The Billionaire CEO Betrays his Wife: He wants her back-Chapter 115: I’m leaving

The office was quiet too quiet. The hum of the AC, the clicking of distant keyboards, the soft muffled footsteps of paralegals... it all grated on Mara’s nerves.

She slammed the folder shut.

Ethan.

She bit her lip hard enough to sting. Her eyes stung worse.

She had no idea why she was so surprised. Ethan had always been like this. A master of apologies, a poet when it came to promises. But lies? Lies rolled off his tongue like honey.

She should’ve known.

Six months. Just six more months and the divorce would be finalized. Six months and she’d no longer have to answer to him. No more tie to him. No more pretending she wasn’t wondering where he was or who he was with.

But none of that made it hurt any less.

"You okay?"

The voice pulled her out of her spiral. Steve, leaned against the door frame of her office, brow furrowed with concern, he knew she wasn’t and he already heard about the win.

"I’m fine," Mara said quickly, maybe too quickly. She grabbed her bag and rose to her feet.

Steve didn’t push, he had to learn to give her sister space when it came to Ethan, he only hoped she would get over him. "If you need to punch something, the break room printer’s jammed." A smile tried to sneak onto her lips, but it couldn’t quite find its way.

Outside

The breeze outside was sharp, and Mara welcomed it. Anything to cool her burning thoughts.

She wasn’t even five steps out when a familiar voice called her name.

"Stef."

She turned and saw Rafael standing there.

His hair was tousled, his skin sun-kissed as always, and his eyes those warm, kind eyes looked almost... sad.

"You look tired," he said softly.

"I am," she replied honestly.

There was a pause. He stepped closer, one hand loosely holding his passport.

"I’m leaving," he said.

Her heart dropped a little. "Leaving?"

"For humanitarian work. Six months. Refugee outreach in Buganda."

Of course, he was. That was Rafael. Selfless, brave. Always chasing something bigger than himself. And never staying still long enough for her to catch him.

"Why now?" she asked quietly.

He smiled bittersweet, that kind of smile you give when goodbye is inevitable. "Because it’s time. And because... I needed to tell you something first."

She blinked. "What?"

"I love you, Stefania Sheperd, the very moment I got to know you."

Her breath caught.

"I’ve loved you for a while," he continued, eyes never leaving hers. "But I wasn’t ready. Not emotionally, not practically. And you were and still are married. I told myself it didn’t matter."

"But now... I’m leaving, and I won’t be able to sleep at night if I don’t tell you the truth. I love you. And I hope that when I come back, you’ll be a free woman. So I can finally pursue you. Proudly. Fully."

Tears threatened the edges of her vision. "Rafael..."

"I know you’re hurting," he added gently. "And I’m not asking for anything right now. I just needed you to know. That someone sees you. Someone still believes you deserve better."

She nodded, her voice gone.

He leaned in, kissed her forehead softly, and whispered, "Take care of your heart, Stef, and those precious souls in there. I’ll see you in six months."

Then he turned and walked away, passport in hand, mission ahead of him.

Mara stood there long after he was gone, eyes fixed on the corner he disappeared behind.

She wished she could tell him to stay.

She wished she didn’t feel like crying again.

She wished Ethan had never touched her world.

But most of all, she wished just once she could feel whole without having to heal from someone else’s damage.

Ethan was on his way out of the law firm paperwork in hand, mind numb when he spotted him.

Rafael.

The man was leaning against a pillar just outside the entrance, a small backpack slung over one shoulder, looking far too peaceful for someone Ethan had always known he had feelings for his wife.

Rafael saw him too. And for a moment, the world held its breath. "Ethan," Rafael said first, nodding. Ethan’s eyes narrowed. "Rafael."

They hadn’t spoken since their divorce hearing. They always seem tense but always polite.

But now, with the whole world burning around Ethan, Rafael’s calm felt like gasoline to his fire. "You’re leaving?" Ethan asked, gesturing to the bag. "Humanitarian mission. Six months."

Ethan raised an eyebrow. "Just as everything falls apart for me. I found that surprising, you are leaving to give me the chance to win my wife back, quite a fine gentleman you are."

Rafael didn’t bite. "This isn’t about you, Ethan." Ethan took a step closer, voice low and bitter. "You told her, didn’t you?" Rafael held his gaze, silent for a beat. Then nodded. "Yes. I told Stef I love her."

There it was. No theatrics. No anger. Just truth.

Ethan’s throat went dry. "You waited until I was at my lowest to tell her that?"

"I waited until she was free enough to hear it," Rafael said gently. "You broke her. Long before Lucy came into the picture. I thought I would stay away and give you a chance to make it up to her but now this? I have so much respect for her to still hang around her while she is still married to you even if it’s just on paper,"

Ethan clenched his jaw. "You don’t know what happened."

"I don’t need to. I’ve seen how Stef looks at you with hope, even when you didn’t deserve it. And now, she looks like she’s trying to survive her own heart."

"I didn’t sleep with Maria-Isabel and certainly not with Lucy," Ethan snapped, voice rising.

"I hope that’s true. For her sake," Rafael replied, cool and steady. "But it doesn’t matter anymore. The damage is done."

Ethan looked away, jaw working. "You’re just waiting for the dust to settle so you can swoop in."

"No," Rafael said, surprisingly firm. "I’m hoping that when I come back, she’s healed enough to choose for herself. And if it’s not me, I’ll walk away. But if she does choose me... I’ll never hurt her the way you did."

That stung more than Ethan wanted to admit.

"I love her," Ethan whispered.

"You do?" Rafael replied. "Sometimes love isn’t enough when it’s built on broken trust."

He stepped past Ethan, pausing just long enough to say, "Take care of your mess. Or don’t. But when I come back, I’ll be ready to love her right."

And with that, he walked away.

Ethan stood frozen, watching Rafael disappear into the distance, the same way Mara had disappeared from his life with quiet finality.

For the first time, he wasn’t angry. He was terrified.

Because someone else, someone good had told Mara everything she deserved to hear. Someone who hadn’t needed to betray her first to realize her worth.

Ethan still didn’t know what happened that night with Lucy. But if he didn’t uncover the truth, he wasn’t just going to lose his firm.

He was going to lose his chance with her.

And this time, forever.