"

"If you push me."

Kenton lunged. It was sudden. He crossed the space between them and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him. His face was inches from hers. She could smell the scotch and his expensive cologne-sandalwood and musk.

"You are playing a dangerous game," he whispered. His thumb brushed her lower lip.

Her heart raced. Not from fear, but from a sudden, sharp jolt of electricity. His eyes dropped to her lips. For a second, she thought he was going to kiss her.

"Get off me," she whispered.

He stared at her for a beat longer, his pupils blown wide. Then he released her and sat back, adjusting his tie. He looked shaken.

The car slowed down. Gravel crunched under the tires. They were passing through the iron gates of the Parker Estate.

"Smile," Kenton said, his voice strained. "Showtime."

They stepped out. Francine was waiting on the porch, wrapped in a blanket, sitting in a wheelchair. She looked pale but her eyes were sharp.

"There they are!" Francine cried out.

Carleigh forced a smile and walked up the steps. She bent down and hugged Francine. "Hi, Mom."

"You look thin, Carleigh. Is he feeding you?" Francine glared at Kenton over Carleigh's shoulder.

"She's on a diet," Kenton lied smoothly, coming up to kiss his mother's cheek.

"Hmph." Francine patted Carleigh's hand. "Well, I'm glad you're here. The house feels so big. I've put you in the East Wing master suite. The guest rooms are being... renovated."

Carleigh froze. "Renovated?"

"Yes. Dust everywhere. So you'll have to share the big room." Francine smiled innocently. "I assume that's not a problem for a married couple?"

Kenton and Carleigh exchanged a look of pure horror.

"Not a problem at all," Kenton choked out.

Continue to next part

After a devastating betrayal by her long-term boyfriend, a heartbroken woman finds her life taking an unexpected turn. Just as she struggles to move on from the pain of his lies, a powerful billionaire enters her world, offering a chance at a fresh start. Caught between her lingering scars and the magnetic pull of a new romance, she must decide if she can trust again. It is a story of healing, newfound passion, and the strength to leave the past behind forever.

Billionaire Modern Romance

9.1

Forget Past for New Romance

9.1

After a devastating betrayal by her ex-fiancé and her own half-sister, a heartbroken woman decides to leave her painful past behind. Seeking a fresh start, she unexpectedly crosses paths with a powerful and wealthy CEO. As they navigate their growing feelings, she must learn to trust again while facing the shadows of her former life. This modern romance explores the journey of healing and finding true love in the arms of a billionaire.

Billionaire Modern Romance

7.8

Groveling at Her Feet

7.8

After five years of hiding her relationship with Donald Hoover, the protagonist asks to go public, but he responds by smashing her phone and insulting her family. Her heartbreak turns to clarity when Donald's secretary, Gigi, shares a photo of the boss kneeling at her feet. Realizing her sacrifice was worthless, she finally gives up on him. She messages her father, ready to stop playing the victim and return home to inherit the massive family business she once walked away from.

Billionaire Modern Romance

8.2

Married To The Cold Disabled Billionaire

8.2

After twenty-four years, I return to the wealthy Townsend family with my DNA report, but my biological parents and brother only protect Juliet, the fake daughter. At her birthday party, Juliet humiliates me like a servant. When a scandal forces Juliet to abandon a multi-billion-dollar marriage contract, my parents eagerly substitute me to wed Julian Sinclair, a paralyzed, cold billionaire. On our wedding night, he orders me to stay away, and his jealous therapist poisons my dinner with a deadly nerve toxin. Everyone in this privileged world sees me as a disposable pawn. But I am a master medical expert backed by the world's most powerful underground syndicate. Staring at the poisoned sauce, I calmly set down my fork and smile. It is time to show these vipers who they truly invited home.

Action Billionaire Modern Mystery Romance

8.7

Tangled With The Other Brother

8.7

After a night of reckless passion with a magnetic stranger, Elara discovers her mystery lover is none other than her fiancé’s brother, Silas. Trapped in a high-stakes world of billionaire duty and family secrets, she must navigate a treacherous path between the man she’s promised to wed and the one who has awakened her heart. As forbidden desires clash with loyalty, Elara faces a choice that could shatter a dynasty and change her life forever.

Billionaire Modern Romance

9.7

The Billionaire's Secret Heir In Hiding

9.7

I woke up in a bed of cold marble and silk, lying next to Armond Emerson—the billionaire CEO who treats people like disposable assets. Five years ago, I escaped his world with a secret that could destroy me; now, a single night of desperation had put me right back in his crosshairs. My nightmare was only beginning. My ex-boyfriend, Lucas, had me followed to the penthouse and was now using my family as target practice to force me back under his thumb. Within twenty-four hours, my gallery was seized, my bank accounts were frozen, and my brother was left bleeding on a warehouse floor with his painting hands crushed. Lucas’s threat was clear: "Kneel and beg, or I’ll make sure your little bastard in Queens has an accident." That "bastard" was Leo, my four-year-old son. He was the secret heir to the Emerson empire, and Armond had no idea he existed. To protect him, I sold my soul. I walked into Armond’s office and offered a deal: I’d be his fake fiancée to stabilize his board of directors if he destroyed Lucas. He agreed, but his touch was a brand and his suspicion was a knife. He started digging into the five-year gap in my resume, hiring investigators to peel back the layers of my time in Switzerland. I thought I could play the part of the harmless socialite until the danger passed. I thought I could keep my son hidden in the shadows of a crumbling Queens apartment while I played house with a monster. But after a brutal attack in a parking garage, I collapsed in Armond's arms, my consciousness fading as I whispered the one name I should have kept buried. As I lay sedated in his penthouse, my phone buzzed on the nightstand. Armond answered it. "Mommy? Are you okay? Uncle Nate said the bad man hurt you." The silence that followed was the sound of my world ending. Armond stared at the caller ID, looking at the face of the son I had stolen from him, and finally realized exactly what I had been running from.

Billionaire Modern Mystery

The Billionaire's Ego: My Ruthless Divorce

Chapter 9

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