All Chapters of Falling For My Ex Husband’s Uncle Wasn’t Part Of My Plan : Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Nadia’s POV Over the next few weeks, Callum became part of my routine faster than I expected. It happened quietly. Not in one big moment but in small ones that accumulated without my permission. The Tuesday he showed up with coffee because he was passing my street anyway. On Sunday morning I found him already in my kitchen making eggs before I’d even properly woken up. The Wednesday I called him because something funny happened and he was the first person I thought to tell. Quietly, without any fanfare, he had become a fixture. I wasn’t sure how to feel about that. One Friday evening I was standing barefoot in my kitchen making tea when someone knocked softly against the door twice before letting himself in. Callum. He walked inside carrying grocery bags and looking unfairly attractive in a black coat, his hair slightly damp from the rain outside. I blinked at him. “Do you even live in your own apartment anymore?” “Occasionally.” “That’s concerning.” “You like me here.” “I

Nadia’s POV Not just any Vivienne. The Vivienne. The devil herself standing beside Callum wearing a dark red dress and diamonds that probably cost more than my apartment. She looked elegant and terrifying exactly the way she always did. Her arm rested lightly through Callum’s while both of them faced the camera. Except Callum was smiling properly in the picture. Relaxed. Happy. The version of him I saw every time he showed up at my door with grocery bags. I stared at it so hard my vision almost blurred. Oh my God. Oh my God. Before I could speak, Callum’s phone suddenly rang from somewhere behind me. “You can answer it,” I said automatically, still staring at the photograph. “Sorry,” he muttered while grabbing his phone from the counter. I barely heard him. My pulse hammered violently in my ears. This was real. Not a coincidence. Not just another woman with the same name. Vivienne Hargrove. She’s Callum’s sister. My ex mother-in-law was his sister. How had I not seen it before

Nadia’s POV Two days later, Callum took me shopping for a dress I’d wear to dinner. Which I still thought was ridiculous. “I already own dresses,” I complained for the third time while walking beside him through one of the most expensive stores in Manhattan. “I know you do,” Callum agreed calmly. “So why are we here?” He glanced at me briefly. “Because my sister is very big on appearances.” I stared at him. “You say that so casually.” “It’s true.” “And this couldn’t have been mentioned before I emotionally attached myself to your family dinner invitation?” Callum laughed softly while leading me farther into the store. “You’ll survive.” “I’m not convinced.” “She’s not that bad.” I almost said something I couldn’t take back. “How bad is she?” I asked instead. Callum considered this with an expression that told me he was choosing his words carefully. “She has very specific standards.” “For what?” “Everything.” I smiled tightly. “Wonderful.” “But she’s family,” he said, l

Nadia’s POV The drive there felt too short. Cruelly short. Callum talked casually the entire way while I tried very hard not to spiral internally. “She’ll probably overfeed us,” he said while driving. “That’s how she expresses affection.” I nearly laughed out loud. Vivienne Hargrove expressing affection through food was genuinely one of the funniest things I had ever heard. The woman had once told me that bread baskets were for people who didn’t know how to control themselves. “What does she usually make?” I asked carefully. “She doesn’t make anything herself. She has people for that.” “Right. Obviously.” “But she micromanages the whole menu personally.” He said it like it was charming. I said nothing. “She likes controlling environments,” he continued absentmindedly. “Perfect table settings. Perfect dinners. Perfect schedules.” He really didn’t see it. Or maybe he did and just had so many years of normalizing it that it no longer registered as anything other than personali

Nadia’s POV I gave her absolutely nothing. I simply smiled softly and took another sip of wine. Vivienne’s eyes narrowed almost invisibly. Callum noticed none of it. Poor man. “That was fast. Didn’t he just go through a divorce?” Vivienne shrugged elegantly. “People move on.” Her eyes stayed on me the entire time. I smiled right back. “Yes,” I agreed softly. “Sometimes it’s better to find a little distraction from past mistakes. Move forward. Focus on better things.” I looked directly at Callum when I said better things. He smiled at me, completely unsuspecting. Something cold flashed behind Vivienne’s eyes. Victory tasted surprisingly good with wine. ~~~ The rest of dinner passed more carefully after that. Vivienne became even more polished somehow. Which was how she behaved when she was furious enough to kill somebody and couldn’t. Callum remained oblivious. At one point he started telling a story about Germany and Vivienne laughed genuinely for the first time all nig