All Chapters of After the Divorce, My Ex Husband Came Crawling Back: Chapter 181 - Chapter 190

MAXWELLThe invitation comes through the usual channel in a plain envelope with no return address.The kind of quiet delivery that means it never touched a mail carrier who wasn't already vetted three times over.I open it expecting business. Instead, I find gold script on cream cardstock. It’s about a garden party at the Bindy estate, and it says attendance is expected, not requested. Expected.I turn it over once, like there might be something on the back explaining why I'm being summoned to a garden party through Syndicate channels instead of a normal invitation. Being a low-level member, low enough on the ladder to know that I don't ask questions but just comply. I fold the card, put it in my jacket, and tell myself it's nothing worth thinking too hard about.I've spent the last week planning something else entirely, sketching out cake flavors with Mrs. Patricia over the phone.Arguing gently with her about whether Ethan's dinosaur obsession warranted an actual dinosaur cake or ju

MAXWELLI walk back out into the garden with Eleanor's words sitting in my chest like a stone I swallowed whole.I find Ariana near the drinks table, and beside her, close enough that it means something, Mason Grant.“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” Of course it's him.I move closer to her. "Ariana." I keep my voice low and levelled.She turns, surprise flickering across her face before it settles into something guarded. "Max. I didn't realize you'd be here.""Neither did I, until this morning." I look at Mason. "Small world."Mason barely glances at me. “Not particularly.” His tone is calm, almost bored. “I’m here because I belong here.” Then he turns his attention back to Ariana.Ariana looks between us, seemingly unaffected by the tension tightening around her.Mason takes a drink from the glass in his hand. “Besides, I know most of the people here.”Ariana actually laughs at that, a short, easy sound that used to belong to me and clearly doesn't anymore, and something in me

MASONAfter the party finally empties out, Mrs. P recruits two of the estate staff to get the twins bathed and settled for bed.Grace finds me by the smaller private garden, still humming faintly with the leftover energy of a day that clearly took more out of her than she let on all afternoon."I need something that isn't cake or confetti," she says, dropping onto the bench beside me."I can offer contractors instead. Considerably less festive.""Perfect." She laughs.We walk the garden path while I run her through where things stand, the second and third vendor replacements moving cleanly, no resistance, no questions asked by anyone who might otherwise ask them. I set up a quick call with Chris so the three of us can align on timing for the next non-renewal, and she listens with the particular sharpness she brings to everything that isn't personal, asking exactly the right follow-up questions, nothing wasted. The call ends in under fifteen minutes, and we fix a time midweek to regr

SELENEI am breathless, shaking, and yet, Kael doesn't stop. He keeps the rhythm, his thumb never leaving my clit, teasing the hypersensitive nerve endings even as I try to recover.He pushes me further, driving deeper, his breath hot against my neck. The friction builds again, faster this time, more urgent. I feel myself climbing a second peak, the pleasure becoming so intense it borders on pain. With one final, powerful surge, I shatter again, my body arching as a second, more powerful climax ripples through me, leaving me limp and sobbing for air.Kael lets out a low groan, finally allowing himself to peak, his body shuddering against mine as he fills me with his warmth. He collapses onto me, his weight a comforting blanket, leaving me floating in the hazy, golden aftermath of a hunger finally sated.***It's a while later, the room has gone soft and quiet again, when Zael comes back out showered and dressed in loose pajama pants, settling into the armchair across the room while

ARIANAKael and I work through the afternoon, on reports, numbers, questions, calls, and corrections. At some point I look toward the window and realize the light has changed.I frown. "What time is it?"Kael checks his phone. "Almost six."I blink. "Six?""Apparently." He doesn't look up from the document.I lean back. "I thought we'd been here for two hours."Kael raises his head and gives me a look. "We've been here for five."I laugh. "That's disturbing.""It's called working." His attention goes back to the document."It's called losing track of time.""Same thing." He shrugs.My phone buzzes again.MASON: ‘Still buried in work?’I glance at Kael, who's still reading through the document, then type back.ME: ‘Buried. But surfacing soon.’MASON: ‘Good. I have something for you.’ME: ‘Should I be worried?’MASON: ‘Depends. How do you feel about staged plays?’I snort. Kael looks up. I wave him off.ME: ‘Aren't those supposed to be boring?’He doesn’t answer immediately. Then,MASON