THE DISABLED HEIRESS, MY EX-HUSBAND WOULD PAY DEARLY.

Lovi still seated in his car, the glow of the dashboard lights reflecting off his face. His jaw was still tight, but now his eyes burned with something sharper—calculation. The name "Oliver" kept ringing in his ears like a slow, mocking echo.

He tapped the steering wheel with a single finger, over and over again. It wasn't just frustration anymore it was disappointment. He had played his cards well. He had spun the perfect narrative, stirred the tension just enough to create panic. He even let go of the money just to build pressure and demand leverage. It should have worked. Cora should have handed him that 20%. He was so close.

But now? Now everything had changed.

Cora was smart. Smarter than he expected. And worse, she wasn't alone anymore. Now someone named Oliver was in the picture, and if Lovie had learned anything in his career, it was this: anyone new in the picture meant one thing interference.

Then he leaned his head back against the seat and muttered to himself, "Fine… if I can't get the 20% from her, I'll just make sure the person she trusts won't be able to hold onto it either."

That's when another memory came flashing back—James.

The same James who had called him in a quiet panic, desperate for help, but very, very generous in his promises.

"Give me Cora's full picture, expose the hand backing her, and I'll give you 10% of ZSZ," James had said. The words weren't a suggestion. They were a bargain… a dangerous one.

And Lovi had accepted, so had things gone right, he would have held 20% from Cora and earned 10% from James— that would have been 30% total. A third of the company, without lifting a pen in the boardroom. And with the right moves, he could've sniffed out James' remaining 20% too. Piece by piece, until ZSZ belonged to him.

But Cora didn't take the bait, now, Lovi had a new plan.

The name Oliver was now at the center of it. Whoever this man was, Lovi was going to find him. He was going to study him, trail him, dig into his past, his financial records, his relationships. Whatever it took. If Oliver was really going to be the one holding that 20%, then Lovie had to know everything, his weakness, his secrets, his price.

Because information, to Lovi, was currency.

And Oliver had just become his next target.

Without wasting anymore time he picked up his phone, opened a blank contact sheet, and typed a single word:

Oliver.

Then he whispered to himself with a smirk forming again,

"Let's see who you really are."

It was the next day.

The soft light from the window spilled into Cora's room, brushing the edge of her bed and crawling over the floor like a gentle reminder that a new day had started. But for Cora, the morning wasn't peaceful.

She sat on the edge of her bed, her robe loosely tied, a mug of tea untouched in her hands.

Her mind was loud.

Even as she dressed for work, every step felt heavier than usual. The neatly folded suit on the chair didn't feel like confidence today. It felt like a mask she had to wear. Because deep down, something else was eating at her, the 20% shares. The decision. The consequences.

Her heels clicked softly across the marble tiles as she made her way downstairs, but her thoughts never stopped racing.

She knew she had to move fast. James wasn't someone who sat quietly. If what Lovi said was true if James was already making moves then she didn't have the luxury of waiting anymore. She needed a solution. A third party. A name. A trustworthy person.

Her mind wandered to Oliver.

He had always been calm, composed, and… real. He never cared about wealth or position. That's what made him different. That's what made her think maybe just maybe he was the right person.

But what if he didn't want it? What if she told him about the shares and he walked away, saying,

"This isn't my world, Cora. Find someone else." That would hurt. Not just the rejection, but the fact that there would be no one left to trust.

Her hand gripped the steering wheel tightly as she pulled into the company's parking lot. The building loomed ahead, tall, pristine, filled with power and pressure. Yet for the first time, she wasn't ready to walk in.

What if she gave it to Robert instead? The thought sat uncomfortably in her chest, like something she didn't want to admit but couldn't shake off. He had been calm, composed, and extremely professional. And something about him, his patience, his kindness… made her curious.

But then again, Malisa's words from yesterday wouldn't leave her head.

"Are you sure Robert doesn't have feelings for you?"

Then Cora sighed deeply, resting her head briefly on the steering wheel. She didn't know what to do. Not yet. Maybe she was overthinking. Maybe she just needed to talk to Oliver. Or Robert. Or… maybe none of them. Maybe she had to find someone else entirely.

But the clock was ticking. And James was not going to wait.

However, despite everything, Cora decided she was going to be the last to panic. No matter how fast James tried to move, she believed she would find a solution, one way or another. That had always been her way. She took a deep breath and reminded herself that fear was not an option. Not now.

As her car rolled gently into the company's compound, she instinctively drove toward her usual parking spot. But just as she turned the corner into the executive parking lane, she hit the brakes hard.

She blinked.

Her spot… was completely transformed.

The concrete space that usually felt cold and formal had now become something out of a romantic movie. The entire area had been carefully decorated with soft rose petals—red, white, and a sprinkle of pink—scattered across the floor in a perfect heart shape. The petals weren't just thrown around randomly; they were arranged neatly like someone had spent a lot of time making sure everything looked perfect. Tiny gold ribbons danced in the morning breeze, tied to short candle-shaped vases that lined the edge of the parking spot.