Chapter 34.I've been wondering all day—why is this man acting so strangely, like he's trying to win me over?It's not like he needs to. After all, he footed the bill for everything I picked out at the mall.He offered me a condo. Then a car. The sheer extravagance of it all left me dizzy.He was way more generous than those overbearing CEOs I’d seen on TV.Having a husband who was generous and willing to spend money—well, ex-husband soon—wasn’t such a bad thing, honestly.Sure, there’s no such thing as a free lunch, but I mana
Chapter 33.I had truly, thoroughly enjoyed myself today.It had been a while since I indulged like this—grabbing items off the racks, trying on new shoes just because they sparkled a little, letting the soft cotton of high-end loungewear seduce me into buying them in every color.And every time I made a move toward the cashier, Ajax would step forward—calm, expressionless—and swipe his card before I could even think of opening my wallet.Not a wrinkle of hesitation on his forehead. Not even a sigh.Seriously... was this man even real?&n
Chapter 32.Since Gwyneth had postponed her plans to take Dylan to the nearby mall due to the wedding the day before, she decided to make it up to him today. A promise was a promise, and she didn’t want to disappoint the child who had become the center of her new world.As expected, Dylan was overjoyed. He practically bounced in his seat with excitement all morning and, with those bright eyes and sweet little voice, begged for Ajax to come along too.As expected, Dylan was overjoyed—and when he insisted that Ajax come along too, Ajax found himself unable to refuse. He folded in less than a minute.He didn’t even try to resist. How could he, when his only son looked up at him with that hopeful gaze, clutching h
Chapter 31.Reality proved that explaining certain matters to a child—especially one as sharp as Dylan—was far more awkward than Ajax had anticipated. Fortunately, after a brief round of questions, Dylan seemed to lose interest and dropped the topic. Ajax let out a silent sigh of relief.After climbing into bed, Dylan didn’t fall asleep right away. Instead, in the darkness, he asked softly, “Dad, will you and Mom have another child?”The question caught Ajax off guard. It was clear the teasing remarks Dylan had overheard at the wedding still lingered in the boy’s mind.Ajax gently tucked the thin summer blanket around Dylan’s small body. “You don’t want a little brother or sister?” he asked carefully.Dylan shook his head and answered with the quiet honesty only children possess. “It’s not that... It’s just… Mom hugs me now. She kisses me too. If she has another baby… will she go back to before? When she didn’t hug me or kiss me at all?”Ajax was stunned. For a moment, he didn’t know
Chapter 30.I didn’t know what had happened while Ajax was gone, but when he came back from the bathroom, I could feel it.His gaze kept drifting toward me. Not glaring or intense, just… present. Repeated. Controlled.He kept looking at me.I caught him more than once. The kind of look someone gives when they think you won’t notice. Or maybe when they want you to. The thought made me slightly uneasy.It couldn’t be that he’d gone to an ophthalmologist in the restroom and suddenly realized I looked especially good tonight, right? I’d joked like that in my head before—tonight it didn’t feel that funny.Whatever it was, he didn’t say a word.I could only shrug and didn’t pay attention. I’m no mind reader so I won’t be able to tell what he’s trying to say with those pretty eyes.Not when we sat at the table again. Not during the endless rounds of toasts. Not even when Dylan fell asleep on my lap and I tried to discreetly wipe drool off his cheek with a napkin. Ajax just watched. Occasion
Chapter 29.Halfway through the wedding banquet, Ajax excused himself from the table and quietly left the hall. His destination was through the bathroom.The corridors outside the reception buzzed faintly with music and laughter that filtered in from the distance, but here—just beyond the arched doorway—the light dimmed and the air turned cooler, as though the space had been preserved for private reckonings.And in that stillness, Miranda appeared.She stood just ahead in the hallway, her figure backlit by the pale glow of a chandelier overhead. Her back was straight, her hands clutched tightly around a designer purse, and her expression, though carefully composed, betrayed the nerves she couldn't fully hide.Ajax met her gaze briefly and gave a faint nod, more habit than greeting. He didn’t stop walking.But she stepped forward. “CEO Ajax,” she said, voice delicate and trembling despite the confidence she tried to summon. “I… I called you last night.”In front of Gwyneth, she had clu