Watch Me Win, Alpha

Chapter 16

Olivia’s POV

I sat curled up on the couch, staring at my phone. Still no address from Mike. Just those suit measurements, sent

hours ago.

What exactly was Alexander playing at? If he didn’t want the suit, he could’ve just ignored me. Was he testing me? Or trying to make a point?

Maybe it was just his way of saying: “Don’t come near me again.”

Fine. That suit would be the last thing to ever cross between us anyways. I didn’t pay much heed to his weird nature.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps approaching. I tossed the phone aside after switching off the screen and straightened my back instinctively.

Ethan stepped into the room and got straight to the point. “Where are your clothes?”

I blinked. “What?”

“Shoes. Bags. Jewelry. All your stuff. Where is it?”

My heart skipped a beat. Did he find out?

I kept my face neutral and forced a little frown. “Dry cleaning,” I said casually. “The clothes, and shoes.”

He narrowed his eyes. “All of it?”

I nodded. “Yeah. I got bored being stuck at home alone. Decided to organize the house. Honestly couldn’t remember what I wore last week, so I just sent everything out to get cleaned.”

“And the bags? The jewelry?”

“Maintenance. The diamonds weren’t shining like they used to. And most of those bags were getting scuffed. Figured it was time.”

My tone sounded flat but reasonable. He stared at me for a few more seconds, like he was trying to read between the lines. Then he gave a small nod.

“No need to rush,” he said. “There’s plenty of time in the future. You can take it slow.”

“I’m traveling in a few days,” I replied smoothly. “Wanted to clear things before I left.”

That seemed to settle it until his gaze shifted to the navy suit bag lying on the couch,

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it. “And this?

jumped up instinctively and leaned forward, stopping him from opening it. My hand landed on top of his.

of us moved. His face

dad,” I said quickly, pulling the

eyes narrowed.

“What about you?”

“I’m your husband.”

a bitter laugh. “Do you really need more suits? Or did you leave them

up. His lips parted like he wanted to respond,

grabbed the bag, slipped into

and the sound of his car pulling away

notice the wardrobe-but today, he

the sky was clear and bright. It

It was Sunday.

dressed, grabbed my keys, and drove

had gone there together.

near the back gate and walked

we used to take, slowly, like I was walking through a memory. The classroom where we sat side by side in the back row. The path lined with old

laughing.

felt now.

I made my way to the small grove behind the man-made lake. It was hidden enough that

night we’d come here. It was the

brought me here, saying he had something important

then. We used our phones for light, sitting on the damp grass. He pulled out a small box, and two pieces of paper. We each wrote something – a secret wish, a promise,

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спарто

years, we’ll come back and open it.

serious, glowing

a

My hands were already dusty when the tip of the box appeared.

held it in my

–

where they belong in

box for a long minute, then gave a

“Goodbye, Ethan,” I whispered.

girl I was back then. To the

Ethan’s POV

proposal in front of me. The formatting was off, the ideas scattered, and the tone felt like it was written by a high schooler. Eight days for

this early in the day. Her fingers brushed my arm. “Don’t be mad, baby. I was just getting

to distract me with her usual tricks. “We could try something else now… here?”

prettier than Olivia, but she knew how to seduce better. She knew all the tricks. But right now, her blunder was too much to be distracted by