His Belated Love for the Abandoned Ex-Wife Chapter 151: Old Ties

In the six months since the divorce, Julian had never reached out to Iris, not once. It wasn't because he had let go, but because he cared too much to interfere. He stayed out of her life on purpose, asking about her through others, holding himself back even when the silence became unbearable. No matter how much he wanted to see her, he chose not to cross that line.

As they stepped into the lobby, the quiet between them stretched just a little too long until Julian finally broke it.

"Did you catch the Northern Lights?"

Iris turned to him, clearly caught off guard. She hadn't told anyone about that trip, not even Zoe, and she hadn't posted a single thing online.

"How did you know I went to see them?" she asked, her tone edged with suspicion.

Julian pressed the elevator button, then glanced at her, his gaze lingering in a way that felt both familiar and dangerous. "Just a guess."

She didn't buy it, and it showed in the slight crease of her brow.

He studied her for another moment before speaking again, his voice softening. "You've lost weight."

Iris looked down, suddenly unsure what to do with herself. She had spent the past six months putting distance between them, convincing herself she had moved on, but standing here now, she could feel something shifting again beneath the surface.

Maybe I didn't get over it as cleanly as I thought. Or maybe it's just habit, something my body hasn't caught up with yet.

Either way, it wasn't enough to matter. At least, that's what she told herself.

The elevator doors slid open, and they stepped inside, standing side by side in a space that suddenly felt much smaller than it was. The air grew warmer, heavier, filled with the quiet awareness of each other's presence, neither of them willing to look directly at the other.

"So what's the plan now?" Julian asked after a moment.

"I'll start job hunting after the holidays," Iris said, her answer quick and steady.

"The R&D team at Veritas is hiring. You could come work—"

"I'm not working for you," she cut in without hesitation.

Julian turned slightly, studying her profile. "Because I'm your ex, and you want a clean break?"

"Exactly."

A faint smile touched his lips, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Since when do you let emotions make your decisions?"

"I've already got offers lined up," she replied lightly, though the warmth in the elevator was starting to feel suffocating. She glanced up and realized neither of them had pressed a floor yet, then quickly reached over to fix it.

Julian said nothing more, only watching her with that unreadable expression.

When the doors opened, Iris stepped out first. She turned around immediately, stopping just short of blocking his path, and held out her hand.

"Give me the suitcase."

Julian handed it over without argument, though his gaze lingered. "There's something you should know."

"What is it?" she asked, gripping the handle.

"Ethan's seeing Celeste."

For a second, Iris just stared at him, like she hadn't heard correctly. "That's not even remotely possible."

"He said she made the first move."

Celeste.

The name alone made something in her chest tighten. A Stanford graduate, polished, ambitious, someone who had always moved in a completely different world. There was no logical reason she would go for Ethan, who didn't even have a college degree, who was still dealing with a messy marriage and raising a kid on his own.

None of it made sense.

Something about it felt wrong.

Iris turned on her heel and started walking, but before she could get far, Julian caught her wrist.

The contact sent a jolt through her, warmth spreading instantly from where his fingers wrapped around her skin, catching her completely off guard. Her heart stumbled, then started beating too fast, too loud.

She stopped.

Her eyes dropped briefly to his hand before lifting to meet his gaze, and for a moment, everything else seemed to fall away.

"New Year's weekend's coming up," Julian said, his voice low and gentle. "Come out with me tomorrow. There's a winter festival downtown."

Iris pulled her wrist free, taking a step back to put distance between them. "Julian, we've been divorced for six months. We shouldn't be doing this."

"If we couldn't make the marriage work, we can still be friends."

"I'm not looking for new friends," she said, her tone firm enough to leave no room for interpretation.

Something dimmed in his expression, though he didn't argue.

Iris didn't wait for anything else. She turned, walked to the door, unlocked it, and stepped inside.

The apartment was quiet. Her parents and Frank were already asleep, but Ethan was still up, pacing the living room until he saw her.

"Iris, you're finally back." He broke into a relieved smile and walked over.

She stopped just inside, taking in the space, and felt her chest tighten.

This used to feel like home.

Back when Julian lived here, everything had been spotless, carefully arranged, the kind of place that felt calm the moment you walked in. Now it looked like the exact opposite. Toys were scattered everywhere, furniture pushed out of place, and random piles of cardboard and plastic bottles had taken over the corners. It wasn't filthy, but it was far from clean.

It felt chaotic.

A dull headache started creeping in as she closed her eyes and took a slow breath.

She had already walked away from Julian, but seeing what had become of the place he once took care of so meticulously still left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Ethan noticed immediately and reached for her hand. "Hey, what's wrong? You don't look great."

She steadied herself, then got straight to the point. "Are you really dating Celeste?"

He hesitated, clearly caught off guard. "Julian told you?"

"Break it off," she said flatly.

Ethan let out a small, helpless laugh. "I didn't expect her to like me either, okay? But she doesn't care that I have a kid, or that I didn't finish school. She's not like that. She's a good person, not materialistic at all. She—"

"Stop," Iris cut in, her patience snapping. "You need to think this through. There's no way she's into you."

Ethan frowned, a hint of frustration creeping in. "I don't have anything, Iris. No house, no car, no savings. You even paid off my debt for me. She knows all of that. If she's not into me, then what exactly do you think she wants?"