Reborn I Sent the Scheming Girl to Hell

No Longer Mrs. Cooley: The Architect's Return

Xiao Xiaosu

I went to the City Clerk’s office for a routine copy of my marriage license to finalize a trust fund audit. I expected a simple piece of paper, but the clerk’s pitying look told me my entire life was a lie. "The license was never finalized, Ms. Oliver. In the eyes of the state, you are single." The three-hundred-guest wedding at the Plaza and the Vogue features meant nothing. My husband, Gray Cooley, had intentionally filed the documents with a "procedural defect" so he could discard me without a legal divorce. Moments later, an iCloud invite titled "Our Little Secret" popped up on my screen. It was a photo of my best friend, Brylee, holding a positive pregnancy test at our Hamptons estate. Gray’s text to her was the final blow: "Happy anniversary, babe. This baby is the best gift. Once the trust unlocks today, we’re done with the charade." I soon discovered they were even stealing my career, reassigning my architectural masterpiece to Brylee while preparing my eviction notice. Gray's mother called me a "barren mule" in a leaked recording, mocking the infertility I suffered after saving Gray’s life in a construction accident. I wasn't a wife; I was a three-year placeholder used to secure his inheritance. How could the man I bled for treat me like a disposable prop? How could my best friend carry his child while pretending to comfort me through my darkest moments? The betrayal burned until it turned into a cold, hard stone of fury. I didn't cry. Instead, I walked into the penthouse of the Barretts, the Cooleys' most powerful rivals. I signed a marriage contract with Kane Barrett, the man the tabloids called the "Beast of Wall Street." "I want a wedding," I told his father, my voice steady and lethal. "Bigger than the one I had with Gray." If they wanted me gone, they would have to watch me become the woman who owns their world.

Modern Revenge Divorce

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"Melanie, guess what? My brother—the human iceberg—actually has his eye on someone!"

Melanie Gilbert had just secured a billion-dollar deal when she received the call from her best friend Leyla Dawson.

Hearing this, her heart skipped a beat.

Because the woman her best friend was talking about was none other than herself, who had been secretly dating Ethan Dawson for five years.

Ethan had said that once she closed this deal, he would give her a surprise.

At this thought, a smile curved Melanie's lips. "He told you already?"

"He didn't! That girl graduated today, and my brother traveled all the way just to attend her graduation ceremony. My brother, who barely posts on social media, actually shared a photo of them together and sweetly called her 'little princess.' Tsk tsk tsk, so cheesy…"

Melanie felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Her voice trembled. "You… you must have… seen it wrong…"

She checked Ethan's social media feed. There was nothing.

"How is that possible? My brother specially called me over just to take photos of them! Don't believe me? Look!"

The moment Melanie saw the photo, her blood seemed to freeze.

The man who had spent the night wrapped around her just yesterday was now tenderly holding another girl in his arms.

The girl was smiling radiantly. It was her own stepsister—Rosalyn Burgess!

"Melanie, you have no idea how devoted my brother has been these five years. He flew to Pariion to see that girl…" Leyla kept chattering on, but Melanie could no longer hear a single word.

She instinctively denied it.

She refused to believe that five years of relationship had been nothing but a scam of affection!

Melanie ran back to the company like a madwoman. She knew Ethan had already returned.

She needed answers!

But just as she reached the office door, she heard ambiguous voices coming from inside.

"Ethan, if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have pretended to be with my sister all these years either. But back then… my sister's mother's car accident… I really… didn't do it on purpose."

A buzzing sound filled Melanie's head. Her mind went completely blank.

She stood frozen in disbelief. Her mother's death hadn't been an accident?

Ethan's voice continued. "It wasn't your fault. Besides, these past five years, Melanie's life has been smooth sailing. Meanwhile, you suffered so much abroad."

Hearing this, Melanie covered her mouth in disbelief. Tears fell heavily.

When her mother passed away, she had been devastated. It was Ethan who had stayed by her side and handled the funeral for her.

Back then, he had promised he would protect her in her mother's place.

Melanie had believed him.

For so many years, she had never once doubted his sincerity.

But now her entire world was collapsing!

"But Ethan… are you really… going to marry my sister? Have you actually fallen in love with her?"

Melanie's heart lifted nervously.

"Silly girl, I won't fall in love with her. Marrying her is only to protect you. Only by keeping her right under my watch can I make sure she never looks into what happened back then. So she will never hurt you!"

In an instant, Melanie's heart plummeted and shattered.

"It's just that you'll have to suffer a bit, staying with me without any title or status." Ethan gently smoothed Rosalyn's hair with heartache in his voice.

"It's okay. As long as I can be with you, I'm willing to endure anything." With that, Rosalyn's red lips pressed against the man's throat.

Ethan let out a low groan. Desire flashed in his eyes as he pulled her tightly into his arms.

Soon after, his ragged breathing mixed with the woman's broken moans drifted out.

Melanie clenched her fists until the pain of her nails digging into her palms finally brought back a shred of clarity.

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