Rebirth, Seduce My Ex-husband-Chapter 54

Stepping into the Owen mansion was Vanessa. Upon laying her eyes on her sister, Kami immediately ran toward her, hugging her tightly.

"Oh Vanessa, you’re alright," Kami said happily as Vanessa hugged her back, fully aware that her sister knew about the kidnapping.

"Why are you acting like you haven’t seen her in a long time?" Linda said as she walked toward both of them with a smug expression, obviously unaware of what had happened to Vanessa.

"Mom, how have you been?" Vanessa asked as she made her way to the living room, with her mother and sister following behind.

Collapsing softly onto the couch, Vanessa sighed slightly. "The house seems so quiet without Dad." Her face turned slightly cold.

If she remembered correctly, it was around this time in her past life that her parents had decided to separate. She hadn’t known until the day they both signed the papers. After that, life was never the same again.

Sighing, Linda simply said, "Wherever he may be, I just hope he’s satisfied and happy. That’s all I wish for."

Hearing that, Vanessa sighed again as Kami gently patted her mother’s back.

"Mom... I’m getting married to Erin."

Vanessa’s sudden announcement caught both women by surprise.

"Getting married? To whom Erin? Why the hell are you getting married to Erin?" Linda asked, her expression turning unpleasant.

"Mom, calm down and listen to me," Vanessa said, trying to get her mother to relax, but Linda wasn’t having it.

Standing up, Linda raised her voice, "How many times have I told you that you can’t marry Erin? He isn’t right for you. Your husband is Rowen, and no one else. Instead of trying to fix your marriage, here you are claiming you want to marry someone else. Believe me when I say this marriage will not and will never happen." 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

"Mother, I know you don’t want me to marry him. But I have no other choice. To get what I want, I have to go through with this marriage."

Taking hold of Vanessa’s hands, Linda softened. Her voice cracked slightly.

"I know you think this is something you have to do. I once thought like that too. I married your father because I believed I needed to because I thought it would bring me the life I wanted. But love... real love, Vanessa, it takes work. It takes commitment. And it requires choosing that person every single day, even when things aren’t perfect.

Your father and I... we stopped loving each other a long time ago. I don’t want that for you. Don’t let bitterness or desperation push you into a decision that could cost you your happiness. Don’t be foolish and let what you have with Rowen fall apart without a fight. Marriage is never perfect but if there’s still something there... something real then you fight for it, not run from it."

The room went quiet after Linda’s words. Vanessa looked at her mom, really taking in everything she had just said. There was no anger in Linda’s eyes just worry, and love. It warmed something in Vanessa.

A small smile appeared on her face as she leaned in and hugged her mom.

"Thanks, Mom," she said softly. "I needed to hear that."

Linda held her close, gently rubbing her back. Kami watched with a small smile, happy to see the moment between them.

After a few seconds, Vanessa pulled back. Her smile was still there, but something sharper hid beneath it.

"But... I should tell you both something," she said, her tone calm but clear. "I’m not marrying Erin because I love him. God no this isn’t about love."

Kami looked confused. "Then why?"

Vanessa took a breath. "Because he deserves to be thought the biggest lesson of his life. I’m not walking into this wedding to start a happy life with him. I’m doing it to make sure he finally faces everything he’s done."

Linda’s expression changed, she wanted to ask her so many questions but seeing the look on her daughter’s face she just decided to keep quiet and trust her. "Vanessa... are you sure this is the way to go?"

Vanessa stood slowly, her voice steady. "I know it’s not what you want to hear. But I’m not doing this blindly. This wedding... it’s not going to go the way he expects. It won’t be about vows and promises. It’ll be the day everything comes crashing down for him."

Linda stayed quiet for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Just be careful, Vanessa."

"I will," she said, her voice soft now. "I have to do this."

The next day...

Rowen sat in his office, eyes focused on the screen in front of him, though his mind was clearly elsewhere. Papers were scattered on his desk, but he hadn’t touched them in over an hour.

There was a knock at the door before George stepped in.

"Sir," he said carefully, "I thought you’d want to know... Vanessa is at the boutique right now. With Kami. She’s trying on wedding dresses."

Rowen froze.

It took a moment before he responded, but when he did, it was only a small nod. Then, without another word, he stood up, grabbed his coat from the back of his chair, and walked out of the office.

George blinked. "Should I tell—"

But Rowen was already gone.

At the boutique...

The boutique was quiet and filled with soft music, racks of dresses. Vanessa stood in front of a full-length mirror, holding up a simple but elegant white dress against herself, examining it with a thoughtful look.

Kami clapped her hands lightly. "That one actually looks really good on you."

Vanessa gave a small smile. "It’s not for real, but yeah... it’s nice."

Just then, the boutique door opened.

Both Vanessa and Kami turned, surprised, as Rowen walked in. His expression was unreadable, but his eyes locked straight on Vanessa. He didn’t say a word.

"Rowen?" Vanessa asked, confused.

Without hesitation, he walked up to her, looked briefly at the dress in her hands, then calmly shoved it aside, making it fall off the hanger and back onto the rack.

"Hey what are you doing?" Vanessa asked, half annoyed, half startled.

Rowen didn’t answer. Instead, he grabbed her hand and started pulling her gently but firmly toward the door.

"Rowen!" she said again, trying to keep up. "Where are we going?"

He finally glanced at her, a slight smirk on his face.

"On a date."