Dumped My Cheating Ex. Now I'm Sleeping Next to a Billionaire CEO novel Chapter 148

Emmy.

She wasn’t the first person he’d ever pulled from a burning building, but she was the only one he could still picture perfectly, even now.

That night, he’d crashed through the smoky haze of the bar and saw her right away—curled up in the corner, ankle twisted, unable to move. Her eyes, though—so bright, so stubborn—never left the flames.

Exactly like Jamie, all those years ago.

When he scooped Emmy into his arms and ran from the fire, for a moment it felt like he was back in the past, carrying Jamie again, bleeding and desperate at eighteen. It was a kind of redemption that had come too late, and maybe didn’t matter anymore.

So when Abriella sent her picture, he recognized her instantly.

He didn’t even hesitate. He canceled the setup his family had arranged—some college girl he barely remembered—and, almost without thinking, picked Emmy instead.

He never expected the woman who made him soft to already have her heart set on someone else. She wanted a divorce. She still hadn’t let go of her ex.

James let out a slow breath, smoke curling from his lips as he forced all that mess of feelings back down where they belonged. He stubbed out his cigarette, turned to his desk, and put that cold, unreadable look back on his face, diving into the mountain of paperwork waiting for him.

Outside, the sky had started to lighten, the first hints of dawn seeping through the window.

Finally, he set down his pen, massaged the tight ache between his brows, and let exhaustion wash over him.

He ignored the coffee waiting on his desk, ducked into his office lounge for a quick nap, then grabbed his keys and headed for the fire station.

He’d barely finished changing into his uniform when Will came barreling over.

“James, you’re finally back! Your wife was here waiting for you last night. I went to tell her you were out on a call, but then the alarm went off and I had to run. She’s not gonna be mad at me, right?”

James’s voice was ice-cold. “Don’t bring her up in front of me again.”

Will blinked, totally lost. “Huh?”

He scratched his head, confusion written all over his face. Just yesterday, James had strolled in, waving around the fancy gifts his mother-in-law had sent and bragging like he’d hit the lottery. What changed overnight? Was it the pretty-boy rival?

Before he could figure it out, James’s sharp voice cut him off.

“Everyone, training field. Emergency drill. Now.”

Will groaned. “Come on, Captain, it’s like a hundred degrees out! We just did our morning run—if we do a drill now we’ll drop dead. Can’t we wait a little?”

James shot him a look. “People trapped in a fire can wait for you to catch your breath?”

That shut Will up real quick.

James looked like he was ready to explode today.

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