Page 13 of Claimed By My Billionaire Ex

My fists clenched, nails digging into my palms. "You really want to do this right now?"

He shrugged, sliding his hands into his pockets. "Would you prefer me to schedule our fight for next week? Or perhaps in another three months."

"Why do you have to be such a dick?" I snapped.

Adam's husband, Mike, poked his head out of the kitchen, scowling at us from down the hall. "Can you two take it outside so that I don't have to explain to Claire what d-i-c-k is?"

"Uncle Mike, you know I can spell right?" Claire's voice floated from behind him.

Adam gave a sad smile and stepped onto the front step, closing the door behind him. "I'm sorry, Olive. Okay? I don't want to fight with you."

I ground my foot into the brick steps. "Yeah, I don't want to fight with you either." Even though it seemed impossible to do anything other than that with him.

"So what happened?" Adam asked. "Your babysitter was busy tonight—is that why you called me?"

"Something like that." I hadn't hired a babysitter in months because I couldn't afford it. "Truth be told, it's my first night off in a while."

He studied me, a smirk spilling across his face. "Are you wearing makeup?"

I touched my cheek, completely forgetting I'd already put it on. "Maybe."

"You have a date, don't you?"

Pressing my lips together, I shrugged. "Something like that."

Adam nodded. "Good for you, O. Glad to see you're putting yourself out there." I was tempted to name drop Lucas but decided against it. That would open a whole other can of questions I didn't want to get into. Were they still really that close? I knew they had stayed in touch, but I had figured that meant the formal birthday text, a thirty minute catch up call once a year. Lucas had said “occasionally.” What had he meant?

"Yeah, well, got to have a life somehow."

"You have a life, Olive. A good one. You still working at the diner?"

Seriously? "Why do you ask?"

He picked up on my tone immediately. "It was just a question, Olive."

"It's never just a question with you, Adam. It's an interrogation."

Adam chewed on his bottom lip. "It's only an interrogation if you have something to feel guilty about, Olive."

I narrowed my eyes. "Save your psycho-analysis for your clients, Adam."

"You know what, Olive? I'm tired of trying to help you. Of worrying about you." He lowered his voice. "If you're working as a hacker again, I don't even want to know."

"Well, I'm not. Tell Claire I love her." I spun around, trotting down the stairs.

"I'll drop her off in the morning!" Adam called out.

I lifted a hand to tell him I heard him, but I couldn't get away from his words fast enough.

Tonight would be my last, and that would be that.

4

LUCAS

As the limo arrived in front of a three-story apartment building, I hesitated. "Is this it?"

Jeffrey, my driver, wrapped his arm around the armrest of the passenger seat and peered out the window. "That's the address you gave me."

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