Mr billionaire's regret chasing his irresistible wife by Gabby Emmanuel

(ARIELLE S POV)

The rest of the morning passed quietly as I cleaned the apartment after Dwayne left. His place had a certain charm to it. It wasn't flashy, but there was a quiet allure in the way everything was arranged. Much like Dwayne himself. Effortlessly captivating. As I was about to tidy up the bed, a familiar feeling washed over me. My period had arrived earlier than expected. I quickly grabbed a spare tampon from my bag and hurried to the bathroom to check. A little blood, just as I'd thought. I sighed softly.

By the time I finished, another ten minutes had passed.

No wonder I'd been so emotional yesterday, or the back pain that kept me tossing and turning last night.

It's funny, how your body never feels like it's changing, but then, just like that, it reminds you time is slipping by, one day after another, unrelenting in its passage. How many more days like this would I have before I'd feel truly different? Life just goes on.

I should ask Dwayne if women deal with blood more often than the mafia. Especially if she's a woman in the kitchen... would the sin of killing be even worse? Thinking of this terrible joke, I couldn't help but chuckle to myself, shaking my head, pushing away the thoughts that threatened to drown me.

When I finished cleaning, folding, tidying, I took a shower in the guest room where I'd slept the previous night. I felt a little better, a little lighter.

As I rifled through the closet, not-so-surprisingly, I found some good work clothes, next to Dwayne's sharp, tailored suit.

I picked out something simple, but it fit perfectly.

Downstairs, breakfast was already set out in the kitchen, so I put things together and also made Dwayne a couple of meals to keep him going for the rest of the week. It was my little way of saying thank you to him.

The morning passed in routine actions, each one neat and orderly, but it felt like I was just going through the motions. I did my best to keep my mind focused on the present, numbing myself to everything else.

Looking at the blue door of Dwayne's house one last time before heading to work, I took a deep breath and steeled myself for the day ahead.

The restaurant was busy as usual, orders running in from customers in their dozens.

Rebecca was more than an efficient hand, running about the place like she had multiple limbs. When I had to go pick up Maverick from school, she was more than willing to step up into a more advanced role and coordinate things in my absence. It felt good to know I could rely on her.

Much later in the day, I was sitting in the kitchen, nursing a glass of wine while I did some work on my laptop.

of the day's business. I'd just returned to the house only a while ago after taking a run, leaving

about life without Jared and the pain I'd known him to bring to me. The space I needed, even if it was just a few moments. I'd left my phone on 'Do Not Disturb,' in case he tried reaching out, and I

table. I looked at the screen and found I

to worry about the money anymore. There's a chance my family's business can

I'd been so carried away with the events of the previous

on her contact to dial her number. It went straight to voicemail after the first ring. I sighed, about to leave a message, when my phone vibrated again. It was

Christ! Where did you keep your phone? I've been trying to call you all day,"

with me lately. I'm so sorry.

address. Said there was someone there who could help me." "An address?" I

the whole detail? He's weird." "Oh Ari..." Ashley sighed with a little hesitation in her tone. She kept mute for a couple of seconds before speaking again.

no idea where that comment came from. "Really? Well that's pretty rich coming from the same mouth who called her

Ashley cursed in mortification and the line went oddly silent for a

a while when I heard a voice come from

Tompson? When did I

of the nature before anything serious came out of it. "Ash? Who's that?" I asked, genuinely worried for my friend. I heard Ashley's voice come lightly in the background as she spoke to whoever it was. I strained my ears to make out their words and a wave of recognition hit me. I found the male voice familiar. "Wait... Is that Mr. Roman? Is that you? Ashley

a

whirlpool of possibilities swirled in my head and my thoughts jumped from one end to the other,, a

to my work when I heard two pairs of

stay with me?" Maverick asked softly. I pulled him in close and planted a kiss

momma's got you,

lifted

rubbing his eyes sleepily as he snuggled into my neck. I led him to the bedroom and tucked h kim in, before slipping into the tiny

expected. I had planned to go with Ashley to the

development but I kept my thoughts to myself so I didn't come across to Ashley as pessimistic. Whatever she was willing to share, that I was willing to take.

What if this person who we were supposed to meet wasn't entirely invested in the idea of

Arielle, I cautioned myself