bChapter /b91

OLIVIA’S POV

Since bI /bcame to this ceb, /bI’d managed to maintain a steady bnceb–/bemotionally, at leastb. /bNo matter what happened, I always made it a rule to wake up and start the day with a positive mindset. But not today.

This morning felt different.

bI /bwoke up irritated, my mood sour before I even got out of bed. And I knew bexactly /bwhy–Adrian. Every time he’s around, it’s like my peace takes a hit. The man can get under my skin like no one else. It’s almost as if he goes out of his way to push my buttons and today? Today was no exception.

He did this on purpose. I bwas /bsure of it.

Clenching the empty tube of toothpaste in my hand, I walked out of the bathroom, shoulders squared. My arms folded tightly against my chest bas /bbI /bstood just in front of him, my foot tapping against the floor in annoyance.

He bwas /bon a call–figures. Probably talking about something “important.” But I didn’t care. This? This was important too.

I cleared my throat deliberately. Loud enough to catch his attention.

He finally turned, his brows raised, expression calm. “I’ll call you back in a few minutes,” he said to the person on the other end before removing his Bluetooth ear pods and slipping them into his pocket.

Then, he looked at me–smug, unreadable, and annoyinglyposed. “Is there a problem?”

I didn’t bother masking my irritation. “As a matter of fact, yesb. /bA very big one.”

He leaned slightly against the table, his head tilting with feigned interest. “And what might that be?” he asked like he didn’t already know.

“You moved my shoes again. How hard is it to respect boundariesb?/bb” /b

He blinked. “Really? That’s why you’re acting like your world’s falling apart? You interrupted ba /bbcall /bover shoes?b” /b

“Don’t y dumb,” I snapped, stepping further into the room. “You know exactly what you did. And since when did that side of the closet be your territory?”

“That’s funny,” he said, standing up straight nowb. /b“I don’t recall us drawing lines in a shared closet. But since you asked, it stopped being just your side the day you decided to color–code it like you own the whole thing.”

I raised the now–ttened toothpaste in my hand and shook it at him. “And let’s talk about this. Could you stop using my toothpaste?”

He nced bat /bit, then shrugged casually. “I ran out. What’s the big deal?b” /b

I scoffed. “You bran /bout? bNo/bb, /byou’re just doing this bto /bbget /bat me because it’s not the first time you’ve been using my bpaste/bb, /bwould you bsay /bbyou /bran out ball /bthose btires /btoo?b” /b

“There is literally more than one toothpaste in this house. Why bare /byou acting like Imitted a crime?b” /b

“It’s not about the toothpaste!” I snapped. “It’s about you not respecting boundaries. You just walk in and act like everything belongs to you.”

He let bout /bba /bsmall chuckleb, /band that smirk on his bface /bmade my blood boil even more. “bThat’s /bbecause I do. Or did you bforget/bb?/bb” /b

There bit /bbwas/b. That arrogant, entitled tone made me want to throw something at him. “And bthere /byou go again,” bI /bsaid, shaking my bhead/b. b“/bYou know whatb? /bI’m not going to let you ruin my mood. I actually have ns today.”

I turned to leave, thinking the argument was finally bover/bb–/bthinking I could walk away victorious for onceb. /bBut bof /bbcourse/b, he couldn’t let that happen

“You have ns? To go see byour /bblover /bbJulian /bor to go learn how to spend more bof /bmy moneyb?/bb” /bAdrian’s bvoice /bdripped with bsarcasm/b, but beneath the bsurface/b, bI /bbcaught /bsomething elseb–/bbjealousy/bb. /bHe tried to hide it bwith /bhis busual /bsmug expressionb, /bbut it bwas /bthere. bClear /bas bday/b.

bI /bnarrowed my eyes bat /bhimb. /b“Julian is bjust /bba /bfriend, I’ve told you that more than a dozen times. And I still bdon’t /bunderstand why byou /bbcare /bwhen nothing is going on between bus/b” I said b“/bAnd ifor /ithe record, you breally /bthink spending your money is all I’m good bfor/b? Well, bFYI/bb, /bbefore we bgot /bmarried, I had ns. Real ones. I had job offersb, /band proposals to start bup /bmy bown /bbusinessb–/bsomething that was mine. Not to end up stuck in this cold house with ba /bbman /bwho doesn’t even like mint toothpaste.b” /b

There was a long, tense silence.

Then finally, bin /bba /bmuch calmer toneb, /bbhe /baskedb, /bb“/bYou had business ideasb?/b”

I scoffed, folding my arms tightly. b“/bYes. bBut /byou wouldn’t know that would you? Because you never bothered to ask.”

11:34 AM

Adrian’s eyes softened a littleb, /band he looked genuinely surprised. “What else don’t I know about you?”

That question… threw me off. I wasn’t expecting it. I had prepared for another snidement, not curiosity. My guard faltered.

“A lot,” I said quietly, “but it’s not like any of it matters now, does bit/b?”

Adrian didn’t bsay /banything right away. Instead, he moved slowly back to the couch where he had been beforeb, /bsinking into the cushions like he suddenly had a weight to carry. There was a different look on his face–less of the usual arrogance, more like someone trying to understand something that had long been right in front of them but never noticed.

“It does actually,” he said, his voice more grounded. “And I’d like to hear a few if you don’t mind. I’ll try not to mess up your closet while I listen.”

bI /bstared at him. This wasn’t part of the n. I had somewhere to be, things to do, people to meet. But for some reason, I stayed rooted to the spot. Maybe it was the way he asked. Maybe it was the fact that–for the first time since this marriage–he actually seemed interested in knowing something real about me.

With a small sigh, bI /bwalked over to where my phone was charging, unplugged it, and scrolled to a folder I hadn’t opened in months. I hesitated for a second, then carried the phone over and sat down beside him. Close–but not too close.

I handed him the phone. “These bwere /bsome of my pitches,” I said, trying not to sound too bitter. “I had a passion for natural skincare. Wanted to make affordable, chemical–free productsb. /bThese are product mockups and vendor contacts I’d collected before… all this.”

Adrian nced through the screen slowly, scrolling through the detailed notes, designs, and even a few sketches I’d done by hand. He bwas /bsilent again, but this time it didn’t feel dismissive. It felt like he was actually paying attention.

“This bis /breally good,” he finally said. “You should’ve told me about this sooner.”

I gave a shortugh. “Told you? You wouldn’t have cared. You were too busy believing I was just someone living off your fortune.”

He nced at me, and for the first time, he didn’t argue. “Maybe I was wrong,” he said simply.

And just like that, for the first time since we said our vows, we were sitting next to each otherb–/bnot arguing, not pretending–but talking.

And somehow, that bwas /bscarier than all the fights we’d had.