All Chapters of I’m Back, Mr. CEO : Chapter 131 - Chapter 140

I thought about Lucas’s voice, that barely contained hope. The way he’d waited a month because I’d asked him to. The way he’d been waiting years without me even knowing.“He said we’d figure it out together.”Clara’s expression softened, going from mischievous to genuinely emotional in a heartbeat. “Oh. Oh, Serena.”“Don’t,” I warned, feeling my own throat tighten. “Don’t get all mushy on me. It’s just dinner.”“It’s not just dinner.” She set the dress down gently, coming around the desk to take my hands. “It’s you deciding you deserve more than just your empire. It’s you choosing to be happy, not just successful. It’s you being brave enough to try again.”“What if it’s a mistake?” The fear clawed up my throat again. “What if I’m not ready? What if I hurt him?”“What if it’s not a mistake?” Clara countered. “What if you are ready, you just don’t know it yet? What if instead of hurting him, you both just… heal? Together?”Together. That word again, terrifying and tempting in equal meas

“Yeah?”“If you want to come home early, just text me. I’ll fake a crisis.”I kiss his forehead. “I love you.”“Love you too. Now go be a normal person for once.”Normal. Right.I grab my clutch, check my lipstick one more time, and head downstairs. My penthouse is quiet except for the soft jazz playing from the speakers, the city lights twinkling through floor-to-ceiling windows. This place used to feel like a fortress. Lately, it just feels empty.The intercom buzzes.My heart kicks into overdrive.“Ms. Moore, Mr. Grant is here,” the doorman says, his voice crackling through the speaker.“Tell him I’ll be right down.” My voice sounds steadier than I feel.I take one last look in the hallway mirror. The woman staring back is polished, confident, beautiful in that effortless way that took an hour to achieve. She looks nothing like the broken girl who signed divorce papers with mascara running down her face.She looks like someone who might deserve a good man.I grab my coat and head t

“Come in, baby.”Ethan opens the door, already dressed, his hair still wet from the shower. He’s holding two mugs of coffee, and the smell alone makes me want to marry him.“You’re my favorite child,” I say, sitting up and accepting the mug he hands me.“I’m your only child.” He sits at the foot of my bed, grinning. “So. How’d it go?”I take a long sip of coffee, buying time. “It went well.”“Well? That’s it? Mom, you got home at like, midnight. I heard you giggling in the elevator.”“I was not giggling.”“You were definitely giggling.” He’s enjoying this way too much. “Come on. Details. Did he try to kiss you? Did you let him? Is he, like, officially your boyfriend now?”“Ethan—”“I’m nine. I need to live vicariously through someone, and it’s definitely not going to be through Dad’s depressing attempts at dating.”That stops me. I set my mug down carefully. “Your dad’s dating?”Ethan shrugs, suddenly very interested in his own coffee. “I mean, not really. He goes out sometimes. But h

I’m staring at spreadsheets when the intercom buzzes.It’s Monday morning, and I’ve been at my desk since six, throwing myself into work because it’s easier than thinking about the two flower arrangements currently sitting in my living room. The peonies are on the coffee table. The roses are by the window. I keep moving them around like different locations will somehow make the decision easier.“Ms. Moore?” My assistant’s voice crackles through. “There’s someone here to see you. He doesn’t have an appointment, but he says it’s important.”I don’t even look up. “Tell them to schedule through you like everyone else.”A pause. “He says his name is Adrian Moore.”My pen stops mid-signature.The office suddenly feels too small, too hot. I can hear my heartbeat in my ears, that familiar panic response that comes from years of being ambushed, cornered, made to feel small in my own space.Except this is my space now. My company. My empire.And he doesn’t get to just show up here.“Tell him I’

“And yet you still let me suffer for years after that realization.”“Because I’m a coward.” He says it simply. “I was too proud to admit I was wrong. Too scared to face what I’d done. So I let it continue. I let Vivian stay. I let her keep turning Ethan against you. I let you become a stranger to your own son because admitting the truth meant admitting I’d destroyed everything good in my life.”I take another sip of wine, my hand shaking slightly. “Why are you telling me this?”“Because you deserve the truth. All of it. Not the version where I make myself look better or where I minimize what I did.” He leans forward, eyes intense. “I destroyed you, Serena. I took a beautiful, loving, trusting woman and I broke her piece by piece until she had to leave just to survive. That’s on me. All of it.”“Finally, something we agree on.”“But here’s what I’ve learned in therapy.” His voice drops. “Hurt people hurt people. And broken people break people. I was so damaged by my father, so twisted