All Chapters of Too Late to Regret: The Billionaire’s Unwanted Ex: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The scent of truffle-oil pasta and roasted rosemary chicken filled the penthouse, but to Elara, it smelled like a funeral.She smoothed the silk of her emerald dress—the one Lucian once said made her eyes look like jewels—and glanced at the mahogany clock. 11:45 PM. Their third wedding anniversary was only fifteen minutes away from being over.She had spent six hours in the kitchen, her hands still smelling of garlic and citrus, and another hour perfecting her hair. All for a man who hadn’t answered her last ten texts.Thud.The heavy front door groaned open. Elara stood up, her heart performing a hopeful, traitorous little dance. "Lucian? You’re home. I kept the dinner warm, and I—"The words died in her throat.Lucian Thorne stepped into the light of the foyer, but he wasn’t alone. Serena Blaire, his "senior consultant" and childhood friend, was draped over his arm like a designer accessory. She was laughing at something he had whispered, her hand resting intimately on the lapel of

Lucian didn’t wait for his driver. He tore out of the Thorne Industries building, his heart hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird. That ID card was burning a hole in his pocket.Leo Vance. The name echoed in his mind. Vance. Her maiden name. She had stripped the Thorne name from his children as easily as she had stripped his wedding ring from her finger.He tracked the address on the back of the card to a high-end preschool in the Upper East Side—a place where the tuition cost more than most people made in a year. He pulled his black SUV to the curb just as the bell rang for dismissal.He stood by the iron gates, his expensive suit attracting stares from the other nannies and socialite mothers. But Lucian only had eyes for the door.Then, he saw him.A small boy in a navy blue blazer walked out, holding the hand of a little girl who looked identical to him, except for her softer features and long, dark curls.The boy wasn't just a resemblance; he was a carbon copy. He had Luc

The scent of Elara’s perfume still clung to Lucian’s suit as he stormed out of the gala, leaving the music and the whispers behind. He didn't go to his SUV. He went straight to the hotel’s private bar, but he didn't order a drink.He sat in the dim light, his mind racing. “You chose her,” Elara had said.He pulled out his phone and dialed a number he hadn't called in years. "Marcus? It’s Lucian. I need you to reopen the 2020 internal investigation. The Vance leak.""Sir? That case was closed five years ago," his head of security replied, sounding confused. "The digital footprints led straight to Mrs. Thorne’s—I mean, Elara’s—personal laptop.""I don't care," Lucian growled, his voice vibrating with a new, dangerous edge. "I want a forensic audit of Serena Blaire’s devices from that same month. Every deleted message, every 'hidden' login. If you find so much as a suspicious comma, I want to know.""Lucian?"He froze. Serena was standing in the doorway of the bar, her face pale, her sil

The boardroom of Thorne Industries was silent, the air thick with the smell of ozone and impending doom. Lucian sat at the head of the table, his face a mask of cold, sharp angles. He hadn't changed out of his park clothes; the sight of him in a hoodie and sneakers made the board members even more terrified. It meant he didn't care about decorum. He only cared about blood.Serena walked in, her face flushed with a fake, triumphant glow. She was holding a briefcase, oblivious to the fact that the trap had already snapped shut around her ankles."Lucian! I’ve just come from a meeting with the patent office," she lied, her voice sweet as poisoned honey. "There was a small clerical error with the new fragrance line, but I fixed it. We’re all set for the launch."Lucian didn't look up from his tablet. "Did you fix the 'clerical error,' Serena? Or did you just finish selling the encryption keys to the Valenti Group for twenty million dollars?"The room went so quiet you could hear the hum o

Lucian sat in the back of his darkened Maybach, the blue light of his tablet illuminating the cold fury on his face. He was staring at the legal motion Serena’s lawyers had just filed. They were digging into Elara’s psychiatric history from five years ago, claiming she was "delusional" and "unfit" during the divorce."They want to play dirty?" Lucian whispered, his voice a low growl. "I’ll show them what dirty looks like."He tapped a button. "Marcus, I’m at the clinic. The one Elara used five years ago. I don't care about the subpoenas. I want her full file on my desk in five minutes. If the hospital director argues, tell him I’ll buy the building and fire him by lunch."Four minutes later, a digital file encrypted with the highest security appeared on his screen.Lucian began to scroll. He expected to see records of her "instability" or perhaps the "leaked formulas" the villainess had planted.Instead, his heart stopped.The first document wasn't a psychiatric report. It was a bill