No Second Chances Ex-husband (Lauren and Ethan) novel Chapter 166

CHAPTER 0166

LAUREN’S POV

Roman chuckled softly, his gaze flicking toward me calm, unbothered, and utterly in control. He didn’t even have to say much; his silence carried authority.

“Well, you can say something like that,” Roman replied to the host, his tone smooth and composed, his eyes still on me as if silently daring me to correct him.

I felt my throat tighten. My pulse fluttered uncomfortably beneath my skin as I forced a small, polite smile. His gaze lingered longer than it should have, and I found myself turning away just slightly, pretending to be interested in the golden chandelier above. I wasn’t sure what to say or how to react. There was an odd heaviness in the air, a tension I couldn’t quite name.

I wanted to tell the host that we weren’t what he thought, that Roman and I were just colleagues, maybe friends. But the words got stuck somewhere in my chest. Because deep down, I wasn’t even sure anymore. Were we just friends? The lines had started to blur lately the lingering looks, the quiet moments, the way he always

seemed to be there whenever I needed someone.

I knew Roman had been trying to take things a step further, but I wasn’t ready. Not yet.

“Good to meet you, Ms.?” the host asked, dragging out the Mrs. as if teasing me, his lips curling into a knowing smile.

I cleared my throat again and extended my hand. “Lauren. Just call me Lauren,” I said, my voice steadier than I

felt.

“Well then,” the host replied, shaking my hand with enthusiasm, “I have to say, you shocked everyone in here including me when you called that amount. But then I remembered, Hale Industries is the best there is.”

Roman let out another soft laugh, that same quiet, confident sound that somehow made everyone else fade into the background. “So, are you ready to drop the check while I bring the ring?” the host asked.

“Yes, sure,” Roman said without hesitation.

“This way, please.” The host gestured toward a nearby table and chair.

Roman leaned close enough for me to hear him “I’ll be right back,” he murmured, and then walked away with his usual purposeful stride.

As he disappeared into the crowd, I exhaled slowly. My phone buzzed softly in my hand, snapping my attention away. A notification from Tessa. ‘Aria just ate and she’s asleep now.‘

A faint smile tugged at my lips. Just reading about my daughter made my chest feel lighter. I started to type out a quick reply when I heard a voice from behind me

“Two hundred and twelve million, huh?”

The same words Roman had said earlier, but with a different tone, one dripping with bitterness and mockery. My body stiffened immediately. I didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

1/3

CHAPTER 0165

I rolled my eyes and turned slowly to face him. “What do you want, Ethan?”

He smirked, his expression half–amused, half–furious. “Funny you should ask. I wanted you to come work for my company, but you chose to stay with Roman. I wanted that pink diamond ring, and you just helped him get it instead. What were you thinking when you called that ridiculous amount? That you were going to disgrace me? Trying to show off your new money bank, is that it?”

I could see the anger simmering beneath his calm exterior, the way his jaw clenched and his hands curled into fists at his sides. And honestly? I liked it. I liked seeing him lose control, even just a little. Maybe it was cruel of me, but after everything he’d done, after all the pain he caused, it felt like a small piece of justice.

I let out a small, amused scoff, folding my arms across my chest. “If that’s what you want to believe, then that’s fine by me.”

Ethan’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. “This little stunt of yours just proves what I’ve recently found out more true

that you’re an asset. And I wouldn’t regret getting you to work for me.”

–

His words made my stomach twist in disgust. The way he said “asset,” like I was some object to be used. Like all I had ever been was something to profit from.

“You want to know the difference between Hale Industries and Black Corporation?” I asked, my voice hardening. “The difference between a real boss and an asshole?” I continued, taking a step closer. “Between Roman and you?”

His smile faded, but I didn’t stop.

“Roman doesn’t treat me like a thing, like an asset. He treats me like a person, like a friend, even though he’s my boss. He respects me. But you… you only care about what benefits you. You treat everyone around you like pawns, disposable tools. You don’t care about anyone you claim to love.” My voice began to tremble, but I didn’t care. “You couldn’t even properly care for your own daughter Elena. That’s why I’ll never join your company.”

The silence that followed was thick and sharp. His smile was replaced by that cold, arrogant look he always wore.

“This isn’t a matter of choice, Lauren,” he said finally, his tone calm but laced with menace. “When you come to work for me, when my daughter comes back to her real father, it won’t be because you want to. It’ll be because you have no other choice.”

My breath hitched.

“I’ve already contacted my lawyers,” he continued smoothly. “My team’s working with the media. Eventually, everyone will see things my way. You’ll be forced to quit your job, get our daughter, and come running back to me.”

I stared at him in disbelief, my pulse pounding in my ears. “So now you’re resorting to dirty tricks? Because you can’t take no for an answer? Because you can’t stand the fact that you’re not my daughter’s father?”

He chuckled darkly. “You might call it cheap tricks. I call it tactics. Smart tactics, and I know for a fact that I am that child’s father.”

Before I could even think of what to say, another voice cut through the air behind me –

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify