The Billionaire Regret

‎‎Chapter One

‎‎The lights burned too bright. The music was too loud. The laughter stung like knives. And there I was, on my knees in front of my husband, begging him not to humiliate me.

‎‎"Daniel, please," I whispered, clutching his wrist, my nails biting into his skin as though I could anchor him to me. "Not here. Not like this."

‎‎His lips curled, not in pity but in that cruel smirk I had seen too many times behind closed doors. Tonight, he wanted the world to see it. He wanted them to watch me break.

‎‎Around us, the glittering hall fell silent. I could hear the faint clink of a champagne glass being set down, the faint shuffle of expensive heels against marble. People were staring. They loved it. They lived for it. Ava Reynolds, wife of Daniel Cobbs, the billionaire everyone called untouchable, was on her knees, pleading like a beggar at a royal court.

‎‎Daniel leaned down, close enough for only me to hear, though I knew he wanted me to repeat it aloud. "You should have thought about dignity before marrying me."

‎‎My chest tightened. I opened my mouth, but no sound came out.

‎‎Then he yanked his arm free and stepped into the spotlight. The lights hit him, catching the sharp angles of his face. A perfect king in his throne room. And then, with deliberate cruelty, he reached for her.

‎‎Elizabeth Sterl.

‎‎Her gown glittered in silver sequins that clung to her curves. Her smile was soft, innocent to the untrained eye, but to me it was a knife sliding between my ribs. Daniel pulled her forward by the hand. Gasps rippled through the crowd like fire catching dry leaves.

‎‎"What is he doing?"

‎‎"Isn't that Elizabeth Sterl? The model?"

‎‎"They say he's been seen with her..."

‎‎"Oh my God, Ava is right there."

‎‎Every whisper was a dagger. My ears rang as Daniel raised Elizabeth's hand to his lips and kissed it slowly, savoring the sight of me watching. My knees pressed harder against the marble floor, the pain sharp, humiliating, real. He wanted me to hurt. He wanted them to see.

‎‎Then he said the words that shattered everything.

‎‎"Ladies and gentlemen," his voice carried effortlessly across the hall, smooth and steady like he had rehearsed it. "I think it's time to end this charade. I am divorcing Ava Reynolds. Effective immediately."

‎‎The world tilted.

‎‎For a heartbeat, silence. No music, no laughter, no polite coughs. Just a stunned, breathless pause before the room erupted.

‎‎"Divorcing her? Here? Tonight?"

‎‎"Is he insane?"

‎‎"Or maybe she deserves it. You know how these society marriages go."

‎‎"She begged him on her knees. Pathetic."

‎‎"She has no pride left."

‎‎Laughter bubbled, harsh and cruel, mixed with gasps and shrieks. Phones were raised instantly, flashes going off like fireworks. Some recorded me, my humiliation framed forever, while others zoomed in on Daniel's proud stance and Elizabeth's sly little smile.

‎‎"Did you get that? Oh my God,