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The Lawsuit Escalates
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2026-03-13 05:02:03
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The Wife He Forgot: Ashes to Empire The Lawsuit Escalates
POV: ISLAVictoria Montez filed for an injunction.To stop our new product launch. The one we'd been working on for two years. The one worth five hundred million dollars."She can't do this," I said to our legal team."She can and she did. The hearing is in three days."Three days to prepare a defense. Three days to save our company.I didn't sleep that night. Or the next. Or the next.Just worked. Reviewed documents. Prepared arguments. Built our case.The media was having a field day."Tech Queens Battle It Out!""Apex vs. TechCore: The Billion Dollar Showdown!""Dr. Isla Winters: Genius or Thief?"That last headline made me want to scream.At home, I was a disaster.Snapped at Grace when she spilled juice. Yelled at Asher for being too loud. Told the twins to just figure out their homework themselves.Jaxon tried to help."Isla, you need to sleep""I can't sleep! The hearing is tomorrow!""You'll do better if you're rested""Don't tell me what I need! You don't understand the press
The Wife He Forgot: Ashes to Empire Nova's Rebellion
POV: JAXONThe call came during snack time."Mr. Winters? This is Mrs. Patterson, Nova's teacher. We need you to come in for a parent-teacher conference. Today if possible."My stomach dropped. "Is Nova okay?""She's fine. Physically. But we need to discuss her behavior.""What kind of behavior?""I'd prefer to discuss it in person. Can you come in at 2 PM?"I looked at Grace and Asher, currently making a disaster of graham crackers."I'll be there."I called Mia to watch the little ones."Everything okay?" she asked."Nova's in trouble at school. I have to go in.""Want me to come with?""No, I've got it. Thanks though."She showed up fifteen minutes later. Grace immediately ran to her."Aunt Mia! Aunt Mia!"Mia scooped her up. "Hey, munchkin! Ready to have some fun with Aunt Mia while Daddy handles some boring grown-up stuff?"I grabbed my jacket. "There's snacks in the pantry. Asher needs to stay out of the bathroom""I know the drill. Go. Handle Nova."Mrs. Patterson's classroom w
The Wife He Forgot: Ashes to Empire First Date Night Attempt
POV: ISLA"You're sure you're okay with this?" I asked Mia for the third time."Isla, I've babysat your kids a million times. Go. Have fun. Reconnect with your husband."She practically pushed us out the door.Jaxon had made reservations at a nice Italian restaurant. The kind of place we used to go before life got so complicated.We drove in silence.Awkward silence.When had that happened? When had being alone together become uncomfortable?The restaurant was beautiful. Romantic. Low lighting. Soft music.We sat across from each other.Looked at our menus."The pasta looks good," Jaxon said."Yeah."More silence.This was painful.The waiter came. Took our order and left.We were alone again. And I had no idea what to say."So," Jaxon started. "How's work?""We're not supposed to talk about work. Or kids. Dr. Mitchell said.""Right. Sorry."More silence.Damn, this was terrible."When did we get so bad at this?" I finally asked."At what?""At being us. Just talking. Being together."
The Wife He Forgot: Ashes to Empire Marriage Counseling
POV: JAXONDr. Mitchell's office felt different this time.Not the safe space it had been during the trial. Not the healing sanctuary we'd needed after the kidnapping.This time, it felt like a confessional.Or maybe an intervention."Thank you for coming in," Dr. Mitchell said, settling into her chair. "I know you've both been busy.""We're always busy," Isla said. A little defensive.Dr. Mitchell noted it. I could tell."How are things at home?""Good," we both said automatically."Are they?"Silence."Jaxon?" Dr. Mitchell prompted. "Honestly?"I took a breath. "We're... managing. The kids are good. The house is good. We're functioning.""But?""But we're not connecting. Not really. We're just... existing side by side."Isla shifted beside me. Uncomfortable."Isla, do you agree with that assessment?""I don't know. We're just busy. Four kids. My job. Life.""Busyness can be a shield," Dr. Mitchell said gently. "A way to avoid dealing with underlying issues.""We don't have issues,"
The Wife He Forgot: Ashes to Empire Apex Under Fire
POV: ISLADuring my 9 AM meeting, a call came inMy assistant knocked, apologetic. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but you need to take this. It's urgent."I excused myself. Stepped into the hallway."Dr. Winters," my head of legal said. "We have a problem. A big one."My stomach dropped. "What happened?""Victoria Montez. CEO of TechCore Solutions. She's filed a lawsuit against Apex. Claiming we stole proprietary code from them.""That's ridiculous. We didn't steal anything.""I know. But she's going public with it. Press conference in two hours. And she has... evidence. Or what she claims is evidence.""What kind of evidence?""Code snippets. Algorithms. She's claiming they're identical to TechCore's proprietary systems.""Are they?""I don't know yet. I need our development team to review immediately.""Do it. And get our PR team on damage control. Now."The next three hours were a nightmare.Our development team confirmed: yes, there were similarities in the code. But no, we didn't steal
The Wife He Forgot: Ashes to Empire The Baby Arrival Flashback
POV: JAXONOne year agoI stood in the hospital room, watching them prep Isla for surgery.Scheduled C-section. We knew what to expect this time.No emergency. No panic. No fear.Just... anticipation.Baby number four. Grace Olivia Winters."You ready?" the doctor asked Isla."As ready as I'll ever be," she said, smiling at me.So different from Asher's birth. No alarms. No premature delivery. No terror.Just normal routine."You okay?" I asked Isla, squeezing her hand."Nervous. But good nervous.""Me too."The anesthesiologist started the epidural. I held Isla's hand through it."Remember when you fainted during my first C-section?" she teased."I didn't faint. I got lightheaded.""You went pale and had to sit down.""Details."She laughed. And I loved that sound. After everything we'd been through, she could still laugh.The surgery was quick, efficient and smooth.I stood by Isla's head, holding her hand, watching the doctors work.And then I heard it.A cry."It's a girl!" the do
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