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Once my Wife
Once my Wife
Author: Frank J.P

Chapter 1: The Ghost in the Glass Tower

Author: Frank J.P
last update Last Updated: 2025-06-04 07:48:28

New York City buzzed in the distance as Bella Quinn stepped out of the taxi. The sound, once so loud and close, now felt far away like a memory she didn’t want to wake up.

It had been five years. Five long years since she ran from this city, from the pain it brought. Now, she stood in front of a tall glass building Reed International. The name alone made her stomach twist.

She held her portfolio tight. It felt solid in her hands, like proof that she had built a new life. A stronger one. One that didn’t depend on anyone but herself.

“Ms. Quinn? Isabella Quinn?”

The voice snapped her back to the present. A young woman walked up to her, holding a tablet and wearing a perfect smile. “Welcome to Reed International. Mr. Reed is expecting you.”

Bella’s heart skipped a beat. Mr. Reed. Of course. He was the mystery client. She hadn’t known his name until now.

Her hands shook slightly as she followed the assistant through the shiny, quiet lobby. Everything looked expensive and cold. The walls, the lights, the people all so polished. All so familiar.

This was his world.

The elevator felt too slow. Each second stretched forever. She tried to calm herself. She was no longer that girl from five years ago. She was Bella Quinn now. A successful architect. A strong single mother. Not Isabella Reed, the broken woman who had once been married to a man who didn’t see her pain.

The doors opened.

The assistant led her into a large office with tall windows and a view of the city. He was standing there, facing the glass, his back to her.

Jason Reed.

He hadn’t turned yet, but she could feel his presence tall, powerful, and distant. He seemed even colder now.

Then, he turned.

Bella stopped breathing.

His eyes were the same icy blue. His face was older, more serious, but still sharp. Still him. His gaze landed on her and for a second, she thought she saw surprise. But it quickly faded into something harder.

He stared at her like she was a stranger. Or a ghost.

The silence between them was loud. Bella’s heart pounded. This wasn’t just the past showing up again it was crashing right into her.

Jason’s eyes narrowed. His face grew cold. He didn’t speak at first. He just studied her like she was a puzzle he couldn’t quite solve.

Finally, his deep voice broke the silence.

“You’re late, Ms. Quinn. I’m Jason Reed. You’ll be working with me directly.”

His tone was sharp, almost rude.

Bella felt her jaw tighten.

She saw it in his eyes. He was already suspicious. He didn’t know the truth, not yet. But he could feel something was off.

And in that moment, she knew.

This wasn’t going to be just another job.

This was the start of something she had tried to leave behind. Something full of secrets, tension and danger.

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  • Once my Wife   Chapter 20: The Unseen Strings

    The media firestorm surrounding Reed International had escalated into a full-scale siege. Headlines blared fresh accusations daily; corporate misconduct, internal sabotage, and even whispers of federal investigations. Behind the chaos, George Reed’s hidden network operated with surgical precision, pulling invisible strings and manipulating public perception like a master puppeteer.Jason had bought a sliver of time with a narrow board vote of confidence barely enough to breathe. His office became a war room, cluttered with documents, transaction maps, and red-eyed associates fighting to trace the poison bleeding into the company’s core. He stood before a digital board, outlining the web of financial manipulation and media leaks.“They’re shorting the stock, controlling the narrative, and manufacturing panic,” Jason said, his voice low and grim. “This isn’t just an attack, it’s a hostile operation. They’re trying to destroy Reed International from the inside out, force a devaluation, a

  • Once my Wife   Chapter 19: The Poisoned Whispers

    The morning light filtering through Jason’s penthouse windows did little to brighten the mood. Bella sat on the edge of the leather couch, hands wrapped tightly around a mug of untouched coffee, replaying the kiss from the night before. It hadn’t been just physical. It was raw, emotionally charged, scar reopening. Yet now, with daylight came the retreat, the second-guessing. The war outside their doors had only escalated.Jason stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows, eyes scanning a barrage of breaking news headlines scrolling across his tablet. Each one was a blow to his public image, a calculated attack launched with precision and malice.“Reed International in Crisis: Whistle-blowers Confirm Financial Irregularities.”“Insider Claims CEO Jason Reed 'Mismanaged Funds' – Federal Inquiry Looming?”“Grace Monroe Speaks Out: 'Reed International Needs a New Era of Leadership.’”Bella’s stomach churned as she watched a video clip of Grace speaking on a morning financial show, her voice syr

  • Once my Wife   Chapter 18: The Old Flame’s Embrace

    The digital trap had worked like clockwork.Silas Thorne’s signature was all over the infiltration logs, his reckless brilliance, his arrogance, his fingerprints. With every line of code, every unauthorized access, he had not only buried himself but dragged Veronica Pierce and George Reed into the light with him. Mark Jenkins and his cybersecurity team moved swiftly, documenting the breach, assembling airtight evidence for Detective Harris. The noose was tightening. Slowly, methodically. And this time, it wouldn't loosen.But amid the chaos and corporate warfare, something more subtle and far more dangerous was happening.Bella and Jason had been forced into close quarters for weeks now. Emergency meetings turned into late-night strategy sessions. Mutual blame had transformed into shared purpose. And beneath the tension and high-stakes maneuvering, an old, simmering current had begun to rise again quiet, potent, undeniable.It came to a head one night, just past midnight.The office w

  • Once my Wife   Chapter 17: The Bait Taken

    The trap had sprung.Inside Jason's office, the tension was suffocating. Mark Jenkins’s screens pulsed with lines of code, log access trails, and metadata overlays, each confirming what they had hoped for: the digital infiltration was underway.“They’re in,” Jenkins murmured. “Silas Thorne’s signature is unmistakable.”Bella leaned in, eyes fixed on the scrolling activity. The invaders were navigating the decoy server like seasoned professionals, slipping past firewalls, decrypting dummy files, scanning fabricated financial logs designed to mirror Reed International’s true accounts.“They’re after the embezzlement records,” Jenkins confirmed. “They think they’ve found the mother-lode. I’d bet money they’re preparing to inject false transactions that pin it all on you, Bella and then wipe the server clean.”Jason clenched his jaw. “Let them. Every keystroke is a nail in their coffin.”But something tugged at Bella's instincts. Her gaze narrowed. “Mark,” she said, pointing at a data log

  • Once my Wife   Chapter 16: The Digital Trap

    The truth about Silas Thorne and George Reed’s continued, ruthless orchestration behind the scenes landed like a professional boxer’s punch. Bella sat still for long moments after Jason revealed the financial links, her body trembling from the sheer weight of betrayal. It was no longer just Veronica’s venom or corporate ambition, it was George himself, lurking in the shadows like a puppet master, weaponizing surveillance and fear against them. Against Lila.That realization didn’t break Bella it strengthen her resolve and forged her.Jason, no longer just the heir or the leader, had shifted. The warmth in his eyes was still there when he looked at Bella, but the fire had hardened into something colder, more dangerous. The protective instincts he’d once dulled out of obligation were now sharpened into a blade of vengeance.“Jenkins,” Jason said, voice clipped and steely, “I want full visibility on Silas Thorne’s firm. I want his staff tracked, I want every server ping logged. No more h

  • Once my Wife   Chapter 15: The Game of Cat and Mouse

    The game had shifted. This was no longer a matter of corporate espionage or bruised egos it was war. With each passing hour, the threat loomed larger, more insidious, and now unbearably personal. Bella could feel it in the cold tightness of her chest, in the way her gaze never strayed far from her phone, expecting another anonymous message, another veiled threat. But it wasn’t herself she feared for—it was Lila. Her daughter had become the center of this dangerous game, the ultimate prize.Jason’s entire demeanor had changed. The protective shell he once kept so carefully measured had cracked. Now, he was all edge, operating on cold fury and precise urgency. He wasn’t just fighting for Bella anymore. He was fighting for his child.Mark Jenkins delivered the first breakthrough.“We’ve tracked a physical address,” Jenkins said in his usual gravelly monotone, standing in Jason’s office like a silent predator. “The original server registered under an inactive shell corporation was linked

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