Dumped My Cheating Ex. Now I'm Sleeping Next to a Billionaire CEO novel Chapter 919

Emmy shook her head, her voice quiet and muffled.

“No.”

“He just kept me locked up, wouldn’t let me go anywhere, but that’s all. He never did anything else to me.”

“I always had enough to eat and wear.”

Teresa finally felt some of the tension leave her shoulders. Her daughter had been gone for so long, and the rumors outside were relentless. In their world, nothing spread faster than stories about a woman’s suffering. People loved to turn pain into scandal, and she could ignore the gossip, but the Nelson family couldn’t. Being Mrs. Nelson meant her reputation wasn’t hers alone.

After a moment, Teresa drew in a long breath, bracing herself for the question she dreaded most.

“Did he… did he ever touch you?”

Outside the bedroom door, James’s hand tightened on the armrest, his knuckles pale against the light. Over these ten months, he’d imagined every worst-case scenario. Even if she’d been violated, even if she came back carrying another man’s child, none of it mattered to him. He just wanted her alive. He just wanted her home. He only wanted Emmy. In this lifetime, there was no one else.

Inside, the air felt heavy and still. Emmy understood her mother’s fear right away. She lifted her head from Teresa’s embrace, her eyes clear and steady.

“No,” she said softly.

“He never touched me. I had my own room, and I locked the door every night.”

That man might have been obsessive, but he’d never crossed that line with her.

Teresa let out a long, shaky breath.

“That’s good… That’s really good.”

“That bastard deserves to rot, but at least he hasn’t completely lost his humanity.”

Emmy was quiet for a moment, then asked, “Since I married James, I’m basically Mrs. Nelson, and I was missing for so long… are people saying terrible things about me?”

Teresa’s heart tightened and she squeezed Emmy’s hand.

The door opened slowly. Emmy glanced up—then froze, surprise flickering in her eyes.

The tired, scruffy man from yesterday was gone. Now, James was clean-shaven, his jaw sharp and defined. His hair was neatly cut, bringing out his strong brows and broad forehead. A thin scar ran across his cheek, but it didn’t take away from his looks. If anything, it gave him a rugged, battle-hardened charm.

He wore a dark gray tracksuit, loose but unable to hide the powerful lines of muscle underneath. There was a quiet strength about him, something between restraint and raw energy. He looked ten years younger—less like a broken man, more like the heir of a powerful family.

But there was still one thing that didn’t fit. He sat in a wheelchair.

Emmy’s gaze dropped to his legs.

James spoke, his voice low and calm. “Don’t worry. The doctor wants me to rest for a few days. I’ll be walking again soon.”

I wasn’t worried, Emmy thought, glancing away. But her eyes kept drifting back to him.

It was still hard to believe. How did she end up married to a man like this? Mr. Nelson, former soldier, all of it felt so far from anything she’d ever imagined for herself.