Too late for regret: Ex-husband and his son wants me back
Seven years. A three-million-dollar contract. A heart broken into pieces.
Serena Powell was never more than a ghost in her own home. Hired by a billionaire to heal his broken son, she spent seven years playing the role of a devoted wife and mother, hiding the jagged scar on her palm,a reminder of the night she saved Victor's life. She thought her love had finally overwritten the contract. She was wrong.
When Victor's "true love," Eliza, returns with a child of her own, the fairy tale dissolves. Overnight, Serena is branded an outsider. Her husband treats her like a servant, and her son,the boy she raised as her own,tells her to "just die already" so Eliza can take her place.
Accused of a crime she didn't commit and slapped by the man she sacrificed everything for, Serena finally realizes the truth: In a world where feelings come with a price tag, she's already paid too much.
Now, the divorce papers are signed, the suitcase is packed, and a prestigious design firm in Glonia is calling her name. Serena is done being a substitute. But as she walks out the door, Victor is about to learn that some things,once broken,can never be repaired. Especially when he realizes he didn't just lose a contract... he lost the only woman who ever truly loved him.
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Chapter 6
Serena said, "Yes, I took the money, but I didn't marry you for it. Why can't you believe me just this once?"
"What a joke. If you can sell yourself for money, what wouldn't you do?" Victor shoved her hard, catching her off guard. Serena's lower back slammed into the edge of the table. The pain made her eyebrows knit together, but Victor didn't care at all.
He grumbled, "No wonder you kept going after Ellie once she came back. Turns out you were afraid she'd edge you out, afraid you'd be kicked out of the Powell family with nothing. So this was your plan all along"
The trust he had built over the years completely collapsed in that moment.
Back then, Eliza's departure had devastated him. But Serena's betrayal now made him feel even more disappointed, Victor thought, briefly believed Serena was just jealous. Turns out it was all about the money!
Serena shook her head again and again. "No, it's not true. I never did any of that. Eliza framed me. Ever since we got married, I never thought about taking the Powell family's money."
But now, Victor wouldn't believe a single word from her. He glared at Serena, his fists clenched, trying to suppress the fury boiling inside.
He grumbled, "Serena, go to the hospital and apologize to Eliza. If you do, I'll act like none of this ever happened. If you don't, I'll divorce you and make sure you don't get a cent."
Serena stood frozen, stunned. She thought, 'He's actually using divorce to force me to apologize to Eliza? So to him, everything we've been through over the years means nothing compared to her.'
Serena said, "I won't apologize to Eliza. Victor, I'll say it one last time. I didn't stay for the money. And I didn't push her."
Maybe it started with the money. But Serena had never done anything to betray Victor. And from today on, she would only live for herself. She wouldn't do anything foolish for anyone else ever again.
Victor rolled his eyes at Serena, completely unconvinced. "Save your lies for someone else. I'm done believing you. You sold your body for money. You make me sick.
"You're nothing compared to Ellie. Take care of that swollen cheek. I'll have someone pick you up and take you to the hospital."
As Victor turned to leave, Serena quickly followed. But before her hand could even touch him, he quickly stepped away.
Her outstretched hand hung awkwardly in the air, but what he said next hurt her even more. "Don't touch me with those filthy, disgusting hands. Just looking at you makes me want to throw up," Victor snapped.
At this moment, Serena felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room. Her throat tightened as if something was lodged there.
Watching Victor walk away, Serena didn't try to stop him. She had only wanted to clear her name. She hadn't done any of the things he accused her of.
But then she thought, 'No matter what I say, Victor won't believe me anyway!
The pain spread from Serena's chest to every part of her body, like countless needles stabbing into her limbs. Her vision the kitchen and cried for a long time, until there were no more tears left to cry.
She thought, 'Wasn't I already disappointed? I've already packed my things. And Albert will give Victor the divorce papers.'
She squatted down in.
There was nothing Serena needed to worry about anymore. She took everything that belonged to her from the villa, leaving almost no trace behind.
Before leaving, Serena went back to the orphanage. When she pushed open the door to the director's office, she saw the director Tiana Brown, who was now well into her fifties, holding a pen and a ledger, frowning in frustration.
Hearing the door open, Tiana looked up and saw Serena. Her eyes lit up with joy, and she quickly potted Serena down into a seat
"Seri. What brings you back? I haven't seen you in ages. Why do you look ever skinnier? What happened to your face? Did someone you
asked.
Her string of concerned questions made Serena feel a wave of warmth. Serena blinked back the tears and pushed down her emotions, saying its nothing. Some lunatic mistook me for someone else. Tiana, I'm going away for a while. Take this money"
Serena took a debit card out of her purse. It held the money she had saved up during this time.
Tiana immediately pushed it back. "No. You've already helped the orphanage so much. I can't take your money again. You should keep it for yourself and take better care of yourself. These days, you can't do anything without money."
"Don't worry. I'll take good care of myself. Just use this money on the orphanage. Think of it as my small way of helping out."
"Seri, tell me the truth. Did something happen to you out there?"
Tiana changed the subject. She could tell something was off with Serena. The sadness in Serena's eyes was hard to ignore.
Serena replied, "I'm really fine. It's just that I got the chance to study abroad. I gave it up back then, and now I don't want to pass it up again."
Hearing that, Tiana lit up. "You're going abroad to study? That's a great opportunity. Then I really can't take this money. Going–abroad on your own is hard enough. You can't be short on money."
Serena smiled and pushed the debit card back again, saying, "I really still have money on me. If you don't take it, I'll have to donate it elsewhere."
Tiana let out a deep sigh and finally accepted the debit card. "All these years, you're the only one who always thinks about this place."
Serena pressed her lips together, then finally said what she had to say, "I divorced Victor. Tiana, if anyone comes asking about me after I leave, please don't tell them I went abroad."
"Divorced?" Tiana's hand paused, and a look of regret crossed her face. She sighed, "You and Victor worked so hard to get married. His illness had mostly healed too, and now you're getting divorced? That's really a shame."
Serena didn't want to talk about what had happened between her and Victor, and she didn't want Tiana to worry, so she made up a casual excuse. Tiana agreed not to tell anyone.
After wrapping up things at the orphanage, Serena also sent her resignation letter to the company's email. She had applied in advance, so the resignation process went quickly. She didn't have any burdens left.
As night fell, Leon clutched his stomach and whined in the hospital room, yelling, "Daddy, my stomach hurts so bad. It's killing me."
Victor held Leon in his arms and gently rubbed his stomach, noticing how firm it felt. "Why does your stomach suddenly hurt like this?"
"I don't know. Daddy, it really hurts," Leon said.
Victor took him to see the doctor and found out Leon had eaten something bad and gotten food poisoning.
Leon had to stay at the hospital with an IV drip, wincing in pain while still grumbling, "It's all that wretch's fault. I wish Eliza was my mom instead."
Victor felt awful seeing how pale Leon looked, but he didn't know how to take care of Leon. Serena had always been the one to handle that.
"I'll ask your mom to come take care of you," Victor spoke.
Leon protested, "I don't want that wretch."
Victor frowned. "Don't start."
Afterward, Victor called Serena. But no matter how many times he tried, he couldn't reach her.
His expression darkened. He sent her a message, only to find that he had been blocked.
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8.1
When the private elevator pinged. That was the moment Eleanor's two-and-a-half years as a billionaire's perfect fake girlfriend abruptly ended.
Julian was terminating her services early because his real first love was moving into the penthouse tomorrow.
His assistant stood by the marble counter, bracing for a screaming match. He handed over a brutal non-disclosure agreement.
He slid a five-million-dollar check across the table, fully expecting her to cry, beg, or throw the money back in his face.
"Miss Palmer... Giselle is moving in tomorrow," he warned.
Instead, Eleanor calmly borrowed his Montblanc pen, signed her name three times without hesitation, and slipped the money into her planner.
"Congratulations to Mr. Caldwell-Prentice on finally getting what he wants," she smiled flawlessly.
They all thought she was just a high-end, emotionless mercenary who felt absolutely nothing for the men she served.
They didn't know she was actually Cara Love, the last surviving heir of the ruined Love Foundation, living under a fake name to avenge her dead father.
For years, she swallowed her burning hatred, playing the perfect emotional substitute to buy dark web intel and hide her unnatural, rapid-healing body from a ruthless medical syndicate.
But now, a tech billionaire client had just uncovered her true identity, and her burner phone flashed with a terrifying emergency alert.
The syndicate had found her.
Eleanor grabbed her suitcase and ordered the private jet back to New York.
The facade was over; it was time to face the deadly storm.
8.3
I grew up feeling like an adopted child. They made me feel I was not part of them. They said I could not do as good as my sister. They said my younger sister was better in every aspect. It was understandable coming from my step mother. But my step father should have protected me. But he joined them.
That day my sister announced:
"My billionaire, Jordan, has asked me to marry him, and I said yes."
They were all happy and they told me again:
"Laura, learn from your sister. Do something productive with your life."
I took their advice, and married my sister's fiance.
9.1
June woke up transmigrated into the body of a ruthless billionaire's toxic, disposable wife.
Before she could even process the massive Beverly Hills mansion, a cold system voice announced she had exactly five minutes of lifespan remaining.
To survive, she was forced to bind with the system and strictly maintain the original owner's "brainless, abusive drama queen" persona to earn hours to live.
She was forced to violently slap hot coffee out of a terrified maid's hands and physically spank her manipulative five-year-old stepson.
When she tried to escape this nightmare by throwing divorce papers at her terrifying husband, Isaac Walton, he simply ripped them to shreds.
Every time she tried to be reasonable or show a hint of kindness, the system tortured her with agonizing cardiac pain, cementing her status as the most hated monster in the family.
The most absurd part happened when she threw a hysterical, system-mandated tantrum over a gossip magazine, and Isaac's icy demeanor suddenly melted.
He gently touched her hair, offering the one thing she desperately needed.
"Stop crying. I'll handle it."
Just as a spark of hope ignited in her chest, the system's critical death warning exploded in her skull: accepting his sympathy would instantly deduct thirty days of her life.
To stay alive, June had no choice but to violently slap away the only hand reaching out to save her, forcing herself to play the greedy villain while her husband's gaze turned dangerously dark.
7.1
I lay paralyzed on stiff white sheets, a prisoner in my own skin, listening to the rain lash against the window like nails on a coffin. My father, Elmore Franco, didn't even look at my face as he checked his clipboard. He just listened to the steady, monotonous beep of the heart monitor-the only thing proving I was still alive.
Without a hint of remorse, he pulled a pen from his pocket and signed the Do Not Resuscitate order. My stepmother, Ophelia, stepped out from behind him, wearing my favorite pearl necklace and smelling of cloying perfume. She leaned close to my ear to whisper the truth that turned my blood to ice.
"It was the tea, darling. Just like your mother. A slow, tasteless poison."
She chuckled as she revealed that my fiancé, Bryce, had a two-year-old son with my sister, Daniela. My inheritance had been funding their secret life for years, and now that the money was secure, I was an inconvenience they were finally scrubbing away. As my father yanked the power cord from the wall, the beeping died, and the darkness swallowed me whole.
I was being murdered by my own flesh and blood, used as a bank account until I was no longer needed. I died in that sterile room, drowning in the realization that every person I ever loved was a monster who had been waiting for me to take my last breath.
Then, I gasped. I woke up in a luxury hotel suite surrounded by silk sheets, five years in the past-the very morning of my wedding. Next to me lay Basile Delgado, the "Wolf of Wall Street" and my family's most dangerous enemy. In my first life, I ran from this room in a panic and lost everything. This time, I looked at the man who would eventually destroy my father's empire and decided to join him.
"I'm not leaving, Basile. Marry me. Right now. Today."
9.0
Irina Volkov has three rules: no emotions, no real names, and never meet in person. For two years she has survived on those rules alone - running romance scams on wealthy men, funneling every stolen dollar toward the crushing debt her abusive stepfather signed in her name before she escaped. She is not greedy. She is desperate. And she is very, very good.
Until she targets Nikolai Dragunov.
What Irina doesn't know is that Nikolai has known about her from the beginning. He created the perfect bait - a lonely businessman with money to burn - and waited for her to find him. Because in a world Nikolai controls down to the last detail, Irina Volkov is the only unpredictable thing left. He wanted to see how far she would go.
Now the game is over. The con is exposed. And Nikolai isn't asking for his money back. He's keeping her.
Trapped in his penthouse with nowhere to run and a Bratva boss who looks at her like she's both a puzzle and a prize, Irina has to survive the most dangerous mark she's ever made - and somehow stop herself from falling for him in the process.
She's a liar. He's a monster. And neither of them expected to fall.
"You took my money, malyshka. Now you belong to me."
8.5
He rejected her. He tried to kill her. And he called their unborn child an abomination. Now, Emily Reed is under the protection of the most dangerous Alpha she's ever met-a man who doesn't play by the rules.
One thing is certain: in Ethan Carter's world, fear is currency, and she just became priceless.