The CEO's Ex-wife Has Multiple Identities
Anna Hendrick experienced the devastating loss of a pregnancy.
Her decade-long devotion to Ethan Smith led her to abandon her university studies in her second year to become his wife. For three years, she dedicated herself to their marriage, working tirelessly. Only the discovery of a clandestine document revealed the painful truth: she was simply a pawn in Ethan's elaborate game with his first love, his cherished Becca Drew.
In the sterile confines of a hospital room, after hearing of Ethan's romantic getaway with Becca, Anna initiated divorce proceedings.
The formerly underestimated housewife underwent a dramatic metamorphosis.
She blossomed into a sought-after designer for a prestigious jewelry house; the exclusive tutor of a globally renowned pianist; a formidable racing champion; the esteemed daughter of the Minister of Foreign Affairs; and the powerful CEO of a publicly traded company valued at billions...
As Anna's admirers multiplied, Ethan began to pursue her with persistent and unwanted attention.
Exasperated and seeking respite, Anna simply disappeared from his reach.
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Chapter 4
Ethan's brow furrowed. He placed the flowers and traditional medicine down, then retrieved his phone with practiced calm to call Anna. The call went unanswered.
He hadn't imagined a day where Anna wouldn't be home. Nevertheless, Ethan, true to habit, put on a record, filling the silence with his beloved Chopin nocturne.
An hour passed. Still no Anna Hendrick.
Two hours crept by. The house remained empty.
Three hours later, Ethan rose and headed to the closet. Inside, most of Anna's clothing hung neatly, all gifts from him, dominated by shades of pink.
However, the two blue suits she owned before their wedding were gone.
Just then, a delivery arrived.
The recipient: Ethan Smith.
He couldn't recall ordering anything.
The package was a large, imposing cardboard box. He tore it open, revealing a dazzling, almost overwhelming collection:
Pink roses, a pink diamond necklace, a pink Hermès bag, bright pink high heels, a cherry-pink dress, a pink diamond watch, gold jewelry, a peach-pink silk scarf, luxury perfume, a pink diamond brooch, car keys, a pink diamond ring...
Ethan's expression darkened, a silent storm gathering in his eyes.
These were all gifts he had showered upon Anna during their courtship.
The pink diamond ring, his engagement ring.
Ethan rifled through the box, discovering that, despite the years, not a single label had been removed from any of the items.
The only thing in the box that wasn't a present from him was a file folder. Ethan pulled it out.
New York City's night skyline shimmered, a testament to wealth and extravagance.
The old houses on Salem Street had been dark for years, but tonight, lights blazed from dusk until late.
Anna had spent half the day meticulously cleaning her room until it sparkled. Though simple, it was now clean and inviting.
She used to have her mother, a constant source of support, but now she was alone. To deny the loneliness would be a lie.
Anna clutched her phone, wavering over whether to call Lucy Goldberg.
Lucy was her closest friend, a bond forged in high school.
But before she could dial, the doorbell rang. Anna quickly hung up and went to answer it.
Ethan's tall, imposing figure filled the doorway, like a mountain looming over her, startling Anna.
"What is the meaning of this?!" he demanded.
With a thud, the divorce agreement in Ethan's hand struck Anna's face.
Her face flushed crimson. This was the first time she had seen Ethan so enraged, and she instinctively lowered her head in fear.
"Why aren't you saying anything? Why did you run away from home for no reason? Are you a child?"
Ethan reached to pull her closer, but Anna recoiled.
"Ethan, I want a divorce..."
"Why?"
"Because..."
"Is this about Becca?"
Anna looked up, meeting Ethan's gaze. His arms were crossed, his handsome features sculpted into a sneer of disdain.
That smile was a painful blow.
Seeing Anna's silent agreement, Ethan scoffed.
Becca's return had made the truth undeniable, and he no longer felt the need to hide it.
"Anna, when did you learn to play these games? I admit Becca was my first love, and I proposed to you to get under her skin. But I've never given you any reason to complain during our three years of marriage..."
The phrase "never given you any reason to complain" stung, bringing tears to Anna's eyes.
She wanted to retort: "What about the child? Didn't *you* force me to abort our child?"
But she knew it was pointless.
Her chest tightened, as if crushed beneath a heavy weight. Anna drew a deep breath.
At this point, divorce was the best outcome for them both, putting an end to her foolish, failed love and marriage.
Anna watched as Ethan pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and exhaled a plume of smoke on her cramped living room sofa, his words laced with unwavering conviction.
"Becca and I went to high school together. She studied abroad and is now a highly respected professional. A rising star in jewelry design. Had her hand not been injured, she would be a world-class pianist... A woman like that is too brilliant, my mother wouldn't be able to handle her. For her to stay at home and care for the family would be a waste of her talent. She's not suited to be the Smith family's daughter-in-law..."
Anna's face paled.
"But you're different. You have no talent, no ambition, no aspirations. You didn't graduate from college. You have no education, no diploma, no skills, and your family isn't well off. After all these years as a housewife, you're completely out of touch with the world... Without me, you're nothing. You can't even afford to eat or have a place to live. What makes you think you can divorce me?"
The small house fell into a heavy silence.
Anna opened her mouth, inhaled the cigarette smoke Ethan exhaled, and started coughing.
"When you've thought it through, pack your things and come home. This is the only time I'll forgive you."
After finishing the cigarette, Ethan looked around for an ashtray, but found none. He didn't throw it on the floor.
He raised his hand, and Anna moved forward and took the cigarette butt, tossing it in the trash can.
Ethan smiled, his charm especially potent when he smiled.
She claimed she wanted a divorce, but her actions belied her words.
Ethan shifted, crossing his legs.
Anna was penniless and unskilled, a parasite only capable of relying on men.
Anyone with sense would realize that sticking with him was the most beneficial choice.
Becca's appearance had just upset her, prompting a temporary display.
"Enough. I don't have time for your games. From now on, just keep running the household as you always have, and I'll continue to support you," Ethan said coldly. He watched Anna bend down, her shoulders slumped, as she gathered the scattered divorce papers one by one.
"If you don't sign, I'll mail them to your company or your mother tomorrow..."
Anna shot to her feet.
"Anna, don't be so shameless!"
Anna now seemed so foreign, it unnerved him.
She opened the door.
"Go back! Don't come here again."
Ethan had never anticipated his attempts to appease Anna would be met with rejection. He shrugged and offered an angry smile.
"Fine, Anna. If you're so sure, don't come crying and begging me when you regret it."
He slammed the door behind him and left, leaving the divorce papers behind.
Late into the night, Anna finally located her old bank card.
It was from before her marriage, untouched and stored away in this house. Not a single penny in it had come from Ethan.
Ethan had been right the night before. She had no education, no diploma, and years of being a housewife had left her disconnected from the world. After the divorce, she would have to make a living on her own.
After linking the bank card to her mobile banking app, the balance appeared on the screen:
2,077,805.
Slightly more than she expected.
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7.4
Helena woke up in a sheer silk slip, trapped inside the romance novel she had read the night before.
She was the doomed villainess.
And she had just executed the most pathetic plot in the book: hiding in the closet to seduce her cold, ruthless legal guardian, Hayward.
It was the exact move that got the original Helena thrown out on the street to die.
"Helena, your time is up. Get out."
Hayward's freezing voice came from the other side of the door.
He didn't just reject her. He threatened to strip her of her trust fund and permanently lock her in a psychiatric ward.
Everyone in the massive estate despised her, treating her like trash.
To force her to break, Hayward exiled her to the company's worst design department, a graveyard for corporate failures.
At the same time, her innocent step-sister, the novel's female lead, was being cornered and harassed by a predatory manager.
Helena was suffocating under the original owner's ruined reputation.
She was surrounded by hostile eyes, everyone just waiting for her to throw a tantrum and completely self-destruct.
Why should she be forced to pay the ultimate price for the original villain's deadly mistakes?
Instead of screaming or begging, Helena wrapped herself in an oversized coat and played the perfect, submissive lunatic to survive.
She completely flipped the script and took the terrified female lead under her wing.
When that manager tried to lay a hand on her new sister, Helena didn't hesitate to crush his foot with her stiletto.
7.2
Ade had sacrificed the life she loved, the things she liked doing to please James. But it was never enough for him. Somehow, the one woman he just couldn't get, was the price, she was the gem.
And so once the opportunity presented itself, Ade became a past chapter of his life. A reject.
Betrayed and scorned, Ade is on a quest to reclaim her life back and face off adversaries.
But now what is she to do with the two men in front of her. One of them her ex James who can't seem to forget her and keeps stepping in her way, and the other, a billionaire who wants her at all costs.
8.6
I met him on a rainy afternoon when we were both young, uncertain, and standing on the edge of adulthood.
Adrian Cole wasn't rich then. He wasn't powerful. But from the moment his eyes found mine, something inside me knew my life would never be the same.
We fell in love slowly... then all at once.
He was my first kiss under streetlights, my safest place, my greatest heartbreak.
And the man who walked away.
Years later, Adrian returns - no longer the struggling boy I once knew, but a billionaire CEO with power, dominance, and a dangerous intensity that still makes my heart tremble.
He says I've always belonged to him.
But love isn't that simple.
Not after betrayal.
Not after loss.
Not after the night that shattered us both.
Now he wants a second chance.
And this time... he refuses to let me go.
7.1
My father sold me to a monster to settle a debt. One minute I was a debutante at a gala, and the next, I was being hunted through the service corridors by my own stepmother’s security.
I scrambled into a dark penthouse to hide, only to be pinned against the wall by a man whose body felt like a wall of searing heat. He smelled of rain and expensive cedar, his voice a low, pained growl as he gripped my wrist so hard the bone nearly ground together.
The next morning, the "Wall Street Monster" arrived at our estate to collect his prize. My father signed the contract without reading a single page, trading me for a wire transfer while my sister laughed at my impending doom.
"I heard he uses knives in bed," Kacy whispered, "Hope you have thick skin, sis."
A balding, cruel man claimed to be my husband, but it was the silent bodyguard standing in the shadows who caught my tray when I stumbled. His touch sent a jolt of electricity through my veins, and his voice was the same gravelly baritone from the dark room the night before.
I was terrified, caught in a web of lies about a disfigured beast who supposedly broke women for sport. I didn't understand why this "bodyguard" was looking at me with such predatory intensity, or why he was the only one who stepped in when my father tried to shove me.
Then, inside the car, the bodyguard took off his sunglasses to reveal piercing blue eyes and a face that was devastatingly handsome.
"I am Gideon Blackburn," he said, his voice dropping to a dangerous rumble. "And in this house, there is only one rule: Never lie to me."
The monster wasn't who they said he was, and he was about to show my family exactly what happens when you try to destroy something that belongs to him.
8.4
I was the pack's lowest Omega, scrubbing floors by day, but secretly waiting for the night my Fated Mate, the Alpha Heir Desmond, would finally claim me.
Instead, he brought home a billionaire heiress and looked at me with cold, dead eyes.
"I choose power," he sneered, rejecting our soul-bond in front of everyone. "An Omega can never be my Luna."
To seal his business deal, he sold me off like cattle to Kennedy Simmons—the "Crippled Alpha" rumored to be a broken, rot-filled monster.
On my last night in the territory, his new fiancée pushed me off a yacht.
As I drowned in the freezing water, I watched Desmond dive in.
He swam right past me to save her.
That was the moment my heart finally stopped beating for him.
They thought sending me to Seattle was a punishment. They thought I would wither away and die in the hands of a beast.
But they didn't know two things.
First, Kennedy Simmons wasn't a monster; he was a King waiting to be healed.
Second, I wasn't a weak Omega. I was a White Wolf, a legend thought to be extinct, capable of miracles.
Three months later, Desmond stood outside my gates, bankrupt and desperate, begging for a second chance.
I looked down from my balcony, wrapped in the arms of my true Alpha, and smiled.
"Get off my property," I commanded, my eyes glowing white. "Or I'll finish what the ocean started."
8.8
"I've been through heartbreak, and I don't desire love. Even if I marry you, I won't give you love." Lisa stared pointedly at him, " Are you okay with this, President Joseph?"
"Then...Let's sign a one-year contract. If after one year we still don't find ourselves compatible, we break it off."
****
The Heiress, Lisa Morgan came back home after an ultimate betrayal from her husband of three years, but her father wouldn't let her into his home unless she agreed to his condition.
"Take over the company and marry Joseph Bronson, or leave and never come back again!"
As a woman who only cares about survival right now, her choice was obvious but she never expected the turbulence that came after.