Dumped by My Ex, Then I Married the Richest Man
img img Dumped by My Ex, Then I Married the Richest Man img Chapter 1 Chapter 1 The Eighteenth Proposal Betrayal
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Chapter 15 Chapter 15 Winning Her Family's Heart img
Chapter 16 Chapter 16 Heir to a Broken Heart img
Chapter 17 Chapter 17 A Kiss for a Debt Repaid img
Chapter 18 Chapter 18 Her BFF Said: Just Sleep With Him img
Chapter 19 Chapter 19 No More Ties to the Past img
Chapter 20 Chapter 20 She Doesn't Belong to Him Anymore img
Chapter 21 Chapter 21 He Was Protecting Her All Along img
Chapter 22 Chapter 22 A Husband Worth Keeping img
Chapter 23 Chapter 23 The Kiss She Said Yes To img
Chapter 24 Chapter 24 One Kiss Before Goodbye img
Chapter 25 Chapter 25 The Gift That Wasn't Hers img
Chapter 26 Chapter 26 A Rose for Every Day img
Chapter 27 Chapter 27 She's No One's Doormat Anymore img
Chapter 28 Chapter 28 The Way She Stood Up for Him img
Chapter 29 Chapter 29 Drunk on Him, Not the Wine img
Chapter 30 Chapter 30 She Bought the Rings This Time img
Chapter 31 Chapter 31 She Flaunted What Was Thrown Away img
Chapter 32 Chapter 32 He Loved Her for Eight Years img
Chapter 33 Chapter 33 She Bought Him a Ring img
Chapter 34 Chapter 34 She Didn't Lose the Man-She Left Him img
Chapter 35 Chapter 35 Fireworks, Flirting, and First Moves img
Chapter 36 Chapter 36 She Slipped a Ring on His Finger img
Chapter 37 Chapter 37 Her Ex Lost Sleep Over Her New Man img
Chapter 38 Chapter 38 She's Not Hiding the Marriage Anymore img
Chapter 39 Chapter 39 His Kiss Left a Better Color Than Any Lipstick img
Chapter 40 Chapter 40 She Walked In Wearing His Ring img
Chapter 41 Chapter 41 He Was Never Loved img
Chapter 42 Chapter 42 She Didn't Know It Was Tempting img
Chapter 43 Chapter 43 Those Gifts Were Never Yours img
Chapter 44 Chapter 44 Her Ex Asked Her to Divorce img
Chapter 45 Chapter 45 Soft Words, Warm Hands, Full Heart img
Chapter 46 Chapter 46 He Was There Before She Knew img
Chapter 47 Chapter 47 She Didn't Just Play-She Dominated img
Chapter 48 Chapter 48 She Fell for Him, Just Like That img
Chapter 49 Chapter 49 He Knew Everything about Her img
Chapter 50 Chapter 50 Not Everyone Deserves a Second Chance img
Chapter 51 Chapter 51 He Was Just Her Father's Name img
Chapter 52 Chapter 52 He Tried to Twist the Truth-She Didn't Flinch img
Chapter 53 Chapter 53 Married Perks and Petty Revenge img
Chapter 54 Chapter 54 Scared of Ghosts, Safe in His Arms img
Chapter 55 Chapter 55 Watching the Film, Replaying the Past img
Chapter 56 Chapter 56 A Kiss That Stayed With Her img
Chapter 57 Chapter 57 She Came with Connections, Not Talent img
Chapter 58 Chapter 58 A New Face, A Possible Friend img
Chapter 59 Chapter 59 Late-Night Calls Never Stay Innocent img
Chapter 60 Chapter 60 This Time, the Flowers Had His Name img
Chapter 61 Chapter 61 When a Man Publicly Claims You img
Chapter 62 Chapter 62 Only Mine to Call img
Chapter 63 Chapter 63 Almost Offered Myself img
Chapter 64 Chapter 64 Brothers in Suits, Enemies in Sight img
Chapter 65 Chapter 65 Wife Comes First, Always img
Chapter 66 Chapter 66 He Played Me a Violin Love Confession img
Chapter 67 Chapter 67 He Wanted to Tag Along Too img
Chapter 68 Chapter 68 The Wrong Package, Right Feelings img
Chapter 69 Chapter 69 Tonight, I Gave Him Everything img
Chapter 70 Chapter 70 The Morning After Bliss img
Chapter 71 Chapter 71 Meeting His Family, Marking His Heart img
Chapter 72 Chapter 72 Born Into Power, Raised by Rebellion img
Chapter 73 Chapter 73 Uninvited Guests, Unforgiven Past img
Chapter 74 Chapter 74 Not My Fire-But I'll Watch It Burn img
Chapter 75 Chapter 75 The Knife You Threw Finally Turned img
Chapter 76 Chapter 76 The Ex Who's About to Marry a Lesbian img
Chapter 77 Chapter 77 Chef, Chauffeur, and a Whole Husband img
Chapter 78 Chapter 78 Half My Scars Have Your Name img
Chapter 79 Chapter 79 He Paid Her Off Like a Problem img
Chapter 80 Chapter 80 She Let It Go. He Couldn't. img
Chapter 81 Chapter 81 The Bodyguard Who Fell First img
Chapter 82 Chapter 82 She Sat in His Lap, Then on His Throne img
Chapter 83 Chapter 83 If Not With You, Then With No One img
Chapter 84 Chapter 84 The Man Who Handles Periods Like a Pro img
Chapter 85 Chapter 85 He Deserved That Bite img
Chapter 86 Chapter 86 From One Night to Marry Me img
Chapter 87 Chapter 87 A Watch That Tells More Than Time img
Chapter 88 Chapter 88 Dinner with the Ex's Family img
Chapter 89 Chapter 89 What Did You Call Me Just Now img
Chapter 90 Chapter 90 The Ex Is Engaged. The Ex-Girlfriend Is Pregnant. img
Chapter 91 Chapter 91 She Dumped the Groom, Kept Her Pride img
Chapter 92 Chapter 92 Drinks, Lies, and No Regrets img
Chapter 93 Chapter 93 Kisses, Crashes, and Complicated Crushes img
Chapter 94 Chapter 94 Midnight, A Sofa, and A Hundred Kisses img
Chapter 95 Chapter 95 She Fell, He Froze img
Chapter 96 Chapter 96 A Knife, A Lie, and No Apology img
Chapter 97 Chapter 97 Hospital Visits and Emotional Receipts img
Chapter 98 Chapter 98 He Thought It Was From Her img
Chapter 99 Chapter 99 She Didn't Say It. He Still Knew. img
Chapter 100 Chapter 100 He Brought a Rose. She Brought Her Whole Heart. img
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Dumped by My Ex, Then I Married the Richest Man

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Chapter 1 Chapter 1 The Eighteenth Proposal Betrayal

Everyone knew Clarissa Beckett had been madly in love with Sebastian Hamilton for six years-completely, blindly, with no reservations.

She'd give up everything for him, even her life if it came to that.

But tonight... tonight, she was finally calling it quits.

Sebastian had once said, joking or not, "If you propose to me eighteen times, I'll marry you."

And tonight's personal concert, which Clarissa had spent half a year preparing, was meant to be her eighteenth and final proposal.

Her car rolled smoothly into the underground garage of Hamilton Group. Clarissa parked right next to Sebastian's reserved spot like she'd done countless times before.

She took a deep breath, dabbed on a bit of lipstick in the mirror, and forced a smile.

Six years of repeating the same ritual, of making sure she looked her best before seeing him-

Now it just felt like muscle memory.

The executive floor was so silent you could hear a pin drop. Her heels barely made a sound against the plush carpet as she walked toward his office. Just as her hand reached for the doorknob of that heavy wooden door, she froze.

Laughter and voices filtered from inside.

"Sebastian, I heard Clarissa's planning to propose to you again tonight at her concert. Is that true?"

Clarissa's heart skipped. She instinctively stepped back, hiding in the shadow just beside the door.

"Where'd you hear that from?" Sebastian's voice was casual, almost indifferent.

"It's all over the place," Liam Hollis said with a click of his tongue. "You told everyone if she asked eighteen times, you'd say yes. She's really going for it-are you seriously gonna marry her just like that?"

Outside the door, Clarissa held her breath, clinging to that sliver of hope.

It's been six years-surely, even ice melts eventually.

But then she heard something that shattered her whole world.

Sebastian let out a short laugh. "Liam, since when did you get this naive?"

"That promise? Just me messing with her. If it weren't for my parents liking her-and her shamelessly clinging to me-I wouldn't have wasted these six years playing house with her for fun."

Liam sounded a bit displeased, "Come on, that's not fair. We all saw how she treated you these years. Remember when you had that stomach bleed? She stayed by your side for three whole days, didn't sleep a wink. Even a dog would grow attached after six years."

"Feelings?" Sebastian's tone turned ice cold. "Did you forget how Aria ended up like that?"

In the hallway, Clarissa's face lost all color. Even her lips were pale now.

The name "Aria Ellis" hit her like an old wound being ripped wide open.

"The accident ruined Aria's hand. She worked her whole life on the violin-she was just one step away from becoming Perry Quinn's final student. And because of that crash, her future went out the window."

"Clarissa took her place in the spotlight. You seriously think she had nothing to do with what happened?"

"But the cops said it was just an accident," Liam tried to argue.

"An accident?" Sebastian let out a mocking chuckle. "You really believe in coincidence that much? Keeping her around these six years, watching her chase after me like some pathetic stray-it was just to get Aria a bit of justice. Watching her build up hope, only to crush it again and again-don't tell me that's not satisfying."

Clarissa's knees buckled, and she staggered back. Her shoulder slammed into the cold wall, the impact barely keeping her from collapsing.

Six years of unwavering devotion-turned out to be revenge in disguise.

What she thought was deep love was, to him, worse than garbage.

She was nothing but a joke.

Slumping against the wall, she shut her eyes and took a long, shaky breath.

When she opened her eyes again, the flood of pain had drained away, leaving only a barren sense of emptiness.

She lifted her hand and rubbed her cheeks hard, trying to ease the stiffness from her face. Then she forced on that practiced smile - soft, a little clinging, the kind she'd rehearsed too many times.

Knock knock knock - she raised her knuckles and tapped at the office door.

The voices inside cut off instantly.

"Come in," came Sebastian's cold voice.

Clarissa pushed the door open, smiling just enough, her eyes landing straight on Sebastian behind his desk, as if nothing had just shattered her world. "Sebastian, Liam, what were you two chatting about?"

Sebastian leaned back lazily in his executive chair, not even bothering to look up. Liam looked awkward, stumbling to his feet with a forced laugh. "Oh, uh-nothing, really. Hey Clarissa, good to see you, but I've got to run. Something came up."

He practically bolted out, and as he passed Clarissa, he shot her a quick, apologetic glance.

Clarissa acted like she didn't notice a thing. She walked up to the desk and pulled a carefully prepared envelope from her purse, setting it gently in front of Sebastian.

"This is an invitation to my concert tonight. Front row VIP - saved just for you."

Sebastian finally looked up, but there was no warmth in his eyes, only clear impatience. "I'm busy. Not going."

Clarissa stared silently at the man she had loved for six years - a face that now seemed like a stranger's.

If it hadn't been for her mother grabbing her hand before she passed, begging her to marry into the Hamiltons...

Maybe she'd have let go a long time ago.

"This concert means a lot to me," she said again, voice steady but stubborn. "If you can make it, I really hope you'll come."

"Means a lot?" Sebastian scoffed like she'd just cracked a joke. He shot up from his chair, his tall frame radiating pressure as he moved around the desk and stopped right in front of her.

He grabbed her chin sharply, forcing her to look up.

"Clarissa, you really think you've earned the right to flaunt anything? When you're up there playing that violin, do you even think about Aria's hands? She can't play anymore - thanks to you."

She stared into the disgust and accusation in his eyes, and in that moment, the last flicker of hope inside her finally darkened.

She didn't fight back. She just gazed at him blandly. "Sebastian, I've told you over and over - I had nothing to do with Aria's accident."

She paused, six years of exhaustion and heartbreak catching up, and let it all out in one quiet sentence. "If six years of loving you isn't enough to earn a shred of your trust, then maybe... maybe we should just stop."

"Stop?" Sebastian's eyes narrowed and he tightened his grip so hard she could hear her bones creak.

"What gives you the right to say 'stop'?!" He let go, his hand flinging her away like she was something filthy.

"Isn't marrying me what you've always wanted? Fine - I'll marry you. I'll make you Mrs. Hamilton. But Clarissa, get this straight: that title's the only thing you'll ever get from me. My heart, my life - none of it's yours."

Even now, even after everything, he still thought she was just after the title.

Clarissa lowered her lashes, hiding the hollowness in her eyes.

She rubbed the red marks on her chin gently, and said, "Okay. Then just don't forget the concert tonight."

With that, she turned and walked out. Her back was straight, every step calm.

Tonight's concert - it was her final offer.

If he didn't show up, she wasn't going to humiliate herself with that ridiculous 18th proposal.

            
            

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