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CHAPTER 86
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2026-08-23 23:30:38
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Mistress to my Ex's Billionaire Uncle CHAPTER 167
DAMIEN’S POVThey stop me the next morning.Richard finds me in the study with my phone already in hand, ready to call Roxie again. He doesn’t raise his voice. He just stands in the doorway, looking older than I’ve ever seen him, and says,“If you chase her, she’ll run further. You saw the video. You heard what she asked for. Give her the space, Damien.”Elena is behind him. Gideon too.“She’s checking in with me,” Elena says quietly. “That’s something. If we push, we could lose even that.”I look at all three of them. The phone feels heavy in my hand.“She’s out there alone,” I say. “You can’t expect me to sit here and do nothing.”Richard steps closer. “I expect you to respect what my daughter asked for. Even when it’s the last thing you want to do.”The silence that follows is thick. Finally I set the phone down on the desk.It feels like surrender.—Elena reaches Aria two days later. She only shows me the messages after the agreement is already in place.Aria will stay in contact
Mistress to my Ex's Billionaire Uncle CHAPTER 166
DAMIEN’S POVThe venue still smells like flowers and champagne at six in the morning.Police move between overturned chairs and half-empty glasses. The string lights remain on, casting a soft glow over a celebration that never properly began. Someone turned the music off hours ago. The silence left behind is heavier than noise.I sit on the edge of the small stage with my head in my hands. I can still feel the exact moment I walked back through the doors and did not find her. The empty space where she should have been keeps replaying in my mind like a wound that will not close.Richard stands near the window with Caleb asleep against his shoulder. Elena sits beside Gideon, eyes red, answering the same questions for the third time. Aurora has not stopped pacing. Every few minutes she looks toward the entrance as if Aria might still walk through it.An officer approaches me.“Mr. Hartwell. Victoria Hale has been taken into custody based on your statement. We’ll need you at the station.”
Mistress to my Ex's Billionaire Uncle CHAPTER 165
DAMIEN’S POVI almost proposed.Three nights ago, after Aria had fallen asleep, I sat across from Elena and Gideon in the quiet penthouse and told them I was done waiting. I had the ring. I had the words. I wanted her to know — without contracts, without expiration dates, without any remaining space for doubt — that she was permanent.Elena had looked at me for a long time before she spoke.“She’s still recovering,” she said carefully. “Her body. Her head. Everything she’s been through. If you put a ring in front of her right now, it might feel like pressure instead of a promise. Make it official first. Give her the clarity she’s been needing. Then propose when she’s steady.”Gideon had nodded. “Don’t rush the ending before you’ve even started the chapter properly.”I hated that they were right.So I adjusted everything. No ring tonight. Just the truth. A clear question. A private place afterward where I could ask her to be mine without an audience.Aurora caught me reviewing the fina
Mistress to my Ex's Billionaire Uncle CHAPTER 164
ARIA’S POVThe private lounge looks warmer than I expected.Soft lights. Low music. Familiar faces already gathered near the open space cleared for dancing. Papa Bear stands near the far window with Caleb close beside him. Elena is laughing at something Gideon said. Aurora moves between small clusters of people with the quiet efficiency of someone who has planned every detail.I step out of the short hallway and pause.Damien is waiting near the edge of the floor. When he sees me, the rest of the room seems to fade for a moment. His eyes move over me slowly, carefully, and something soft settles in his expression.He walks toward me and takes my hand.“My princess,” he says quietly, just for me. “You look beautiful.”Heat rises to my cheeks. I glance down at the dress, then back up at him.“Everyone’s already here,” he continues, thumb brushing once over my knuckles. “Your dad. Caleb. Elena. Gideon. George. We open the floor together, then the night is yours.”I smile, nerves flutteri
Mistress to my Ex's Billionaire Uncle CHAPTER 163
ARIA’S POVThe first rumor appears on a Tuesday morning.I am sitting on the edge of the bed, scrolling absently through my phone while Damien finishes a call in the other room, when the headline catches my eye.Sources Claim Damien Hartwell Rekindling Romance with Victoria Hale.My stomach drops.There is a blurry photo attached — Damien walking out of a building, Victoria a few steps behind him. The angle makes it look intentional. The caption is worse. Words like “private reconciliation” and “old flame” sit under the image like they belong there.I lock the phone and set it face-down on the nightstand.It is not true. I know it is not true. Victoria has been circling for weeks, and Damien has not given her a single opening. But knowing something and feeling it are two different things. The secret I am carrying makes everything sharper. Every doubt feels heavier when there is already a life growing quietly inside me that he does not know about.I press a hand to my stomach without t
Mistress to my Ex's Billionaire Uncle CHAPTER 162
DAMIEN’S POVAria asks to see Ethan on a quiet Thursday morning.I don’t like it. Every part of me resists the idea of her standing in front of the man who ordered the hit that put her in a coma. But when she looks at me and says she needs to hear it from him, I can’t refuse her. I have never been able to refuse her.The prison is cold and gray. We are led down a narrow corridor to a secured visitation room. Ethan is already seated behind the glass when we enter. Ten years. That is what the judge gave him. He looks smaller than I remember — thinner, older, the arrogance stripped clean out of him.The moment he sees Aria, something in his face breaks.“Aria,” he says, voice rough. He doesn’t look at me first. “I didn’t think you’d come.”She sits down slowly, keeping her hand in mine under the table. For a moment she just studies him.“I needed to,” she answers. Her voice is calm, but I can feel the tension in her fingers. “I needed to hear it from you.”Ethan swallows. “I’m sorry. I k
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