บททั้งหมดของ The billionaire ex-wife: we have a child: บทที่ 31 - บทที่ 40

Ethan Carter POVThe press conference was set for Wednesday morning.Gerald Whitmore stood at the podium with his lawyer beside him, like a shadow. His face was carefully arranged into something that was supposed to look like regret.I stood at the back of the room with Daniel. Quiet. Watching. Making sure every word matched what had been agreed.“I take full responsibility for funding actions that contributed to a dangerous and reckless scheme,” Whitmore read, voice flat like he was reading a report, not confessing guilt. “I deeply regret the harm caused, and I will be making full financial restitution to the Carter and Bennett families.”It wasn’t real remorse.It wasn’t enough.But it was public. It was official. And it closed the door on that part of the case.Aria watched the video later that night.We were on her father’s couch. Mason was asleep upstairs. The house was quiet in that soft, late-night way.“He doesn’t even sound sorry,” she said.“He isn’t,” I replied. “Not tru

Aria Bennett POVThree weeks later, I stood in front of the bathroom mirror, looking at a small plastic stick. I kept staring at it, hoping maybe it would change if I looked long enough.But it didn’t.Two lines.Clear and easy to see.I sat down quickly on the edge of the bathtub. My mind was full of thoughts as I tried to remember dates and figure everything out.The carnival night.The dinner after that.The night Ethan stayed longer than usual.The night our slow and careful relationship became something more.I placed my hand on my stomach without thinking.It was the same thing I had done four years ago.Back then, I was sitting in a different bathroom.In a different life.Scared.Alone.Pregnant.But this time was different.This time I was not alone.This time everything was different.I heard Harper calling from downstairs.“Aria? Are you okay? You’ve been in there forever.”“Coming!” I shouted back.My voice was shaking a little.I wrapped the test in tissue, put it in my

Aria Bennett POVOn a Tuesday in November, I finally stopped hiding behind the name Wren Ashby.Claire had planned everything. There was a small press release and an interview with a local magazine. Nothing too big or scary. Just enough for people to finally know that I was the person behind the books I had been writing for seven years.“Are you sure about this?” Harper asked as she watched me read the press release one last time at the kitchen table.“I’m sure,” I said. “I’ve spent most of my life hiding parts of who I am. I hid my pregnancy with Mason. I hid my writing. I kept acting like I was smaller than I really am because it felt safer.” I put the paper down. “I’m done hiding.”“That’s beautiful,” Harper said. “And also a little scary.”I laughed softly. “Both can be true.”The press release went out that afternoon.By evening, my phone would not stop buzzing.Old friends who never knew the truth were messaging me. Readers had somehow figured things out. Journalists wanted inte

Ethan Carter POVSpring arrived quietly.The garden behind Richard’s house transformed slowly over the weeks leading up to the wedding Vivian’s doing, mostly, working alongside a florist with a focus that seemed to channel every bit of guilt and love she had nowhere else to put. White roses climbed the back wall where someone had once stood in the dark and taken a photograph of my sleeping son. I noticed it every time I walked through the garden and felt something settle further.The past couldn’t be undone. But it could be covered over, slowly, with something better.The morning of the wedding, I stood in Richard’s study in my suit while Oliver straightened my tie with the careful precision of someone who had decided to earn his place in this circle through sheer consistent effort.“You’re nervous,” he observed.“I’m not nervous.”“You’ve checked your inside pocket four times since I walked in.”“I’m making sure the rings are there.”“You put them there yourself twenty minutes ago.

Ethan Carter POVApril came much faster than we thought.One morning, Aria was slowly walking around the kitchen because she was very pregnant. She kept saying she was “perfectly fine” and “not uncomfortable at all,” but she also wouldn’t let anyone carry anything for her.Then, before we knew it, we were in the hospital at two in the morning. Aria was holding my hand very tightly while she breathed through her labor pains. She stayed calm and focused, just like she always did with everything in life.“You’re doing great,” I said.“Don’t talk,” she said nicely. “Just hold my hand and stay quiet.”“Okay.”“And stop looking at me like that.”“Like what?”“Like you’re scared. You’re making me nervous.”“I’m not scared.”She looked at me.“I’m a little scared,” I admitted.“Better,” she said. “It’s better when you’re honest.”Harper got to our house only twenty minutes after Aria called her. She looked a little shocked, but she stayed calm and quickly took care of Mason so he would be ok