Lahat ng Kabanata ng Dear Ex, I'm More Than Your Plan B: Kabanata 181 - Kabanata 190

The amber whiskey in Dorian’s glass barely rippled as he stood by the massive window of his Paris office, the skyline stretching beyond the glass like a painting he’d already grown tired of.He didn’t even hear the door open.But he knew who it was the moment the footsteps approached.Claude, his assistant in Paris of nearly a decade, cleared his throat softly. “Sir, there’s news. From New York.”Dorian didn’t move. His grip on the glass only tightened.“What kind of news?”“About Miss Sterling.”The name alone made his chest constrict. He turned slowly, expression sharp. “She’s in New York?”“Yes, sir,” Claude replied. “I’ve confirmed it through flight manifest records and the Fontaine Group’s HR department. She submitted a formal leave request yesterday afternoon. She traveled via private jet this morning.”Dorian set the glass down on the table behind him, his fingers briefly curling into fists before relaxing. “She went with him, didn’t she?”Claude nodded once. “Yes. Mr. Donovan

The buzz of his phone pulled him from the spiral of memory.It was Damien.Asher swiped to answer. “Yeah?”“All settled at the estate,” Damien reported. “Ms. Sterling didn’t stay, just did a walk through. Eliza expects her back for the will reading Tuesday.”Asher nodded. “Keep a detail on her, but make it invisible.”“Already done. You want us to check in on Dorian too?”“No,” Asher said, cold steel lacing his voice. “If he wants to show up in Manhattan, I’ll be ready.”There was a pause.Then Damien said, “Copy that.”Asher ended the call and pocketed the phone.From the hallway, he heard the soft padding of footsteps. Eira popped her head in, hugging her favorite bunny plush.“This room’s really big,” she said, eyes scanning the master suite. “Was Mommy here too?”Asher smiled, warm and soft. “Yeah. She was.”“Did you miss her?” she asked suddenly.He walked over, knelt in front of her, and brushed her hair back gently. “Every single day.”Eira nodded, solemn in the way only small

She opened her desk drawer, pulling out her private phone and dialing with surgical precision.One ring.Two.Then Sarah’s voice, saccharine and breathless.“Evelyn, I was just about to...”“She’s back.”Silence.Then a sharp inhale.“She... Vera? She’s back? With him?”Evelyn closed her eyes and gripped the desk tighter. “Not just with him. In his home. With a child. The girl.”“No,” Sarah whispered, disbelief dripping with hate. “She wouldn’t dare...”“She did.”Another long beat of silence.Evelyn could hear the wheels turning in Sarah’s head. Rage. Panic. Then a slow, vengeful kind of calm.“She’s trying to trap him,” Sarah said bitterly. “Trying to pretend that child is his. You know she’s not.”“She will not undo everything I built,” Evelyn hissed. “I pulled him out of that mess once. I cleaned her filth from his life. She will not sink her claws in again.”“Do you want me to handle it?” Sarah offered, voice steady now. Eager. Too eager.Evelyn hesitated.Sarah was predictable.

Later that evening, Eira had fallen asleep on the couch mid movie, bunny clutched under one arm, a trail of popcorn across her shirt.Vera had just tucked a blanket around her when Asher walked over quietly with a tray of chamomile tea.“For you,” he said, setting it down gently.She eyed it. “I didn’t ask for tea.”“No, but I figured you’d want it.”She hesitated, then picked up the cup. Warm. Calming.She sipped. “Okay… fine. Bonus points.”He chuckled under his breath and leaned against the edge of the marble island, arms folded. “I’ll take it.”For a moment, they just stood there.Soft music played in the background. The city glittered beyond the tall windows.Eira breathed quietly.The world, for once, wasn’t spinning.Vera looked at him then. Really looked at him.“You’re different,” she said softly.“I’ve had time to grow up,” he replied, his voice just as low. “A lot of time. Without you.”Her chest tightened.She looked away first.“I’m not promising anything,” she whispered.

Vera blinked at her, stunned.“Wait... what dress...?”“The pink one with sparkles! I knew it! You’re getting married!”Asher laughed, voice shaking with nerves. “It’s just a start over proposal, sweetheart.”“Start over, marriage, same thing!” Eira bounced on the couch. “We’ll be a real family now, right?”Vera’s hands trembled.Asher looked up at her again. “Vera?”She looked from the ring, to his eyes, to her daughter’s expectant face.The woman inside her wanted to scream yes.But the bruises in her heart whispered caution.She didn’t answer right away.Instead, she reached out, slowly closed the ring box with gentle fingers, and said...“Let’s just… take it one day at a time.”Asher nodded, lips curving into the softest, most genuine smile.“I can live with that,” he whispered.Eira clapped and launched herself into both their arms, and as Vera held them both, something in her chest began to heal.They were far from whole.But maybe...They were beginning again.Eira wriggled out