Lahat ng Kabanata ng Ruthless Billionaire Ex-Husband's Regret: Kabanata 21 - Kabanata 30

A week had passed since that night at the stuffy hotel gala, and I hadn't been able to get the image of Jason's striking figure out of my mind.His tall, powerfully built seemed to haunt my dreams every single night, taunting me with memories of what we once had...and what could have been if things were different.I had woken up just minutes ago to the sounds of Yonatan, Eve's rambunctious puppy, barking up an absolute storm.The adorable little furball had been staying with me for the past couple days while Eve and her husband Zach were out of town on a romantic getaway.They dropped the hyper tornado of energy and chaos off with me every now and then, knowing I didn't mind her company too much. Well, most of the time at least."Here you go, you annoying little sweetie," I muttered as I set down her food bowl full of crunchy puppy kibble on the kitchen floor.Yonatan immediately pounced on it and devoured the food greedily while letting out excited little yips, growls, and snorts bet

Once home, I spent the rest of the day cleaning and tidying obsessively. I was doing anything to distract myself from thoughts of Jason – my new neighbor whether I liked it or not. All I could do was hope for a peaceful future going forward.I’ve been through so much in my life – enough pain, depression, anger and darkness to break many people. Yet here I still stood, unbowed. Smiling and laughing in the face of everything I’d endured.Because this life won’t stand still to account for my grief… Either I pick myself up and carry on despite being broken, or I remain mired in sorrow forever.This time I threw on some gray pajamas since my regular clothes were in the wash. I finished making dinner but Don still wasn’t back yet. It was already 6pm!I locked the door behind me after stepping out. I did not want Yonatan to make another break for it.I soon caught a glimpse of Don talking with another boy around his age.I waited until they finished their conversation so as not to embarrass

I felt suddenly drained after the phone call and I trudged back into the kitchen to find Don had already finished eating breakfast and was rinsing his dishes in the sink.I watched him working methodically, and an idea began to take shape in my mind."Don, listen up," I stated firmly, getting his attention. "I need to go into the office for an emergency situation, and you're coming with me. I may not be back until late tonight, and with Eve out of town, I can't just leave you here alone. Finding a last-minute sitter would take way too long."Don's brows flew up at my words as he turned to face me. "What? Seriously, Mom? I don't need a babysitter," he protested, rolling his eyes. "I can totally take care of myself, you know. I'm not three years old anymore."I opened my mouth to insist, but he was already ranting on stubbornly, "Plus, I have a crucial calculus exam tomorrow morning - I need to get a good night's sleep so I can be rested. I don't want to risk missing it or underperformin

"When I told you how I felt, I wasn't asking you out on a date," Klay stated bluntly, holding my gaze captive with those stupidly beautiful whiskey-colored eyes. "I was asking for your hand - as in, to be mine. Permanently."The sheer audacity of his words left me gaping at him with flushed cheeks. This couldn't actually be happening, could it? He couldn't seriously be proposing...what, marriage?"I'm growing quite tired of this little boyfriend of yours," Klay continued in a low rumble, taking another deliberate step forward. "You've been together for years, and he still hasn't put a ring on it? Tsk tsk - that boy's just stringing you along for fun, darling. Clearly he doesn't appreciate the rare prize he's got."His lips were a hairsbreadth from mine when he murmured, "I, on the other hand, would cherish you like the rare gem you are. I don't care if you're divorced, if you've got a kid or two already in the picture - all I want is you, Maisie. And what I want, I get...by any means

Karina simply arched a perfectly groomed brow at me, managing to radiate an impressive amount of disdain without uttering a single word. Clearly this was going to be a...fun...neighborly relationship.Still, I refused to let her haughty, condescending attitude get under my skin as we began the tedious process of hauling her numerous belongings inside. I'd dealt with far worse than a spoiled, entitled brat with an overinflated sense of self-importance in my life."So, you're Jason's fiancée, right?" I ventured out of a desire to fill the tense, awkward silence more than anything.She sniffed indelicately, somehow making the simple act of breathing through her nose seem snobbish and disdainful. "Jason's soon-to-be wife," she corrected with the barest hint of a smug smirk. "Though I suppose even that will be a step down for a woman of my pedigree to be marrying a poor orphan boy from Lucland."The words were delivered with such sugary sweetness that the venom and disdain behind them didn'