The Billionaire CEO Betrays his Wife: He wants her back-Chapter 166: The view from here

Lucy pressed a hand to her temple, exhaling slowly as she leaned against the edge of the velvet chaise in the sunroom. The villa was beautiful, of course it was. Caleb never did anything halfway. But the air felt suffocating, like gold walls closing in.

Andrew had finally stopped crying, lulled to sleep by one of the nannies. The silence left behind wasn’t peace, it was pressure. Lucy felt it in every breath.

Caleb watched her from the glass doors, his posture relaxed, a glass of wine dangling from his fingers. He stepped closer.

"You need a break," he said softly, his voice lower now, intimate. "You’ve been through a lot."

Lucy turned, her eyes wary. "I just need a moment to breathe."

Caleb nodded, then gestured toward the double doors leading out to the veranda. "Come. Let me show you something."

She followed him, letting the air of the evening wrap around her as they stepped into the open. The view was stunning, the landscape stretching, hills dusted in the final gold of the sun, the soft ripple of the private pool catching the last light.

"This place," he said, voice reverent, "was meant for a family. For us."

Lucy’s jaw tightened slightly, but she let the words settle.

"It’s beautiful," she said, though her gaze was still on the horizon. "But beauty doesn’t stop the chaos."

He stepped closer behind her, a little too close, his hand gently sliding over her waist. "You don’t need to hold it all together anymore," he whispered. "You have me now. Everything you need, everything you want, is right here."

His hand moved slowly, deliberately, fingers grazing the curve of her hip. Lucy didn’t stop him.

She could feel his desire pressing close, his breath shallow, his gaze hungry. He was always like this. So easily drawn to her body, so easily intoxicated by her presence.

And that power... twisted as it was... it thrilled her.

She turned to face him, slowly, her lips parted just enough to make his breath catch. Her eyes locked onto his, sharp and unreadable.

"You really want me to forget everything?" she asked.

"I want you to feel something good," he replied.

Her fingers brushed down the front of her dress, smoothing the fabric as she pulled it up to her waist level. She leaned in, her voice just above a whisper.

"Then make me forget."

Caleb’s jaw flexed as if trying to keep control. He reached for her, lips brushing her neck, hands roaming with heat and reverence. She let her head fall back, eyes fluttering shut, caught somewhere between manipulation and need, between escape and control.

They kissed like people who had built their house on lies and, for now, were content to live inside it.

The hall was dark, silent, but alive, like the walls themselves held their breath.

Mara and Rafael crouched low behind a pillar near the guest wing. From inside the nursery, soft lullabies played over the speaker system. But they could still hear the quiet hum of protest from baby Andrew. He was tired. Restless. Whimpering.

And the nanny? Still there. Still rocking him, calm and unaware of the storm building just a few rooms away.

Rafael touched Mara’s arm gently. "Now’s not the time."

Mara’s jaw was tight, her voice barely audible. "I’m not leaving him."

"I know," he whispered. "But we’re outnumbered. And she’s still his legal guardian until the court says otherwise. One wrong move and we lose everything."

Mara wiped at the tears she hadn’t realized were running down her cheek. "He’s right there. I can hear him. I can feel him."

"I know."

Before Rafael could say anything else, they heard it. Footsteps.

Voices.

Panicked.

They moved quickly, ducking behind a decorative screen at the far end of the hallway. But instead of a closet or stairwell, they found themselves stepping straight into the adjoining room.

And froze.

It was dimly lit, the glass doors wide open to the veranda.

And there, on the outdoor couch beneath the shadow of the twilight sky, were Lucy and Caleb.

Mara covered her mouth instantly as a gasp caught in her throat. She and Rafael backed against the wall, breath hitched, unable to move or speak. frёeωebɳovel.com

Lucy was straddling Celeb, their bodies tangled in passion and chaos. Her dress was hiked up, her mouth open in a twisted combination of pleasure and power. Celeb’s hands gripped her waist, his voice guttural, nearly incoherent with lust.

Mara’s stomach churned. It was like watching something unholy.

Rafael tugged her arm, whispering harshly, "Don’t. We need to get out of here."

But Mara couldn’t take her eyes off Lucy. This woman has my son. She has my child while she’s out here pretending to be something she’s not. Playing house. Living a lie.

Suddenly, Lucy froze mid-movement, her eyes darting to the landscape behind Celeb.

She stiffened.

"Is that... your car?" she asked, her breathless voice cutting through the air.

Celeb, still caught in his rhythm, barely looked up. "What?"

She shoved his shoulder. "That black SUV. Is that yours?"

Celeb turned his head lazily, his chest heaving. "No."

Her expression changed. The lust vanished. Fear replaced it.

She pushed him off. "He’s here. Ethan. He found us."

Celeb cursed and immediately lunged for the intercom on the wall. Still shirtless, he barked into the system: "Security, check the perimeter. Now! Someone’s here."

Mara and Rafael exchanged a look. They had no time.

Already, flashlights from security guards began sweeping across the windows outside. Heavy boots echoed through the lower level.

"We’ve gotta move," Rafael hissed, grabbing Mara’s wrist.

They crept back out into the corridor, hearts pounding. The nanny was still inside the nursery, humming now, gently rocking Andrew.

Mara turned toward the door.

Rafael pulled her back. "Stef. Please. We don’t have phones. We don’t have evidence. If we’re caught, they’ll charge us with kidnapping. You could lose him for good."

Tears welled up again, this time sharp and helpless. "I can’t leave him, Raf."

"You’re not. You’re coming back with Ethan, with the court order, with proof. You’re going to walk into that courtroom and rip her lies apart one by one. But not like this."

She looked at Andrew through the cracked nursery door, his small form curled in a bassinet, a soft glow from the lamp overhead bathing his cheeks in gold.

"I’m sorry, Raf," Mara whispered, her voice trembling but unyielding. "I won’t leave my child with that monster, not for one more second." She yanked her hand from Rafael’s grasp, her fingers lingering like a ghost before falling away. She had already lost too much, spent too many days staring into the hollow absence where her son should’ve been. And now? Now, she’d burn the whole world down before she lost another minute.

Rafael saw the storm in her eyes and the way grief had sharpened into something feral and wild. He could see the danger ahead, a thousand ways this could go wrong, and not a single path that didn’t end in blood. He wanted to save and drag her from there, but how do you rescue someone who’s already decided to burn?

And still, he understood. Oh, God, he understood the pain of a mother mourning a child still breathing, stolen from her arms. It was a sorrow that twisted the soul into something unrecognizable.

"There’s still time," he murmured, his voice thick with dread. "Mara, please... run."

But she was already walking toward the storm.