All Chapters of She Was Never The One: The CEO's Regret: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

The bedroom door clicked shut behind them, cutting off the quiet hum of the main house.Zoe didn't wait. She crossed the room and sat down on the edge of the leather sofa, watching Sera with a sharp, focused gaze. "Alright. You've had that look on your face since you walked through the front door, Sera. And don't tell me it was just a tiring meeting with Damien. I've known you far too long to buy that."Sera stood near the foot of her bed, looking down at her Birkin bag resting on the dresser where she had left it before dinner. The lightheartedness of the evening was completely gone, replaced by the cold weight that had been settling over her since she left The Sterling Room."It wasn't work," Sera said softly, leaning back against her dresser.Zoe tilted her head, resting her arms on the back of the sofa. "Alright, then out with it. On the stairs, you said you had something to tell me before Mary called us down. You walked through the front door looking like you’d just stepped out o

As the private elevator doors slid open on the executive floor, Zoe stepped in beside Sera, letting out a low breath as the heavy doors sealed them in."He didn't hear a single word of that financial pitch," Zoe said softly, eyeing her best friend carefully as the floor indicator lit up. "He signed away thirty-five percent of his company's voting power just to keep you in that room.""It doesn't matter what he signed," Sera replied, staring straight ahead at her reflection in the polished elevator doors. Her expression remained an unreadable mask, but inside, her pulse was hammering against her ribs. "CIG Holdings is drowning in debt, and they came to Fina Corp because we are the only restructuring firm that can keep them solvent. The deal is on our terms. That's all Adrian Cole is to us—a transaction."The elevator dinged softly, opening back up to the quiet luxury of the penthouse floor.Elena was waiting at the reception desk, her face unusually pale as she held out a private desk

The morning sun hit the dining room table at the Cole estate, but the atmosphere remained cold and heavy.Adrian sat with an untouched cup of black coffee, his mind racing with the financial pressure facing CIG Holdings and the unsettled feeling from the night before. Downstairs, Celine moved silently, her face set in a hard, distant expression. Neither of them spoke about the night's tension.When their daughter, Aria, ran into the dining room with her school bag, Adrian forced a soft smile."Morning, sweetheart," Adrian said, brushing a hand over her hair. "Are you ready for school?""Yes, Daddy," Aria replied cheerfully, grabbing a piece of toast. "Are you coming home early today?""I have a lot of work at the office today, but I'll try," Adrian said quietly.Celine didn't join them at the table. She adjusted her blazer by the mirror in the living room, completely ignoring Adrian as she picked up her purse. Adrian didn't push it. He grabbed his coat, said goodbye to his daughter,

Inside the executive suite, the atmosphere was buzzing with activity. Stacks of newly signed contracts sat on the edge of the desk, and the quiet rhythm of a booming business echoed down the hall. The firm was growing fast, locking down major deals across the city, and Sera was right at the center of it, keeping everything running smoothly.Still, one quiet problem remained on her mind.Following Calvin’s advice, Sera had reached out to Celine directly. Calvin’s contacts had easily unearthed Celine’s private line during their initial check, confirming it was still her main active number. Sera had sent a plain, direct message asking to sit down and talk, wanting to make one thing clear: she had moved on, built her own life, and had zero interest in past drama. But days had passed, and Celine hadn't sent a single word back.Calvin hadn't just sat on his hands, either. Out of genuine care for Zoe and her best friend, he used his own contacts to quietly dig into Celine’s backstory before

Celine pulled her car to a stop near a dead-end alley, parking beside a weather-worn house with peeling paint and dark, empty windows.She turned off the engine, grabbed her phone, and stepped out into the damp air.As her heels hit the pavement, her fingers tapped out a brief signal on the screen. Before she could put the phone away, a hand touched her shoulder.She spun around instantly, stepping back before recognizing the man standing under the shadow of the porch.He wore a plain jacket with a faded cap pulled low over his eyes. No digital footprint, no linked name, and no records tying him to her—strictly off the grid, kept on her private payroll for one reason."Is anyone following you?" she asked, smoothing her coat as her eyes swept the quiet street."Never," he said quietly."Give me the update. What's happening with Sera?""She’s fine," he replied. "Works late at Fina Corp, goes straight home, stays with her kid.""What about her company? Any trouble? Any financial fallouts