All Chapters of Pregnant And Abandoned, I Returned As A Hidden Heiress: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

MELISSA'S POV I adjusted my dress first, then my hair, smoothing it down and making sure every single strand stayed where it needed to be. If I was going to walk up to her after all these years, then I needed to look as close to perfection as possible. Five years is a long time not to see someone you used to call a friend, and now that I finally had the chance to stand in front of her again, I was planning to show her the very obvious difference between her low life and mine. I wanted her to see it clearly, how my life had improved, how far ahead I was. I wanted her to realize that even after half a decade, even after all that time she had to “find herself,” she still couldn’t rise anywhere near the level I currently stood on. She was still beneath me, and I needed her to feel it. As I walked closer to her, weaving through groups of chatting guests and waiters moving around with trays of drinks, my eyes automatically went to her outfit. I didn’t expect much — maybe something cheap

JAMES’ POV “The two of you being here together is actually quite shocking,” Anna said. Her voice hadn’t changed much, still that same familiar tone I remembered from years ago but there was something different buried beneath it. Something sharp. Something cold enough to cut through glass. It was filled with a level of hate that almost felt practiced, like she had been waiting for this exact moment just to release it. “Why would it be shocking?” I asked, keeping my expression blank even though the bitterness in her tone pressed against my nerves. “Well, firstly, I thought by now she would have probably backstabbed you and cheated on you or something, or you would have gotten a new lady and thrown her outside. You know, like you did to me.” She said it without blinking, without looking away, like she was stating a fact written in stone. I swallowed hard and shifted my weight where I stood. She hadn’t seen me in five years — five whole years and yet somehow she spoke as if she knew

ANNA'S POV I climbed up the stage slowly, the bright lights hitting me the moment I stepped forward, but I stayed just behind my father at first, waiting for my cue. From where I stood, I could see the crowd clearly — hundreds of faces turned toward the stage, watching my father with full attention. The murmuring had died down the moment he touched the mic. “Now, for the main announcement of the evening,” my dad began, his voice steady but warm, the way it always was whenever he was about to say something important. “I know you all think that over the years it’s only two children I have. And I thought so too.” There was a small ripple of confused whispers among the guests. Even from behind him, I could see heads turning toward one another, eyes narrowing, people trying to guess what he meant. “And I am also aware that you all know that my two children are adopted,” he continued. “And without saying much, they are still my children. I love them more than anything else in this world

ANNA'S POV “Congratulations, I knew this wouldn’t be a hassle for you,” Dan said as he came up from behind me, his voice carrying that usual playful confidence, like he already knew exactly how everything would turn out. “Honestly, I expected more pressure,” I replied, letting out a small breath. “Even though I acted calm, I was preparing myself in case something went wrong. But thankfully the guests weren’t as tough as I thought.” I added a small shrug, thinking back to the polite smiles, the soft handshakes, the nods of approval. It was almost suspicious how smooth everything had been. “Alright, Ms.. CEO,” Dan said, dragging out the title like he was still trying to get used to it. “You do know you’re coming to the office next week, right?” “I know,” I said, nodding. “I’ll make out some time for that because I still need to make sure everything at the warehouse I’m gonna get goes perfectly. I don’t want any mistakes in the early stages.” “I guess it’s now that you’re truly gonn

ANNA'S POV James let out a small breath, the kind that barely lifted his chest but was loud enough for me to hear because of how tense the air suddenly became around us. His eyes moved quickly, scanning every corner of the surroundings like he was afraid someone might be watching or listening. Only after taking in everything did he step closer to me. As he moved forward, I instinctively took a step back. I didn’t even think about it, I just did. The whole thing felt uncomfortable, and the way he hesitated in his movements made it obvious he was ashamed to say whatever he wanted to tell me. Clearly, whatever his big announcement was, he didn’t want anyone else around to overhear it. The fact that he cared so much about who could hear him already told me something was wrong on his side. “I would have preferred to say this to you in private,” he said, sounding annoyed but also desperate, “but fine, whatever. I’ll just say it. I know there’s still some heat between us, but I’d like us