All Chapters of The Wife He Chose Too Late: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

52 Chapters

31. The Last Gala

Claire's POVThe moment I stepped through the staff entrance the familiar energy of the Laurent Foundation Gala wrapped itself around me.People hurried through the backstage corridors carrying flower arrangements, clipboards, trays of champagne and boxes of last-minute decorations. Someone was speaking urgently into a headset while another employee disappeared through the ballroom doors with a stack of place cards balanced against her chest.For a brief second, I simply stood there.This world had always felt different from the one waiting beyond the grand entrance. Guests only saw crystal chandeliers, smiling waiters and perfectly timed speeches. They never saw the dozens of people working behind the scenes to make sure every detail fell into place.It had always been my favourite part.Before I could take another step someone looked up from a seating chart."Claire!"Emily, one of the event coordinators, hurried towards me so quickly that several loose pages slipped from the clipbo

32. The Last Gala Part 2

Claire's POVThe auction display turned out to be far less dramatic than everyone had feared.One of the framed photographs had been placed on the wrong easel, causing the item numbers to no longer match the catalogue. It took less than five minutes to correct, yet by the time we finished, three more members of staff were already waiting for me with new questions.I couldn't help smiling.Some things never changed."Claire?"I turned to find Daniel, the hotel's banquet manager, weaving his way through the growing crowd backstage."I've got a small problem.""Only one?" I teased.He laughed. "So far.""What happened?""The pianist arrived almost forty minutes early.""Is he in the green room?"Daniel nodded. "He is now.""Good." I looked at my watch. "Have someone take him some coffee while he waits. He always asks for it before he performs."Daniel blinked. "I forgot about that.""I didn't."A grateful smile spread across his face. "I honestly don't know what we're going to do without

33. One Last Ride

Claire's POVBy the time the charity auction came to an end, the atmosphere around the waterfront had changed completely.The formal speeches were over, the final donation figures had been announced, and the guests had begun drifting away from the ballroom onto the promenade overlooking the river. Soft music floated through the evening air while waiters moved between small groups carrying trays of champagne and desserts. Laughter replaced business conversations, and for the first time all night, people were simply enjoying themselves.I stood near the registration desk, quietly checking one last list on my tablet before handing it back to one of the coordinators."Everything's finished," I said with a smile. "You can finally relax."The young woman laughed in relief. "I wasn't sure we'd survive tonight.""You survived.""Barely." She shook her head before lowering her voice. "Thank you for everything, Claire."Before I could answer, another member of staff hurried towards me."Claire,

34. One Last Ride Part 2

Claire’s POVI should have walked away.The thought crossed my mind more than once as Damien and I made our way toward the Ferris wheel with the last group of guests.The waterfront looked beautiful at night. Strings of warm lights reflected across the river while soft music drifted from the ballroom behind us. Couples strolled hand in hand, children laughed as they ran between their parents, and the giant Ferris wheel turned slowly against the Manhattan skyline.For a few moments, it almost felt peaceful.Damien glanced sideways at me. "You still have time to change your mind."I looked up at the enormous wheel towering above us and sighed."I've been trying to change my mind since we left the ballroom."A quiet chuckle escaped him. "I knew you'd say that.""I wasn't joking.""I know." His smile lingered. "You'll survive."I looked at him. "If I don't, I'm haunting you."He laughed properly this time, the sound warm and effortless. "I suppose I'd deserve it.""You definitely would."

35. The Collapse

Damien's POV"No!"The word ripped itself from my throat just as another deafening crack split the night.Time seemed to slow.One of the Ferris wheel's massive support columns folded inward with a scream of twisting steel, and for one impossible heartbeat the entire structure hung suspended, balanced between standing and falling. Every person on the waterfront stopped moving. Hundreds of eyes lifted toward the towering wheel as though willing it to remain upright.Then gravity won the Ferris wheel lurched forward and people screamed.The enormous structure groaned under its own weight as gondolas swung wildly through the air, smashing into one another with explosions of shattered glass. Steel twisted like paper, bolts fired from the framework and ricocheted across the pier, and the sound of tearing metal swallowed every other noise around us."Claire!"I tore free from the operator and ran. Someone shouted behind me and another person grabbed for my arm but I threw them off without e

36. The Long Night

Damien's POVThe first rescue boat reached the wreckage within minutes.Its powerful spotlight swept across the collapsed Ferris wheel, illuminating twisted steel jutting from the Hudson like the broken bones of some enormous beast. Firefighters climbed carefully over the mangled framework while rescue divers stood at the edge of the boat, fastening oxygen tanks onto their backs before disappearing beneath the black water one after another.The moment the first diver surfaced, every person waiting behind the police barricades held their breath. He shook his head and nobody spoke as he disappeared beneath the water again.The waterfront no longer resembled the place where hundreds of people had laughed and celebrated only an hour earlier. Music had been replaced by sirens. Champagne glasses had been replaced by shattered concrete covered in broken steel and glass. The warm lights from the gala had given way to floodlights so bright they turned the night into an eerie imitation of dayl

37. Missing

Damien's POVMorning arrived without anyone noticing.The darkness that had hidden the wreckage gave way to pale grey skies, revealing the full devastation left behind. What had once been a Ferris wheel now lay scattered across the waterfront and submerged beneath the Hudson. Twisted steel protruded from the river at impossible angles while cranes, rescue boats and Coast Guard vessels surrounded the collapse like silent sentries.The search hadn't stopped.It had simply grown larger.Police boats patrolled farther downriver while Coast Guard cutters swept across the Hudson toward New York Harbor. Rescue helicopters circled overhead, their blades chopping through the morning air as cameras from news helicopters hovered at a distance, broadcasting the tragedy to millions of people who had gone to sleep believing the Laurent Foundation Gala had been a success.Now every television station carried the same headline.Ferris Wheel Collapse at Charity Gala.Multiple Fatalities Confirmed.One

38. The Memorial

One week had passed.The headlines had changed, but the story hadn't.Every news station in New York carried the same update, though the urgency that had consumed the city during those first desperate days had long since faded. The live broadcasts from the Hudson River had disappeared, the helicopters no longer circled overhead, and the rescue boats that had spent days combing the water had finally returned to their docks.The search was over.Authorities had searched every section of the collapsed Ferris wheel. Divers had descended beneath twisted steel until it became too dangerous to continue. The Coast Guard had expanded the search through the Hudson River, into New York Harbor, and along miles of surrounding shoreline. Every possible lead had been followed. Every recovered victim had been identified.Every family had been given answers except one. Claire Laurent remained the only passenger who had never been found.Officially, her status now read:Missing. Presumed dead.No body

39. The Truth

Third POVDamien stared at Olivia as though he'd forgotten how to breathe.The hallway suddenly felt impossibly small.Employees continued walking past in the distance, phones rang somewhere on another floor, and the elevators opened and closed with their usual quiet chime, but every sound seemed muffled beneath the pounding of his own heartbeat."What do you mean?" His voice was barely audible.Olivia lowered her head for a moment, pressing trembling fingers against her forehead as if trying to steady herself before answering. She had spent an entire week holding this secret inside, waiting for the right moment, and now that it had finally arrived, the words refused to come.Behind them, the conference room door opened.Emma stepped into the hallway, intending to give them privacy, but the look on Olivia's face stopped her in her tracks.She knew something was terribly wrong and neither of them noticed she was there.Olivia slowly lifted her eyes to Damien and for several long moment

40. Broken

Third POVDamien didn't remember leaving the office. One moment he was standing in the hallway, Olivia's words still echoing inside his head and the next, he was sitting behind the wheel of his car.The city moved around him in a blur of traffic lights, impatient horns and pedestrians crossing busy intersections, but he barely noticed any of it. His hands rested on the steering wheel while his mind replayed the same sentence over and over again until it became impossible to think about anything else.Claire was pregnant.His chest tightened so painfully he had to pull the car to the side of the road. For several moments, he simply sat there. His forehead rested against the steering wheel as he struggled to draw a full breath.He had spent the past week believing he'd lost his wife and now he knew he'd lost his child too. A child who had never taken a single breath. A child who had never even known its father.His fingers curled so tightly around the steering wheel that his knuckles tu

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