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Chapter Thirty Three

작가: Mayrae
last update 게시일: 2026-04-06 16:46:59

Lena's POV

The dinner was at a steakhouse in the West Village that I'd chosen deliberately — neutral ground, good wine list, the kind of place where nobody would feel like they were on anyone's territory.

Ethan arrived first. He was standing at the bar when I walked in, already in conversation with the bartender, because Ethan had never once in his life stood quietly in a room when there was a person available to talk to.

He hugged me and looked past my shoulder.

"He's not here yet."

"He's not
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  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter fifty six

    Adrian's POVThe appeal was dismissed on May third.My attorney called at ten in the morning. "Chen withdrew it this morning. No explanation, but my guess is Richard's legal team finally explained that Judge Lawson's ruling was bulletproof.""So it's final.""Completely final. The judgment stands. Payment enforcement begins immediately."I hung up and called Lena. She was between cases."The appeal is done," I said. "Chen withdrew it.""That was fast.""Six weeks. They saw the writing on the wall." I paused. "The money will be in your account by end of month.""Good. I already contacted the fellowship foundation. They're ready to receive it."She hung up without ceremony. I sat in my office and thought about what final meant. No more legal proceedings. No more waiting for judges to rule. The accounting was complete on every level.Marcus came in at noon with the Q2 projections."Southeast Asia is up another eighteen percent," he said. "Chen thinks we should expand the Singapore office

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter fifty five

    Lena's POVSophie's flight was at noon.I met her at the apartment at nine—she'd stayed at a hotel, insisted on it despite Adrian offering the guest room. She had coffee waiting when I arrived and her bag already packed by the door."Efficient," I said."I have a case tomorrow morning. Can't afford jet lag." She handed me a cup. "Sit. We have an hour."We sat on the sofa. Outside the window the city was doing its Sunday morning version of itself—quieter, slower, the traffic not yet committed to urgency."The dinner was good," she said."It was.""Ademi clearly respects you. The Cornell cardiologist too.""We did good work together.""You led good work." She looked at me directly. "Stop diminishing it.""I'm not diminishing it. I'm being accurate about collaborative research.""Lena." She set her cup down. "You changed how an entire patient population will be screened. You led a team through two years of work and published in the top journal in your field. Say the accurate thing—you di

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter fifty four

    Adrian's POVThe appeal was filed on March fifteenth, exactly five days after the verdict.My attorney called at eight in the morning. "Chen filed this morning. Standard grounds—claiming the judge erred in admitting Vivian's documentation, claiming the damages calculation was speculative.""Will it succeed?""No. Judge Lawson's ruling is airtight. But the appeal process takes six months minimum.""Does it stay enforcement of the judgment?""Not automatically. We can file to enforce immediately. Dana's probably doing the same."He was right. Dana called Lena twenty minutes later while we were having breakfast.I heard Lena's side of the conversation. "Yes, file to enforce. I don't want this dragged out." A pause. "Good. Let me know when it's filed."She hung up and looked at me. "Dana's filing for immediate enforcement this afternoon.""My attorney said the same thing.""So the appeal happens but the money gets paid anyway?""Unless Chen gets a stay, which is unlikely given how strong

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter Fifty three

    Lena's POVThe study paper was accepted by Circulation on February twenty-third.Ademi called me at seven in the morning. "They want to publish in the April issue. Fast-tracked peer review, minimal revisions requested.""What revisions?""Methodological clarification in section three. One statistical note. Nothing substantive." He paused. "Lena, this is the fastest acceptance I've seen in fifteen years.""The data is strong.""The data is extraordinary. The reviewers said so explicitly." He sounded pleased with himself. "We're scheduling the publication dinner for April fifteenth. I want the full team there."I hung up and texted Adrian: Paper accepted. April publication.He replied immediately: Congratulations. That's major.I went to work. Three surgeries scheduled, all routine. I moved through them with the focus that came from doing the same precise work for years. By four I was done.Dana called while I was in my office. "No news on the verdict. Judge Lawson is still reviewing."

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter Fifty two

    Adrian's POVThe supplemental brief took three days to prepare.My attorney drafted it, Chen's team reviewed their copy, and on Friday both were filed with the court. The brief laid out the property transfer timeline in explicit detail—when I'd decided to transfer the deed, when the paperwork was prepared, when Lena signed it. All of it after the June filing."The dates are clear," my attorney said. "Chen can imply coordination all he wants. The documentation proves otherwise.""When are closing arguments?""Next Wednesday. Both sides get ninety minutes."I hung up and called Lena. She was in surgery. I left a message.She called back at six. "The brief is filed?""Yes. Dana send you her copy?""I reviewed it this afternoon. It's solid." She paused. "I have a case tomorrow morning. Early start.""I'll see you after.""Adrian, I need to focus on work this week. The trial has taken up too much headspace.""I know.""I'm not avoiding you. I just need to be a surgeon for a few days instea

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter Fifty One

    Lena's POVI took the stand at nine-oh-seven.The courtroom was quieter than I expected. Dana stood at the plaintiff's table. Chen sat at the defense table looking patient. Judge Lawson watched me without expression.I stated my name and occupation. Dana began."Dr. Ashford, please describe the timeline of events starting with your marriage to Adrian Cole."I walked through it in clean sentences. The marriage, the wedding night, the annulment. Facts only, no emotion."When did you learn about the rescinded job offers?""Within six weeks of the annulment. Three hospitals contacted me. All positions I'd been offered before the wedding were suddenly unavailable.""What reasons were you given?""Budget constraints at one. Restructuring at another. The third said the position was filled internally.""Did you believe those explanations?""Yes. I had no reason to question them."Dana showed the court the donation timeline. Richard's payments to the same three hospitals, same six-week window,

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter Twenty

    Adrian’s POVShe said a restaurant name and a time — seven o'clock and hung up before I could ask anything else.I knew the place. Small Italian, West Village, the kind of room that was quiet enough for a real conversation without requiring one. I had not been there in years. I did not ask if she k

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter Nineteen

    Lena's POVSophie left on Saturday morning.She hugged me at the taxi and held on long enough to say everything she wasn't going to say out loud. When she pulled back her eyes were clear but close."Call me," she said."I always call you.""Call me sooner than you think you need to." She picked up

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter Eighteen

    Adrian's POVHayes cleared me for discharge on Friday morning.He came in at eight with the results of the final echocardiogram and walked me through them with the thorough efficiency of a man who had spent the past two weeks managing something he hadn't expected to manage this well. The repair was

  • His Rejected Billionaire Wife    Chapter Seventeen

    Lena's POVSophie arrived on a Thursday morning with one oversized bag, strong opinions about New York weather, and the particular energy of a person who had been worried about someone for ten days and was finally in the same city as them.She hugged me in the hospital lobby for a long time."You l

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