2025-08-12 18:56:59
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
Chapter 25: The Ultimate Face-Slap
The Nixon City Annual Charity Gala was the social event of the year, and Jane had paid eight hundred dollars she couldn't afford for a last-minute ticket. The Grand Ballroom sparkled under crystal chandeliers, filled with the city's most powerful and wealthy citizens dressed in designer gowns and tuxedos that cost more than most people's cars.Jane stood near the entrance in a black cocktail dress she'd worn to three previous events, feeling increasingly out of place among women dripping in jewelry that could fund small countries. She'd spent two hours on her hair and makeup, trying to recapture the confidence she'd once felt at events like this when she'd been Mrs. Mac Clement, back when she'd thought that title meant nothing.Now she understood exactly how much it had meant.She spotted Mac immediately, even from across the crowded ballroom. He stood near the VIP section, magnificent in a perfectly tailored black tuxedo, commanding attention without seeming to try. Beside him, Shirl
Chapter 24: Jane's First Approach
Jane had been sitting in her car outside Mac's building for three hours, rehearsing what she would say when she saw him. She'd watched lawyers in expensive suits come and go, seen deliveries of fresh flowers and gourmet groceries, observed the kind of seamless luxury that surrounded Mac's life now.Her hands shook as she gripped the steering wheel, second-guessing herself for the hundredth time. What was she even doing here? What could she possibly say that would matter after everything that had happened?At 6:30 PM, a sleek black Town Car pulled into the private garage entrance. Through the tinted windows, Jane caught a glimpse of Mac in the backseat, talking on his phone. He looked every inch the successful CEO, confident, focused, completely at ease in his world of power and influence.Jane's heart hammered as she got out of her car and hurried toward the garage entrance, catching the heavy door just before it closed. The underground parking level was pristine, all gleaming concret
Chapter 23: The Realization Deepens
Jane couldn't sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Mac's face from the business summit, calm, collected, watching her world fall apart like he was observing the weather.At 3 AM, she gave up on sleep and opened her laptop. Frank Morrison's email was waiting with a subject line that made her stomach drop: "You're going to want to see this."The first photo hit her like a slap. Mac and Shirley walking into Le Bernardin, the fancy French restaurant Jane had begged him to take her to for their anniversary. "We can't afford places like that," he'd said, looking genuinely sorry. "Maybe someday when things get better."But there he was in the photo, wearing a suit that probably cost more than Jane's car, escorting Shirley like she was a princess. Shirley glowed in a midnight blue dress that screamed expensive, her arm linked through his like she belonged in his world."He could have afforded it all along," Jane whispered to her laptop screen, the betrayal cutting deeper than she'd
Chapter 22: Jane's Desperate Investigation
Two days after her public humiliation at the Nixon City Business Summit, Jane Richardson sat in her car outside a seedy private investigator's office, questioning every decision that had led her to this moment. The rain streaked down her windshield, blurring the neon sign that read "Morrison Investigations - Discretion Guaranteed."Inside the cramped office that smelled of stale coffee and cigarettes, Frank Morrison looked exactly like what central casting would order for a down-on-his-luck private detective. Rumpled suit, three days of stubble, and eyes that had seen too much of humanity's worst impulses."Let me get this straight," Morrison said, leaning back in his creaky chair. "You want me to investigate your ex-husband because you think he's connected to the CEO of Golden Enterprise?"Jane shifted uncomfortably in the plastic chair across from his desk. "I don't think he's connected. I know he is. Michael Clarke, that's the name he's been using, he was at the summit yesterday. S
Chapter 21: Jane's Public Humiliation
The Nixon City Business Summit had never seen a crowd quite like this one. Five hundred of the region's most influential business leaders filled the Grand Ballroom of the Meridian Hotel, their conversations creating a low hum of power and ambition that seemed to vibrate through the crystal chandeliers overhead.Jane Richardson stood backstage, smoothing her navy Armani blazer and checking her appearance in the mirror one final time. This presentation could save everything. After weeks of watching Emrand Enterprise's stock price plummet and partnerships evaporate, she finally had good news to share."Ladies and gentlemen," the summit coordinator announced through her earpiece, "you're on in two minutes, Ms. Richardson."Jane nodded, running through her talking points one last time. Three major companies had agreed to new partnerships with Emrand Enterprise. The contracts were signed, the press releases prepared. Today, she would announce Emrand's dramatic recovery to the business commu
Chapter 20: Thompson's Desperation
The private dining room at the Union Club was soundproof, windowless, and swept for surveillance devices daily. Harold Thompson sat alone at the mahogany table, nursing his third scotch of the evening while reviewing the reports that had made his day progressively worse.Robert Chen was free on bail. Federal investigators were asking uncomfortable questions about Thompson Bank's overseas transactions. The Justice Department had frozen three subsidiary accounts pending investigation. And somewhere in Nixon City, someone with considerable resources and intelligence was systematically dismantling everything Thompson had built over thirty years.The dining room door opened, and John Clement entered with the quiet confidence of a man accustomed to power. At sixty-two, John carried himself like the successful businessman he appeared to be, silver-haired, impeccably dressed, radiating the kind of quiet authority that came from controlling other people's lives for decades."Harold," John said,
You may also like
Revenge of the Secret Heir
Belladonna83.0K viewsThe Gilded Man With A Thousand Lives
Kaiser Ken83.3K viewsDrakon of the Seven Armies
Maddy Taurus477.8K viewsThe Useless Son In Law
Blue white88.3K viewsThey Called Me Trash—But I am actually the Billionaire Boss
Blue 💙283 viewsThe Rise of the Son-in-law After Divorce
Enigma Stone123.9K viewsUltimately Rich Commoner: Path To Supremacy
Snowpinch4.9K viewsTHE SAVIOR GOD OF WAR RETURNS
Lucky B. Excelsior10.7K views