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CHAPTER 17 Opportunists Everywhere

Author: Olivia GW
last update publish date: 2026-03-20 11:36:17

ADRIAN’S POV

I stared at my phone longer than I should have.

The message I sent Lila yesterday sat there on the screen.

Thanks, wife.

No reply.

I set the phone down, picked it up again, then told myself to stop acting like an idiot. She was probably flustered.

That thought alone was enough to improve my mood more than it should have.

I could picture it too easily—her reading the message, going still for half a second, then pressing her lips together the way she did when she was embarrassed an
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  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 40 My Nephew Has Crossed Enough Lines

    ADRIAN’S POVI stood at the head of the conference table in my Ambrosia office, sleeves rolled up, eyes moving across the latest ownership transfer plan for Montero Construction while my legal team sat around me.Jackson Hart, one of the senior corporate lawyers, adjusted his glasses and looked down at his file. “Given Mrs. Lila Shepard’s claim through Nicholas Montero and the estate findings, there’s a strong path to move control under her name.”“Good,” I said. “But,” he continued carefully, “the company is unstable. Investors are fleeing. Suppliers are nervous. If Mrs. Shepard takes over…” I looked at him. He cleared his throat. “All I’m saying, sir, is that she has no experience running a business. It won’t calm investors if she steps up.” “That’s why I need a temporary CEO to handle things until she is ready,” I reminded him. Jackson looked at me carefully, as if choosing his next words with extreme caution.“Sir, respectfully, why not bring Montero Construction under Ambros

  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 39 Loose Ends

    LILA’S POVThe first call came at nine in the morning.I was sitting by the window in Adrian’s living room with a cup of coffee in one hand and my phone in the other, reading the headline I had already read three times.ANDREW AND MARGARET MONTERO REMANDED IN CUSTODY. MONTERO CONSTRUCTION INVESTORS DEMAND FULL REVIEW.It felt unreal.For so many years, my aunt and uncle had been untouchable figures in my life. They were the people who decided when I ate, where I went, what I wore, who I could speak to, what money I could touch, and what future I was allowed to imagine.Now they were behind bars.And they would not stop calling me. Sometimes they used the prison phone. Sometimes it would be their lawyers. After the fourth time, I simply stopped picking up. I’d had enough of the Lila, sweetheart, please listen narratives. The “We are family.”The “You don’t understand what really happened.”As I reached for my phone to decline their third call that hour, it stopped ringing, and a mes

  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 38 Montero Falls

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  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 37 Before They Died

    LILA’S POVBy noon, the living room looked less like a house and more like a crime archive.Monica had arrived with a giant takeaway coffee and her laptop, and in time, Adrian’s lawyers arrived as well. “I emailed Daphne’s family this morning, by the way,” Monica said, sipping her coffee. “Her sister, mostly. I asked if she knew anything from that period. I’m not expecting much. But we can hope.”My mother’s family.The words made something soft ache in my chest.I had spent so long feeling alone that the idea of anyone from her side still existing in the world almost didn’t feel real.Luca slid another paper across the table to Adrian. Adrian skimmed it, frowned, and passed it to Monica. Everyone had slipped into a rhythm now, one that made me feel protected in a way I still hadn’t gotten used to.Nobody expected me to carry this alone. Yet, the weight of it pressed on my ribs.After another fifteen minutes, the words began blurring again.I stood abruptly.“I need some air.”No one

  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 36 A Box of Trophies

    LILA’S POVBy the time Taylor arrived, it was nearly midnight.I was still wide awake.There had been no chance of sleep after that phone call. Adrian had called Luca back to the house, and now the three of us stood in the living room watching Taylor carry in the old document box like it might contain a bomb.In some ways, it did.He set it down on the coffee table with a quiet thud and ran a hand over the back of his neck.“Sorry for being late, sir,” he said. “The box was locked with a passcode. I had to find someone to crack it.”Adrian’s eyes went straight to the metal latch. “We can open it now?”“Yes, sir.”The room seemed to hold its breath.Adrian stepped forward and opened the box.At first, it looked disappointingly ordinary.Papers. Envelopes. Old files. Some brittle receipts. A thick folder with Montero Construction written across the tab in fading ink. I felt my heartbeat drop slightly.Then I started seeing words.Dates.Amounts.Company names.And one name that made my

  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 35 I Never Told Anyone

    ADRIAN’S POVThe second Lila went upstairs, I called Taylor.He answered on the first ring. “Sir.”“Lakehouse,” I said without a beat. “I want Chloe found before she gets another chance to run, and I want you to look for that damned box.”“Yes, sir.”“And Taylor?”A brief pause. “Sir?”“Find Jason too.”His tone changed just slightly. “Understood.”I ended the call and stood alone in the study for a moment, staring at the dark window.What Lila didn’t know about that lakehouse was… it did not belong to Jason. It was mine.Years ago, before Europe, before Cognio, that was where I spent most of my time whenever I wanted to disappear. The house sat far enough north to feel like the world had forgotten it. There was a lake, a rough dock, a patch of forest, and enough privacy to think.Back then, I lived there half-feral and quite happily.Fish from the lake. Fruit from the woods. Silence. Code on my laptop when the signal cooperated. Anger sharp enough to turn into ambition. I built hal

  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 24 Pretty Girls Break Too

    CHLOE’S POVThe first thing to break was not the business… it was my circle. It didn’t happen all at once; atleast that would have been honest. No, it happened so quietly and elegantly that I almost didn’t notice it. Group chats slowed down. Replies came later. Invitations stopped arriving. Girls

  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 21 Public Wife, Public War

    ADRIAN’S POVBy the time I got Lila out of the cameras and into the car, the city had already begun to do what it did best.Talk.I could practically feel it spreading through the streets, through office lobbies, group chats, and family dinner tables. My marriage. My wife. Her face. My hand on her

  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 15 What Have I Done?

    JASON’S POVThe boardroom had gone so quiet I could hear the air conditioner humming overhead, and yet somehow his words still felt unreal.I’m married.I stared at him. “When the hell did that happen?”“I don’t enjoy making a spectacle of my private life,” Adrian said coolly. “So I didn’t announce

  • Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!   CHAPTER 12 No One Hurts My Wife

    LILA’S POVI forced a small smile. “It’s nothing,” I said quickly. “I tripped.”His eyes lifted to mine. I felt the weight of that look all the way to my spine.“You tripped,” he repeated.“Yes.” I nodded, trying to sound casual. “I can be pretty clumsy sometimes,” I laughed, hoping to ease the ten

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