All Chapters of The Billionaire Ex-Wife's Return: Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

Chapter 82Cynthia’s POVWe burst out of the restaurant, the heavy glass door swinging shut behind us with a finality that echoed in my bones. My heart was still pounding from Ethan’s confrontation, his voice cracking across the restaurant accusing me of carrying another man’s child. The audacity of that man. The sheer, blinding nerve.Lily whimpered against my shoulder, her small body trembling from the raised voices, the sudden chaos. I pressed my lips to her temple, rubbing slow circles on her back. “It’s okay, mon trésor. We’re outside now. You’re safe.”“Cynthia.”I looked up. Matilda and Nikolai were crossing the parking lot toward us, moving in perfect sync, as if they’d rehearsed this entrance. Matilda’s arm was looped through Nikolai’s, her fingers curled possessively around his bicep.“Oh, we see you here again!” Matilda’s voice was bright, too bright, the kind of bright that felt like broken glass wrapped in ribbon. “What perfect timing!”I adjusted Lily higher on my hip, s

Chapter 84Cynthia's POVWe arrived at the Laurent mansion in a cloud of tension.Kevin had followed us in his own car, tires crunching over the gravel driveway just seconds after ours. He killed the engine and sat there for a long moment, hands still gripping the wheel, staring straight ahead. When he finally climbed out, the porch light carved harsh shadows across his face. The blank mask he wore couldn’t hide the raw hurt bleeding from his eyes.Julian met us at the entrance, barefoot in sweatpants and a faded Sorbonne T-shirt, laptop tucked under one arm. The moment he saw our faces, his easy smile vanished.“What happened?” he asked, voice low, already bracing."Long story," Nathaniel muttered.Lily started squirming in my arms, her little face scrunching up with discomfort. She'd been through too much excitement today — the restaurant, the shouting, the car ride. She needed her mother."Guess it's time to meet Mommy," Nathaniel said, reaching for his daughter.But before he coul

Chapter 86Cynthia's POVKevin and Julian had been complaining all morning."We miss your cooking, Cici.""The chef is good, but it's not the same.""Remember that pasta you made last two week? I've been dreaming about it."So here I was, pushing a cart through an upscale grocery store in downtown Missford, picking out ingredients for a proper home-cooked meal. It felt oddly normal after everything that had happened.I was reaching for a jar of imported olive oil on the top shelf when it slipped from my fingers.Before I could react, someone caught it.I looked up.Bryan Ferdinand, one of Ethan’s best friends.He held the jar in his hand, not offering it back, just looking at me with an expression I couldn't quite read.We stared at each other for a long moment. The silence stretched between us, heavy with history of all those years of his dismissive comments, his cruel jokes at my expense, his loyalty to Ethan that had made him complicit in my misery.I looked away first."Uhm, what

Chapter 88Cynthia's POVThe day had finally arrived.PTA day at Westbridge Academy.It had been close to two dramatic months since I'd returned to Missford, and today felt like the best day in all of that chaos.Just me, showing up for my son.I dressed my best. Carefully selected outfit, elegant but not overdone. Hair styled to perfection. Makeup subtle but polished.I wanted to look better than Mrs. Rasker.The memory still stung of when Amber compared me to Lillian's glamorous mother, wishing I could be more like her. Back then, I'd been struggling with the brain tumor, exhausted and pale, looking like death warmed over. Amber hadn't understood. He was just a kid who wanted his mom to stand out, to be someone he could be proud of.Well, I was definitely standing out today.I arrived at the school gates and was adjusting my bag when a familiar figure approached.Ethan.He'd arrived at the same moment I did.We stood there for an awkward beat, the weight of everything unsaid hanging

Chapter 90Cynthia's POV"Hayden is not my daughter."I wanted to let out another laughter, to explain to him that I wasn’t a gullible and I wasn’t stupid enough to believe that."Mom!!!"Amber's voice cut me short. I looked up to see him bounding down the hallway toward us, his face lit up with pure joy, the kind of unfiltered happiness I hadn't seen from him in years."Hey... hey... easy," Ethan said, stepping forward with his hands out. "You just had surgery. You shouldn't be jumping around like that."But Amber didn't listen. He crashed into me anyway, wrapping his arms around my waist with such force that I stumbled back a step.He felt so warm and not as lean as he'd been at the hospital, clearly, he'd been eating well during his recovery.I held him tight.This was what I'd been missing, I have been craving to do."Amber's mom?"I looked up to see Lillian approaching hesitantly, her expression caught between curiosity and surprise."It's good to see you," she said, her voice fo