He threw money on the bed after our one-night stand.
I threw it back in his face at his own inauguration.
By sundown, we were engaged. By the week's end — married.
Franklin Flemington needed a wife to secure his empire. I needed a miracle to save my family. For two years, we played our parts flawlessly — the golden couple the whole city envied.
Behind closed doors, I was invisible to him.
When the two years were up, I handed him divorce papers without blinking.
He stared at me like I'd lost my mind. "I've given you everything a husband should. What more do you want from me, Octavia?"
I smiled, signed my name, and walked out.
I thought that was the end. I thought I'd finally won.
I forgot one thing — Franklin Flemington has never lost anything in his life. And he has no intention of starting with me.
Game on.

The halls of Manhattan General felt different today. They no longer smelled of uncertainty and lingering grief; they smelled of a beginning. Franklin and I walked toward Frederick's suite, our footsteps echoing in a rhythmic harmony. 


Franklin walked with a cane, a silver-headed accessory that added to his aura of resilience rather than detracting from his strength.


When we reached the ward, the silence inside was heavy with the weight of a long-awaited reunion. I stopped just inside the doorway, my fingers laced together, watching the two men who defined the Flemington legacy. 


Franklin sat on the edge of the bed, his posture stiff, his eyes locked onto the man who had traded his own safety for Franklin's life.


"Grandpa," Franklin whispered, his voice cracking.


Frederick's gaze shifted slowly. He was still frail, his skin pale against the white linens, but the sharpness in his eyes was unmistakable. He was back.


Chapter 203 - ~ 203