All Chapters of The Wife He Never Knew: Chapter 101 - Chapter 110

For a moment, lost in it, Julian's memory pulled him straight back into his high school years."Julian, what are you doing here?"Cassandra stopped her bike in front of him.He shook himself out of the daze. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?""Visiting old teachers with some classmates, it's the centennial!" Cassandra delivered the excuse easily, already prepared.She'd shed her usual polished, grown-up aesthetic for the day, dressing youthful, almost schoolgirl-fresh.She knew exactly how closely he was watching her."Visiting teachers... and you didn't think to invite me?""I figured you'd be too busy." She smiled, apologetic."Good thing I got roped into speaking today, or I'd have missed this whole side of you."Hearing that, Cassandra knew the sleepless nights plotting this had paid off.It had been her idea all along pushing the principal to invite Julian as the anniversary's honored guest.She'd wanted exactly this a chance encounter on the campus where their relationship had fi

Julian paused, fork and knife mid-motion, then cut off a piece of his own now-cold steak and ate it without complaint.Cold steak never tasted good.But everything he'd stacked onto Eleanor's plate had come straight off the warmers. Had to have landed well.Call it a whim."You're using shareholder status to keep me tethered to you after the divorce."Eleanor laid the accusation out flat, blocking the point before it could even move.She'd made peace with divorcing him, full stop. No ambiguity left in it. She wanted every thread severed, her career and her life carved completely clean of his.She couldn't understand why if he didn't love her, if Cassandra's title was already promised he'd hand over something this significant.Ten percent of Cross Group was not a small number.With that stake, she'd have a real seat at the table voting rights, access to major decisions, dividend income, confidential company records, the works.That kind of leverage should have gone to Cassandra. Not he

Eleanor got goosebumps every time Julian called her "Ellie."But she couldn't let Margaret catch on that she and Julian were mid-divorce.She sat down beside him.He served both her and her mother with practiced ease."Ellie's cooking's still so good... but Julian, you must be sick of eating the same thing by now, aren't you?"Margaret patted Eleanor's shoulder, earnest. "You should mix things up once in a while, try something new. Julian works hard out there, and if you can't put a decent spread on the table when he's home, you're not holding up your end.""I know, Mom. Don't worry about it."Eleanor agreed out loud, something souring underneath.Margaret had always been traditional, old-fashioned in her values, and had raised Eleanor the same way.At one point, Eleanor had agreed with every word of it.Especially because she'd loved Julian so completely.She'd been willing to give everything to that love. No degree needed, no career needed.Unemployed, entirely dependent on him she'

Julian's tone stayed calm, flat as ever. Even gentlemanly toward her, if anything.Still, Eleanor felt an inexplicable weight pressing down.Something told her he was angry.She didn't push for more and ate quietly.Just the two of them at the table.Edward had already eaten earlier that morning.After breakfast, Eleanor said her goodbyes and left the estate first.Beyond weighing the divorce agreement Julian had handed her, she had real work waiting.LD Jewelry Fashion Week had already started requesting sketches and samples from its invited designers.To participate, Eleanor needed a complete collection six to eight finished pieces.Volume was never the hard part. The challenge was standing out in a lineup stacked with the industry's biggest names.Right now, inspiration felt thin, and she couldn't afford distractions.At the Cross family estate, Julian knocked on Edward's study door."Grandpa. You wanted to see me."Looking at Edward seated in his carved rosewood chair, Julian alre

Eleanor stayed unconscious for a week before waking up.When she came to, her mind was blank no memory of where she was, what had happened.The unfamiliar white surroundings slowly came into focus, and after a moment it clicked: the call from Serenity Care, her mother gone missing, the frantic drive, the crash."Mom... right, my mom where's my mom?"She asked it in a panic, not even sure who she was asking."Ellie!"Lauren's voice, sudden."Doctor! Doctor she's awake!"Lauren bolted out of the room to find someone the second Eleanor's eyes opened.A small crowd of doctors and nurses arrived fast, nearly filling the room.Once the doctor confirmed Eleanor was out of danger and recovering well, Lauren let out a shaky breath, wiping at her own eyes."Do you have any idea how terrified I was?!"She still looked rattled."Lauren..." Eleanor had no attention left for herself. She needed to know how long she'd been out, and whether her mother was okay."Your mom's fine. They found her and ha