Chapter 33: Adrian's POV

I sat quietly in my office, eyes fixed on the laptop screen, fingers typing absentmindedly when my phone buzzed beside me. I picked it up, glancing at the notification. "Elena is Adrian Lancaster's Ex-Wife" — the headline stared back at me.

I scoffed and dropped the phone without a second thought. Let the world talk.

But then, another notification followed — a photo. My gaze froze.

It was Elena… sitting beside Eric on a beach. They were facing each other, laughing — smiling like they had no care in the world.

My chest tightened. My pulse quickened. Something burned deep inside me.

That smile — the one I used to think was only mine — now belonged to someone else.

And I hated it. I hated *him* for making her laugh.

But worse… I hated *her* for letting him.

I clenched my jaw and dropped the phone on the table, my fingers curling into a tight fist.

The image kept replaying in my head — her soft smile, the way she looked at him, like he was her whole world.

She was mine. And no matte