The Billionaire CEO Betrays his Wife: He wants her back-Chapter 49: Yell at me!

The hum of the engine filled the car, a low, steady growl that did nothing to ease the tension thickening the air between them. Ethan’s hands tightened on the steering wheel, his knuckles whitening as his gaze flicked toward Mara. She sat motionless, her silhouette framed by the blur of passing streetlights, her face turned away, staring into the void beyond the window. The silence was deafening, unnerving—a stark contrast to the storm he had expected.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice cutting through the quiet like a blade, sharp and urgent. He couldn’t help himself; the words tumbled out, raw and unpolished. "You’re unusually quiet, and that’s... worrying." His eyes darted back to the road, but his mind stayed fixed on her, on the eerie stillness that clung to her like a shroud.

He had expected something—anger, tears, even a fight. Anything but this. This silence was worse. It was a void, a chasm that swallowed every sound, every emotion, leaving behind only the hollow echo of what should have been. He had acted on instinct, driven by a desperate need to get her away from the Shepherd, away from the danger that had coiled around them like a predator. But now, as the miles stretched on, he realized he had no idea what to do with this version of Mara—this ghost of the fiery, defiant woman he knew. freёweɓnovel.com

His chest tightened, a knot of frustration and fear twisting deeper with every passing second. "Say something," he urged, his voice softer now, almost pleading. "Yell at me. Scream. Tell me I’m an idiot for dragging you out of there. Just... don’t sit there like everything’s fine. It’s not. None of this is fine."

But Mara remained silent, her breath shallow, her hands resting limply in her lap. The absence of her voice, her fire, was a weight pressing down on him, heavier than any words she could have thrown his way. And as the car sped through the road, Ethan couldn’t shake the feeling that something was terribly, irrevocably wrong.

Mara had long known that Ethan wouldn’t let go easily, and she also understood that escaping him was impossible—especially with their baby growing inside her day by day. His desperate reactions no longer stirred her as they once had.

A cool, almost bitter laugh escaped her lips as she spoke, "What do you want me to say? I believe I’ve made myself perfectly clear, Mr. Anderson." With that, she turned away, deliberately cranking up the music as if to drown out any further pleas.

The car seemed to shrink around them, the air growing heavier with every passing second. Ethan’s hand hovered over the dashboard, the music now silenced, leaving only the sound of his own heartbeat pounding in his ears. Mr. Anderson. The words echoed in his mind, sharp and cutting, like a knife twisting in his chest. He stared at her, his breath catching, his world tilting on its axis.

"Mr. Anderson?" he repeated, his voice barely above a whisper, as if saying it aloud might make it real. But it was real. The coldness in her tone, the way she turned her head away, the music blaring as if to drown him out—it was all real. And it shattered something inside him.

His face paled, his usual confidence crumbling under the weight of her indifference. He had expected anger, tears, even hatred—anything but this icy detachment. This wasn’t the Mara he knew. This wasn’t the woman who had once looked at him with fire in her eyes, who had fought him tooth and nail, who had made him feel alive even in their darkest moments. This was someone else entirely, someone who had closed the door on him and locked it tight.

"Mara..." he began, his voice cracking, but she didn’t flinch. She didn’t even look at him. Her gaze remained fixed on the window, her expression unreadable, her walls impenetrable.

Ethan’s hands tightened on the steering wheel, his mind racing. How had it come to this? How had he let it get this far? He had always known she was strong, stubborn, unyielding—but this? This was something else. This was a finality he wasn’t prepared for.

"You can’t just..." he trailed off, his voice breaking. "You can’t just shut me out like this. Not after everything. For just one mistake," His eyes flicked to her belly, wondering why Mara was gently touching her belly. His throat tightened, the words catching. "Not when there’s so much at stake."

But Mara didn’t respond. She didn’t even acknowledge him. Her silence was a fortress, and he was on the outside, scrambling for a way in. The realization hit him like a punch to the gut: she wasn’t just angry. She was done. And for the first time, Ethan felt the cold, unshakable fear that he might have lost her for good.

The road stretched ahead, endless and dark, and Ethan felt utterly alone.

The Anderson mansion loomed ahead. Once a symbol of hope and a future together, it now felt like a gilded cage to Mara. The iron gates creaked open as Ethan pulled the car through, the sound echoing in the heavy silence between them. Mara’s eyes flicked toward the imposing structure, her heart sinking. This place, which had once felt like a sanctuary, now felt foreign, cold, and unwelcoming. She didn’t belong here anymore. Not like this.

Ethan parked the car and turned to her, his eyes searching hers for any sign of the woman he loved. But Mara’s face was a mask, and distant. She unbuckled her seatbelt and reached for the door, but Ethan’s hand shot out, gently grasping her wrist.

"Mara, baby, come on," he whispered, his voice pleading, desperate. "Don’t shut me out like this. We can fix this. I’ll do whatever it takes. Just... talk to me."

Mara froze, her jaw tightening as she slowly turned to face him. Her eyes, once warm and full of life, were now icy and unyielding. "I have nothing to say to you, Ethan," she said, her tone cutting through the air like a blade. "If you have anything to say, say it to my lawyer."

Ethan flinched as if she’d struck him. His grip on her wrist loosened, and he let his hand fall to his side. He knew he deserved her coldness, her anger, her rejection. He had made mistakes—terrible, unforgivable mistakes—but the thought of losing her forever was unbearable.

"I’m not giving up, Mara," he said, his voice firm despite the ache in his chest. "You are mine, and you always will be. I don’t care how long it takes or how hard I have to fight. I’m not letting you go."

Mara’s lips pressed into a thin line, her expression unchanging. She opened the car door and stepped out, the cool air wrapping around her like a shield. Ethan watched her, his heart breaking as she walked toward the mansion without a backward glance. He stayed in the car for a moment, his hands gripping the steering wheel as if it were the only thing keeping him grounded.

The weight of exhaustion pressed down on him. He hadn’t slept properly since the incident, his mind constantly racing with guilt, regret, and the desperate need to fix what he had broken. But now, as he watched Mara disappear into the mansion, he felt the toll it was taking on him. His vision blurred, his head throbbed, and his body felt heavy, as if he were carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.