The Billionaire CEO Betrays his Wife: He wants her back
Chapter 197: You will notice me

Chapter 197: You will notice me

Aveline walked the corridor with the kind of practiced grace that made men’s heads turn and women’s eyes narrow. She wasn’t in a rush, no, she let her heels click softly against the polished marble floors, savoring every step like a queen in her court.

In her hand, a slim file folder, one she didn’t need to be delivering, not to Ethan Anderson’s office anyway. But she had made a detour, charming another junior associate into giving it to her under the pretense of doing them a favor.

The real favor was for herself.

As she neared his office, the glass walls of the executive suite came into view, and there he was. Ethan. Sharp. Collected. Disarmingly handsome in a way that pissed her off, because no man had any right looking like that and not notice her, they always do.

Aveline slowed, her gaze lingering on him, the cut of his jaw, the way his brow furrowed when he made a point, the way his hand raked through his hair, frustrated but in control. A quiet kind of chaos lived under his skin, and it called to her, though she’d never admit it.

Through the glass, Ethan felt the weight of that stare before he saw it. His eyes lifted mid-sentence, locking onto hers.

For a heartbeat, neither moved. Then Ethan’s brow twitched, irritation flickering behind his gaze. What the hell is she doing here?

Aveline took that as her cue.

She pushed the door open with a polite smile, ignoring the tension slicing through the air.

"Hello everyon, I’m sorry to interrupt," she said smoothly, her voice honeyed, the kind of voice that left no room for annoyance without looking like a complete ass. She held out the file to Steph, his assistant sitting beside Ethan.

"I was asked to drop this off."

She could’ve left it at the reception. She could’ve handed it to an assistant. Hell, she could’ve emailed it. But none of those options involved standing in his office, breathing the same air, and watching him try to pretend she didn’t get under his skin.

Steph’s jaw flexed. "Thank you, Aveline," he said tightly.

She smiled sweetly, holding Ethan’s gaze a beat too long. The meeting room felt too quiet for a second, even Steph seemed to sense the strange electricity in the room. Aveline knew the effect she had. And she liked it.

Without waiting for a dismissal, she turned gracefully, offering one last glance over her shoulder before slipping out the door, leaving a trace of expensive perfume and quiet provocation behind.

Ethan exhaled through his teeth. What game are you playing, Avaline?

She walked away down the corridor, head high, knowing one thing for sure, whether he liked it or not, Ethan had noticed her. And that was a start.

The meeting room emptied out slowly, leather chairs squeaking against polished wood, murmurs of goodbyes and see-you-tomorrows fading into the quiet hum of evening. Ethan stood by the tall glass window, the city stretching out before him in a golden ray of traffic and blinking lights, a living, breathing organism that somehow felt emptier tonight.

He reached for his phone, thumb hovering for a second over Mara’s name. He hesitated; he saw the time. What was the point? She’d probably already picked up the twins and driven them home, her day carefully sectioned off from him like it always was lately. Still, he called the school, the phone pressed to his ear as he half-watched the lights blink on across the city skyline.

"Good evening, Royals Golden Academy," the receptionist’s voice chirped.

"This is Ethan Anderson. Could you check if my kids, Andrew and Audrey Anderson Shepherd, have been picked up?"

A pause. Some clacking keys. "Oh yes, sir. Ms. Shepherd came for them about twenty minutes ago."

A slow, bitter breath left his chest. "Alright. Thank you."

He ended the call without another word, letting his head fall back against the glass, eyes closing for a moment. Too late again, huh?

Just then, Steph appeared at the door, jacket slung over his shoulder, an easy grin on his face like the world wasn’t constantly trying to gut him.

"If there’s nothing else, boss, I’m heading to the bar. Been a while since I let loose." Ethan gave a half-hearted snort. "Well, guess I don’t have a life now like you do."

Steph laughed. "Man, come on. You could use a drink. Or five."

And for reasons he couldn’t name, maybe to avoid another night staring at his ceiling, Ethan grabbed his jacket too. "Fine. One drink."

Steph’s grin widened. "I’ll believe that when I see it."

They stepped out of the office, the city night curling around them like a familiar lover, and for the first time in what felt like forever, Ethan allowed himself to wonder what it would feel like to just let go for a while.

Little did he know, not everything waiting for him would be as easy as a whiskey on ice.

—

Aveline stood in front of the mirror in her apartment before she left, adjusting the strap of her dress, a dark, wine-colored number that clung to her curves like it was stitched for sin.

Beneath it, she wore a black lace lingerie that hugged her body, whispering promises only she could hear. She shrugged on the long coat, buttoning it up to her throat. Decent. Polished. Another night on a late errand, nothing more.

But her eyes in the mirror told another story. Dangerous. Hungry.

The hotel hallway smelled of expensive air freshener and old money. She counted the doors as she passed, the numbers glowing faintly in the dim light. Room 706. She raised her hand and knocked twice.

The door cracked open, and a man in his mid-forties peered out. Salt-and-pepper hair. Gold chain gleaming against his chest. A silk robe tied hastily at the waist, skin flushed like he’d been drinking.

He smiled. That smug, careless smile men like him wore like cologne.

"Hello, I’m Sasha," Aveline said, voice soft as velvet, her smile demure.