TOP UP

Reading History

Sign out

Get the APP

No Longer Mrs. Cooley: The Architect's Return

Author: Xiao Xiaosu

Chapter 1

Word Count: 949 | Released on: 03/02/2026

ess, staccato rhythm against the cold ma

puter screen, his brow furrowed so deeply, he t

, "It's just a copy of the license.

looked up, his e

, "I've searched by your name, by Mr. Cooley's name, and by the date

h, "That's impossible. We had three hundr

ng on the smooth screen as she pulled up the p

legally, the officiant-or the couple-must return the signed license to this office within sixty days. If t

gripped the edge of the co

shed, sharp

ening his tie, "Don't worry about the paperwork, babe. I'l

he had been so sw

u," she w

uilding, the noon sun hit her like

igh Cooley, she

rsized tote bag for her iPad. She carried it everywhere to sync Gray's schedule

vibrated

ation banner stretched acr

ing Invitation: "

ut her thumb hovered over the 'Accept' button. The sender's nam

loaded i

cy test. Two pink lines. The background was unmistakable-t

ped walking,

ot of a text message thread.

est gift we could give the family, I promise, onc

p was from t

idic. She stumbled toward a metal trash can on the corner. She

e ye

ll access to the principal amount after thre

The "infertility" issues Gray had been so supportive about, the way his mother

t just che

half his assets in a divorce. Because there was no divorce if there was no marriage. They needed a three-year paper trail for the trust executors. A public perfor

d, a tremor ran through her limbs, but benea

low cab, slid in

r asked, eyeing her i

say, but the words died on he

son Avenue." It was the building that housed the

nts ago, were now steady. She opened an encrypted messaging app and

of Gray Cooley's asset tran

post from Brylee Franklin. Her best friend. Her confidante. T

flutes clinking against a sunset. The c

d in on the c

lden liquid, she saw him. The blurry

alms until the skin broke, t

led out a tube of lipstick,

fully, tracing the

whispered to the empty cab, "I'll

Chapter End

Claim Your Bonus at the APP

Open

No Longer Mrs. Cooley: The Architect's Return

Xiao Xiaosu Modern

“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.”