His Ex Wife is A Billionaire (Evadne and Thaddeus)

Chapter 762

In the dead of night, Mr. Bartley summoned Alston to his study. Mrs. Bartley was already there, her presence a clear sign of the gravity of the discussion about to unfold.

“What? Call off the engagement?!” Mrs. Bartley shrieked in disbelief. “Timothy, are you out of your mind? The news has already spread like wildfire. I have the ladies from the country club practically fawning over me, showering me with gifts because our Alston is set to marry the Abernathy heiress!”

Her eyes blazed with the scandal of it all. “With the wedding just around the corner, you drop this bombshell on me. How am I supposed to show my

ace around them after this?”

“Dad! What’s going on? Why cancel the engagement?!” Alston, his face flushed with anger, recalled the evening’s humiliation. “Marilla had the audacity to hold hands with Mr. Ashbourne and dance with him right in front of me. I’ve been embarrassed already, and now you want to call off the wedding altogether?”

Edith had painted Marilla as a simpleton. But what sort of fool dares to flirt with another man in front of her own fiancé, to be so intimate in public?

The thought of it was maddening. He wanted to make her pay, to make her regret her indiscretion.

“If your dignity comes at the cost of my future, then I say your pride is a small price to pay!” Mr. Bartley’s words were shocking, his impatience written all over his face.

“What are you saying?!” Both mother and son stared at him, bewildered.

“Haven’t you seen it tonight? Aaron has fallen for that ‘simpleton‘,” Mr. Bartley said, sipping his tea with an air of self–satisfaction. “Suri approached me in confidence, asking me to break off the engagement.”

“If I agree to hand Marilla over to her son, she’ll back my campaign in the upcoming election. Chairman Emeric is also in the loop. If I refuse, they’ll throw their support behind my rival. Tell me, would either of you do differently?”

Alston clenched his jaw, and Mrs. Bartley was at a loss for words.

“My dear wife and son, this arrangement is nothing but beneficial for us!” Mr. Bartley lounged on the couch, legs crossed, transforming from a dignitary to a rogue in a heartbeat. “Firstly, Alston won’t have to marry the ‘simpleton‘ and demean himself. I’ll get what I want without owing the Abernathy group any favors, freeing us from Frederic’s influence.”

“Secondly, it secures my campaign financing and aligns us with the influential Ashbourne family. It’s killing two birds with one stone, isn’t it?”

Alston, desperate, interjected, “Dad, aren’t you oversimplifying things? The Ashbournes have a formidable reputation. I find Emeric even more daunting than Frederic!”

ill, everyone knows that. He’s abroad for treatment and probably won’t last two years. I’m not

Alston fumed, influenced by Edith’s opinions. “You might handle Frederic, but can

let’s not forget, she has Thaddeus backing her!”

pointing at Alston as he shouted, “You think if it weren’t for Suri’s proposal, you’d have any chance of securing this marriage? Look at the mess you made tonight, acting like a cornered animal in front of Mr. Frederic. I’ve taught you better! Even if it’s an act, you have to maintain your composure. But you lost your temper in

Alston was speechless.

marry Marilla to please Edith. He didn’t care for her; it was all a performance, a means to an end. Yet watching her dance intimately with Aaron had stung him deeply. It felt like a

completely ruined your impression with Frederic. He’s known for holding grudges, and

don’t have what it takes to marry into their world.

engagements, inquired about the

lavish gift to Marilla and Aaron’s

with our Miss Marilla. The welcome gift alone was worth

where. We’ve been planning an engagement with the Bartleys, and yet they’ve shown

better of him. “Bought by a mere trinket? Those Ashbournes probably have a vault full

Aaron is leagues better than that Bartley boy,” Dennis scoffed. “Last night, Alston had the nerve to publicly criticize you. I wonder what’s eating at

grew even darker at the mention of this. The comparison between the two suitors was the last thing he wanted to

we call off the engagement with the Bartleys? A match with the Ashbournes would be a

his hand down on the armrest, his face flushed with anger. “My son marrying an Ashbourne girl and my daughter wed to an Ashbourne boy? As if my children have no other prospects but those

to

personal feelings, he had to admit that Aaron, Suri’s son, was a

knew deep down that Alston had no real affection for his daughter; it was all about family arrangements. But the way Aaron looked at Marilla, with such

wasn’t

startling him from his thoughts. It was Hamilton.

a few rings before answering, “Dad, you wanted to talk?”

speak

“Go ahead.”

want to call

heart skipped a beat, his voice pitched