Later, at a fancy restaurant…

Just as Victoria and I settled in, I spotted Jasper with his new sweetheart, Luna. They were practically leaning into each other, whispering sweet nothings. Luna was beaming, completely smitten.

Victoria rolled her eyes. “What awful luck. Let’s go eat somewhere else, Elara.”

“Nah, we’re here. Let’s stay.” I waved over the waiter and quickly ordered our food. Then I got up, winked at Victoria, and said with a playful grin, “I’m just heading to the restroom.”

Victoria muttered, “I have a feeling she’s up to something…”

In the bathroom, I made a quick phone call, ready to head back to our table when I almost bumped into Luna, who was rushing in.

“Oh, it’s you,” she said coolly. “For a second, I thought it was someone important.”

I started to move past her, not interested in a confrontation, especially since I’d already set my plan in motion. “Excuse me.”

But Luna, clearly excited, smirked. “Excuse me? Are you trying to hand over your husband to me?”

“You do realize Jasper’s my man now, right? We’re getting married soon, and you’re just the ex. Still think you can compete with me?”

I stared at this woman, completely baffled by what was going through her head. If I let this anger fester, I’d probably end up with some kind of stress-related illness.

“Seriously, why don’t you just get lost? You’re bragging about snagging the trash I threw out. What’s there to be proud of?”

I grabbed a tissue from the bathroom and stuffed it into her mouth. “You yap too much. That’s all you’re good for.”

Then I shoved her aside, washed my hands, and walked out quickly.

When Victoria saw my pale face, she looked concerned. “Did you run into that bitch?”

She had noticed Luna heading to the bathroom earlier and was clearly worried.

“It’s nothing,” I replied, forcing a smile. “Just ran into a maniac.”

We exchanged a knowing look and started to laugh. The food arrived, and we dug in, enjoying our meal.

But it didn’t take long before Luna dragged Jasper over, pointing at me. “This woman is bullying me, Jasper! She’s your wife!”

Jasper, seeing the look on my face, sighed. “Elara, I know I’ve wronged you, but we’re divorced now. Why are you still picking on Luna?”

“Who said I bullied her? Where’s the witness, the evidence, the video?”

Luna looked flustered, clearly not expecting me to deny it so boldly.

Luna looked puzzled. She didn’t expect me to flatly deny it. “You have the nerve to bully people but not to own up to it.”

I shook my head. “If I had the nerve to bully, I’d have the nerve to admit it. But there’s nothing to admit.”

“Besides, I’m not interested in your man or in you. So please, stay away from me.”

I thought I was being pretty straightforward, and Jasper’s expression shifted. Luna, even more enraged, stomped her feet.

Jasper, seeing my firm stance, turned to Luna and said, “Luna, I understand you’re feeling insecure.”

“But don’t worry, Elara and I have broken up. We’re actually divorced. We really have nothing to do with each other.”

“So, stop trying to set her up.”

Luna’s eyes widened in shock. Who would have thought that Jasper didn’t believe her? Furious and humiliated, she glared at me, then stomped her feet and ran out in tears.

Jasper rushed after her, but was stopped at the restaurant entrance.

The waiter said politely, “Mr. Parker, you haven’t paid yet.”

“Please use my membership card.”

The waiter then added awkwardly, “Mr. Parker, that’s Miss Youngs’s card.”

Yes, Miss Youngs is me, Elara.

Jasper quickly pulled out a bank card and said, “Use this one.”

But when the card was swiped, a cold, mechanical voice announced, “Your card has been frozen.”

Jasper was taken aback. He fumbled through his wallet and tossed several cards onto the counter, each one showing the same message: frozen.

Out of money?

Jasper looked a bit confused, and after a moment of stunned silence, he seemed to realize he’d made a mistake...

I thought that my interactions with Jasper were done and dusted, but I didn’t expect we’d cross paths again so soon because of Alexia.

It was time for elementary school dismissal, and I had a last-minute meeting, so I asked my assistant to pick up my daughter, Alexia.

Half an hour later, my assistant called me in a panic, saying Alexia was missing!

I nearly lost it. I dropped everything and rushed out to find her.

As I was speeding towards the school, I got a call from Luna, calmly telling me that Alexia was at her place. Furious, I headed straight there, using the location Luna gave me.

Jasper was standing at the door with a smile.

Without thinking, I slapped him across the face. “Who gave you the right to take Alexia Fletcher away?”

Jasper was shocked; he’d never seen me this angry before. He stammered, “I just wanted to see Alexia.”

“If you wanted to see her, why didn’t you tell me first?”

Jasper opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, Luna stormed over and snapped, “How could you hit him? Jasper is Alexia’s father, and you’re her mother. Don’t you think Alexia wants you two to get along?”

I took a deep breath, then slapped Luna in the face. “Stay out of it.”

Alexia, who had been watching the whole thing, looked a bit scared but didn’t hesitate to run into my arms.

“Mom, I’m sorry. I thought you knew. My phone watch died, so I couldn’t call you.”

I gently stroked her hair and tried to keep my voice calm. “It’s okay, Alexia. It’s not your fault. I should have reminded you.”

She nodded earnestly. “I won’t do it again, Mom.”

Luna, still trying to meddle, said, “Alexia, didn’t you say you miss your dad? Don’t you feel suffocated by your mom’s control? You could stay with me for a while.”

Alexia’s small eyebrows knitted together, and she responded coldly, “Auntie, you’re the home-wrecker here. I only feel disgust towards you. Know your place.”

Luna’s face turned beet red with anger.

I couldn’t help but smile and gave Alexia a thumbs up. That’s my girl!

I grabbed Alexia’s hand and started to leave.

As we were walking away, Luna called after me, “Miss Youngs, Jasper regrets giving up custody of Alexia.”

I sneered and turned back to Jasper. “Are you regretting giving up custody, or are you regretting starting over with nothing?”

Jasper lowered his head, avoiding my eyes. After a long pause, he finally spoke up, “Elara, can you let Alexia stay with me, for Luna’s sake?”

I let out a cold laugh. “Jasper, our divorce agreement clearly states you leave with nothing and I have full custody. Are you really thinking of challenging me in court for custody now?”

Luna, not far behind, chimed in, “Elara, don’t be so full of yourself. We’ll take you to court.”

“Anytime you’re ready!” I shot back, walking away with Alexia.

Later that night, after Alexia had fallen asleep, I went to my study where several lawyers were waiting for me on a video call.

“Mr. Parker currently has no stable income, no assets, and average living conditions. Plus, he’s planning to remarry, so he doesn’t have a stronger case for custody than you do,” one of the lawyers explained.

“Changing custody in his favor is nearly impossible,” another lawyer added, citing similar cases.

But after the call ended, an uneasy feeling crept over me, as if something beyond my control was brewing...