The Wife he threw Away (Claire and Lucian) novel Chapter 204

CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED AND FOUR EVA’S POV

The lawsuit had been filed.

The press conference was over.

And my life was falling apart.

I sat alone in my penthouse, staring at the television mounted across the room.

Every channel was covering the same story.

Every network, every commentator, every news anchor had the same names on their tongue.

Lucian Dhark. Eva Sterling.

They talked about the lawsuit. The allegations.

Me.

I switched channels, but the story followed.

Again.

And again.

And again.

I must have switched to thirty different Chanel’s before I finally resigned to the fact that there was no getting away from it.

This story would probably be the scandal of the decade.

And my name was sitting beneath every headline, my face appearing beside every discussion panel.

For the first time since my career had taken off as a young woman-

I was losing the public.

The realization tasted bitter.

I hated it.

The television continued playing.

A clip from the press conference.

Lucian stood behind the podium.

Cold.

Composed.

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ALSA TWO HUNDRED AND FOUR FVAS POV

Controlled.

The same way he always looked when he was destroying someone.

“That report belonged to Eva Sterling.”

I froze.

The words echoed through the room.

The clip replayed immediately.

Then again.

Then again.

“That report belonged to Eva Sterling.”

My fingers tightened around the remote.

Because now everyone knew.

Everyone.

There was no speculation anymore.

No rumors.

No uncertainty.

The entire country knew the infertility diagnosis wasn’t Claire’s.

It was mine.

Mine.

Another clip appeared.

A different reporter.

A different question.

A different answer.

“I owe Claire Moreau far more than an apology.”

I switched the television off immediately.

The silence that followed somehow felt worse.

Because I knew exactly what that meant.

I always had.

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TOMA-56 TWO HUNDRED AND FOUR EVAS POV

God.

That stupid woman.

That pathetic woman.

Even after everything.

Even after the divorce.

Even after all these years.

Claire Moreau still occupied space inside Lucian’s heart that I had never been able to touch.

The realization made something ugly twist inside my chest.

Because that was the thing I feared most.

Not prison.

Not lawsuits.

Not losing endorsements.

Not losing money.

Not even Hart getting caught.

No.

The thing I feared most was Lucian publicly choosing Claire.

My entire victory had depended on convincing myself she never mattered.

That Lucian had left her because she was forgettable.

Replaceable.

Weak.

The press conference had destroyed that illusion in less than an hour.

My phone rang.

I glanced at the screen.

Nathan Brooks.

My manager.

I answered immediately.

“What?”

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CHALIN TWO HUNDRED AND FOUR, EVAS FOV

His panic hit me before he even finished speaking.

“Eva, we’ve got a problem.”

“Obviously.”

Several seconds of uncomfortable silence followed.

Then:

“Three sponsors just suspended negotiations.”

I closed my eyes.

“Two endorsement deals are being reviewed.”

My jaw tightened.

“And a cosmetics company is terminating your contract effective immediately.”

I laughed.

A short, humorless sound.

Of course.

Of course they were.

Cowards.

All of them.

The moment public opinion shifted, everyone suddenly developed principles.

“We’re working on damage control,” Nathan continued quickly.

“Investors are nervous.”

“Nervous?”

I snapped.

“Nervous?”

My voice rose sharply.

“They weren’t nervous when Lucian was being dragged through the mud for months.”

Silence.

“They weren’t nervous when people were calling him an abuser.”

Still silence.

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THAT TWO HUNDRED AND TOUR EVAS POV

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“But suddenly they’re concerned now?”

“Eva-”

I ended the call.

Hard.

My pulse thundered.

Anger surged through me.

Hot.

Violent.

Uncontrollable.

Because this wasn’t supposed to happen to me.

This was supposed to happen to Lucian.

Not me.

Never me.

My phone rang again.

I almost ignored it.

Then I saw the name.

Hart. Again.

I answered immediately. “Hart-”

“I want Lucian Dhark dead.”

His voice was calm. Dangerously calm.

Every instinct I possessed immediately sharpened.

Hart Sullivan was many things- I knew that better than anyone. But calm? Calm was never a good sign.

The man had watched every second of the conference.

I knew it.

Every question, every answer, every insult Lucian Dhark had thrown his way.

Especially the insults.

“Eva’s rabid dog.”

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HAING TWO HUNDRED AND FOUR FVAS POV

I was standing alone in a collapsing penthouse, surrounded by things I could no longer protect.

The television screen reflected my own face back at me.

For once, I barely recognized the woman staring back.

And somewhere deep inside me-

A terrible realization began to form.

Maybe this wasn’t a scandal anymore.

Maybe this was the beginning of the end.

Claire Ree

Author

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