The Billionaire's Bought Bride and Instant Mom Chapter 49

Aveline

The rest of the week passed in a pleasant blur of routine and anticipation. Ryan continued to blossom during our sessions, his natural curiosity and intelligence shining brighter each day. He was laughing more, asking questions, even initiating conversations with other children during group activities. It was everything I'd hoped for when I first started working with him.

But oddly, Orion seemed to be avoiding me. He'd drop Ryan off with barely a nod, keeping our interactions strictly professional with none of his previous warmth. Maybe he was growing suspicious about that night. Maybe—worse—he had evidence.

But none of those worries were my priority right now. I had one mission: end this ghost marriage once and for all. I was going to use every trick, every argument, every dollar if necessary to get that mysterious stranger of a husband to sign those divorce papers.

Friday morning dawned bright and beautiful, and I woke up with the kind of giddy excitement I hadn't felt since childhood Christmas mornings.

Today was the day.

I'd taken a personal day from Arlington Academy, claiming a family emergency that required my immediate attention. Technically, it wasn't a lie—ending this marriage was definitely a family emergency that had been six years in the making.

I spent an hour getting ready, choosing a vibrant red dress that made me feel confident and celebratory. The color was bold, joyful, exactly how I felt about finally reclaiming my freedom. I styled my hair in loose, voluminous waves that caught the light beautifully, and applied my makeup with extra care.

When I came downstairs, Grandmother Eleanor took one look at me and burst into laughter.

"My dear girl," she said, shaking her head in amusement, "are you going to a wedding or a divorce? Because if I were the poor man, I'd take one look at you and think you were planning to become his wife for real!"

I twirled in front of her, the red dress flaring around me like a celebration. "This is the most beautiful day I've had in six years, Grandmother. Of course I'm going to dress like it!"

"Well, you certainly look radiant," she admitted with a fond smile. "But darling, isn't your appointment at 2 PM? You're ready awfully early."

I laughed, practically bouncing on my toes. "I can't wait another second! I'd rather sit in that room and wait than pace around here going crazy. I want to be there early, get settled at the table, prepare for any negotiations—"

"Negotiations?" Grandmother raised an eyebrow with obvious curiosity.

"Of course! What if this man tries to make demands before he'll sign the papers? You know how difficult men can be sometimes!" I grabbed my purse with determination. "Whatever conditions he wants, whatever money he's after—I'll give it to him. I just want this over with."

Grandmother's expression turned worried. "Now darling, I know you're doing well at that academy, but don't go spending recklessly! If you need help, you tell me immediately. Good luck today."

I was still laughing as I headed for the door. "Don't worry, Grandmother. I'll call you with the good news!"

Nothing could dampen my mood today. Nothing.

My phone rang just as I was walking toward my car.

"Miss Aveline?" Ryan's voice came through clearly, though there was worry in his tone. "Are you sick? Principal Foster said you weren't coming to school today, so I borrowed her phone to call you."

My heart melted a little at his concern. "Aw, sweetheart, that's so thoughtful of you to worry about me. No, I'm not sick—I just have something very happy to take care of today."

"Something happy?" Ryan perked up immediately. "That's good! You know what? My daddy has something happy to do today too! He got all dressed up this morning, even more handsome than usual, and he said he was going to meet someone very important!"

I felt my smile falter slightly. "Well, good for him," I said, though something unpleasant twisted in my stomach.

Dressed up to meet someone very important? Was Orion finally serious about finding Ryan a mother? But who was this mysterious "someone important"?

God, I hoped he wasn't just focused on looks and body like most men. At the very least, he should let Ryan meet her first and see how they get along before making any decisions like that.

"I have to go now, sweetheart," I said, pushing away the irritation. "But I'll see you Monday, okay?"

"Okay! Have fun with your happy thing, Miss Aveline!"

I hung up and slid into my mint green convertible, determinedly shoving thoughts of Orion and his "important meeting" out of my mind. Today was about me, about my freedom, about finally closing the chapter on the biggest mistake of my life.

The drive started perfectly. Every light turned green just as I approached it, traffic flowed smoothly, and the morning sun painted Manhattan in golden hues that made everything look like a movie set. Even my car seemed to purr with contentment as I navigated the familiar streets.

I was humming along to the radio, tapping my fingers on the steering wheel in time with the music, when I decided to take a slight detour down a quieter street to avoid the inevitable construction on Fifth Avenue.

That's when everything went to hell.

I was accelerating through what should have been a clear intersection when something massive and metallic came thundering toward me from the side. A freight truck—huge, powerful, and moving way too fast for someone who was supposed to be stopped at a red light.

Time slowed to a crawl. I could see the truck's grille bearing down on my little convertible like the mouth of some mechanical monster. The driver wasn't even trying to brake—if anything, he seemed to be accelerating, aiming directly for my car with deadly precision.

This wasn't an accident. Someone was trying to kill me.

I yanked the steering wheel hard to the right, my tires screaming against the asphalt as I fought to get out of the truck's path. The move saved my life—barely—but sent me careening toward the guardrail that separated the road from a concrete embankment.

The impact was tremendous. Metal screamed against metal, glass exploded around me, and my beautiful red dress was suddenly splattered with blood from cuts I couldn't even feel yet.

Pain exploded through my head like a lightning bolt, and the last thing I saw before everything went black was the truck disappearing around the corner, its driver never even slowing down to see if I was alive.

Then darkness swallowed everything, and the most beautiful day of my life became something else entirely.