Dumped My Cheating Ex. Now I'm Sleeping Next to a Billionaire CEO novel Chapter 1666

The Aldridge estate's garden spanned a massive area. Laney had played in it as a child, but ever since her parents divorced, she had never returned. When she first arrived at the estate that morning, the entrance to the garden had been completely blocked by huge tarps. The butler had claimed it was under renovation. However, as she stepped into the garden now, the sight before her genuinely left her in awe.

The garden had clearly been completely overhauled. Beneath their feet lay a smooth, clean path of white cobblestones, flanked by countless blooming flowers arranged in striking patterns. The most astonishing part was that these were not winter flowers. Vast stretches of vibrant red roses, pink and white imported hydrangeas, and many expensive blooms she could not even name were thriving in the chill of the winter night. The branches of the towering sycamore trees were wrapped in countless colored fairy lights, twinkling like stars. The warm, dreamy golden light poured down through the leaves, illuminating the clusters of flowers. Veiled in the night mist, the entire scene looked like an unreal, magical fairytale wonderland.

Laney drew in a sharp breath, completely stunned by the view. But after the initial shock wore off, a deep sense of suspicion arose in her heart. The butler had led a crew to block this place off in the afternoon, insisting it was a construction zone, so how was it fully open by nightfall? Moreover, for a project of this scale, there was not a single worker in sight. It felt as if those tarps had been put up specifically to hide it all from her.

Teresa and Andrew were walking side by side at the front. Every few steps, Andrew would glance down at his watch. They were clearly keeping a very precise eye on the time. It was not until the clock struck eleven fifty seven, with only three minutes remaining, that the pair suddenly picked up their pace and headed toward the very center of the garden.

Laney followed behind them, continuously marveling at the breathtaking scenery and letting out awestruck gasps with every step. Meanwhile, Emmy and James tacitly lingered at the back of the group. Walking through such a romantic sea of flowers, the usually clingy couple was completely silent. They strolled along, seemingly admiring the view casually, while in reality, both were mentally rehearsing their imminent proposals.

Just then, somewhere in the exclusive villa district, an eager neighbor could no longer hold back. A brilliant firework shot into the night sky, exploding against the dark blue canvas. As if triggering a chain reaction, more and more fireworks began launching into the air. The multicolored flashes illuminated the sky, making the already blooming garden look even more enchanting and mesmerizing.

Andrew, watching the second hand on his watch tick away, began the countdown in a steady voice. "It is almost midnight. Ten. Nine... Three. Two. One."

The exact second the final syllable left Andrew's lips, a deafening blast tore through the night sky. A massive, custom fireworks display, infinitely brighter and larger than any in the vicinity, exploded directly above them, painting the sky with unparalleled brilliance.