After My Rebirth, I Divorced the Hockey Star

Emma didn't sleep much that night.

Not because she was heartbroken.

That version of her had died once already.

It was because every time she closed her eyes, she kept remembering things she had ignored in her previous life.

The late-night text messages Ryan claimed were from teammates.

The sudden business trips Sophia somehow always knew about before Emma did.

The way Sophia constantly touched Ryan's arm whenever they were in the same room.

Back then, Emma had called it friendship.

Now she called it exactly what it was.

A warning she had been too blind to see.

The next morning, Emma was sitting at the kitchen island with her laptop open when Ryan walked downstairs.

He looked freshly showered and irritatingly handsome.

The kind of man people trusted immediately.

The kind of man who could smile while ruining your life.

"Morning."

Emma looked up briefly.

"Morning."

Ryan paused.

His eyebrows pulled together.

"That's it?"

"What?"

"No coffee waiting for me?"

Emma almost laughed.

For years she had woken up before him.

Made breakfast.

Prepared his schedule.

Answered emails.

Reviewed contracts.

She had practically managed his entire existence.

And somehow he'd convinced himself that was normal.

"There's coffee in the machine," Emma said.

Ryan stared.

"You didn't make any?"

"No."

"You always make coffee."

Emma took a sip from her own mug.

"And you always know where the coffee maker is."

For a moment he looked confused.

Then slightly annoyed.

"Are you still upset about yesterday?"

Emma closed her laptop.

"Ryan, if you have something to say, just say it."

He sighed.

"Okay. You're acting weird."

"There it is."

"I'm serious."

"So am I."

Ryan sat across from her.

"You haven't been yourself lately."

Emma leaned back.

The irony almost made her smile.

Of course she wasn't herself.

Because the version of Emma he knew had spent years putting him first.

That woman no longer existed.

"What exactly am I supposed to be doing?" she asked.

Ryan frowned.

"What?"

"What would make me normal again?"

His expression tightened.

"You know what I mean."

"No, I really don't."

"Emma—"

"Do you mean cooking for you?"

His jaw flexed.

"That's not fair."

"Do you mean handling your sponsorship meetings?"

"That's part of your job."

Emma laughed.

Actually laughed.

Ryan looked startled.

"What?"

"My job?"

"You're my manager."

"No."

Emma held his gaze.

"I'm your wife."

For several seconds neither spoke.

Ryan was the first to look away.

A small victory.

A very small one.

But Emma would take it.

His phone suddenly buzzed.

Ryan immediately reached for it.

Too quickly.

Emma noticed.

So did he.

For a split second they looked at each other.

Then Ryan casually flipped the phone over.

Screen down.

Emma almost smiled.

Guilty people were predictable.

"Who was it?" she asked.

"No one."

"No one texted you?"

Ryan stood.

"I have practice."

"That's not what I asked."

His expression hardened slightly.

"I said it was nobody."

Emma nodded.

"Then it shouldn't be a problem if I look."

Ryan froze.

The silence lasted maybe two seconds.

Three at most.

Then he laughed.

The sound felt forced.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"You don't trust me?"

Emma looked directly into his eyes.

Not anymore.

But she couldn't say that.

Not yet.

Instead she shrugged.

"You're acting weird."

Ryan stared at her.

Then he grabbed his bag.

"I'll see you tonight."

Without another word he left.

The moment the front door closed, Emma opened her laptop again.

She typed one name into the search bar.

Sophia Bennett.

Thousands of photos appeared.

Sophia at fashion events.

Sophia at restaurants.

Sophia on social media.

Sophia posing in designer clothes she definitely couldn't afford on her salary.

Emma clicked through image after image.

Then she stopped.

A photograph from six months earlier.

Ryan's charity game.

Emma zoomed in.

There.

Standing near the VIP entrance.

Sophia.

Ryan.

And something she'd never noticed before.

Ryan's hand.

Resting against Sophia's lower back.

Not inappropriate enough for strangers to question.

But intimate enough that a wife should have.

Emma stared at the screen.

How many signs had she missed?

How many lies had she accepted?

Her phone rang.

Marcus.

She answered immediately.

"Please tell me you have good news."

"I have interesting news."

Emma sat up straighter.

"I'll take interesting."

Marcus laughed.

"I reviewed the financial records."

"And?"

"And your husband is hiding money."

Emma wasn't surprised.

"What kind of money?"

"Several private accounts."

Her eyes narrowed.

"How much?"

"Just under three million dollars."

Emma went silent.

Ryan had told her repeatedly they needed to be careful financially.

Ryan had claimed several investments weren't performing well.

Ryan had insisted they delay certain projects.

Meanwhile he was secretly hiding millions.

"Anything else?"

Marcus hesitated.

"Actually yes."

Emma's stomach tightened.

"What?"

"One of the accounts has regular transfers."

"To who?"

Marcus read from his notes.

"S. Bennett."

Emma closed her eyes.

Of course.

Of course.

"How much?"

"About ten thousand a month."

A bitter laugh escaped her.

Ryan wasn't just sleeping with Sophia.

He was funding her life.

"Emma?"

"I'm here."

"You okay?"

"No."

She looked out the kitchen window.

"But I will be."

After ending the call, Emma drove downtown.

Not to confront Sophia.

Not yet.

Instead she went somewhere she hadn't visited in years.

A design studio.

The place where she'd worked before Ryan's career took over her life.

The receptionist smiled politely.

"Can I help you?"

Emma returned the smile.

"I hope so."

An hour later she was sitting across from Olivia Avery, one of the most respected designers in New York.

Olivia flipped through Emma's portfolio.

The older woman became quieter with every page.

Finally she looked up.

"Why did you stop?"

Emma blinked.

"What?"

"This."

Olivia tapped the portfolio.

"You should've had your own company years ago."

The words hit harder than Emma expected.

Because nobody had said anything like that in a long time.

Ryan's dreams.

Ryan's career.

Ryan's future.

Everything had always been about Ryan.

Not Emma.

Not anymore.

Olivia slid a folder across the desk.

"I have a project."

Emma opened it.

Luxury hotel redesign.

Multi-million dollar budget.

Lead designer position.

Her heartbeat accelerated.

"You want me?"

"I want talent."

Olivia smiled.

"You happen to qualify."

For the first time since waking up in the past, Emma felt genuinely hopeful.

Maybe her future wasn't just revenge.

Maybe it could be something better.

Something bigger.

Her phone buzzed again.

This time it was Sophia.

Emma answered.

"Hey."

"Emma!"

Sophia sounded excited.

Too excited.

"I'm having lunch near Madison Avenue. Come meet me."

Emma looked at the clock.

Interesting.

Madison Avenue.

Only three blocks from Ryan's training facility.

Coincidence?

Not a chance.

"Sure," Emma said.

"I'll be there."

An hour later Emma walked into the restaurant.

Sophia was already seated.

And Ryan was sitting across from her.

The three of them stared at each other.

For one brief moment.

Nobody spoke.

Then Sophia smiled.

"Oh."

Her voice was sweet.

Far too sweet.

"I didn't realize Ryan would get here first."

Emma looked from Sophia to Ryan.

Then she smiled too.

Because for the first time.

She wasn't the woman being betrayed.

She was the woman gathering evidence.

And suddenly that changed everything.