Evelyn West did not arrive quietly.
She never did.
Isabella saw the car first a sleek silver coupe gliding into the narrow street like it owned the place. It didn't belong here among weathered houses and salt-worn fences. It belonged to glass towers and valet parking.
It belonged to Nolan's past.
Her stomach tightened instinctively.
Nolan noticed at the same time. His posture changed subtly, shoulders squaring, jaw tightening in a way Isabella remembered all too well.
"She's early," he said under his breath.
Isabella didn't ask who.
The car door opened, and Evelyn stepped out as if she were walking onto a stage. Tall, blonde, immaculately dressed in cream trousers and oversized sunglasses, she surveyed the street with faint disdain before her gaze locked onto the house.
Onto Nolan.
A smile curved her lips.
Not warm.
Not friendly.
Possessive.
"So that's her," Isabella murmured.
Nolan didn't look away. "Yes."
Evelyn approached with confident strides, heels clicking sharply against the pavement. She stopped a few feet away, eyes flicking briefly to Isabella before settling back on Nolan like Isabella wasn't worth the effort.
"Nolan," Evelyn said smoothly. "You always did have a talent for dramatic returns."
"This isn't a social call," Nolan replied coolly.
Evelyn laughed softly. "No, of course not. Nothing ever is with you."
She finally turned her attention to Isabella, gaze slow and assessing. "You must be Isabella."
Isabella met her stare evenly. "You must be Evelyn."
Evelyn's smile sharpened. "Ah. The ex-wife."
The word was deliberate. Tested.
Isabella felt it like a blade but didn't flinch. "Yes."
"And the child?" Evelyn asked lightly. "Not here?"
Nolan stepped forward instantly. "You don't speak about him."
Evelyn raised her hands in mock surrender. "Relax. I'm not here to hurt anyone."
"That's new," Isabella said quietly.
Evelyn's eyes flicked back to her, amused. "Careful. You don't know me."
"I know enough," Isabella replied. "You were the woman in his study."
The air shifted.
Nolan stiffened. Evelyn's smile faltered—just for a fraction of a second.
"Oh," Evelyn said softly. "So you do remember."
Isabella's chest burned. "I remember him saying nothing."
Silence stretched tight.
Evelyn recovered quickly. "Well," she said breezily, "water under the bridge. After all, you left. And I stayed."
Nolan's voice cut through like ice. "That's enough."
Evelyn turned back to him, eyes glinting. "Is it? Because the board disagrees."
Isabella's pulse spiked.
"They're very concerned," Evelyn continued. "An ex-wife, a secret child, public sympathy shifting away from you—"
"From us," Nolan corrected.
Evelyn arched a brow. "Is that what you think this is?"
She stepped closer, lowering her voice. "You walked away from the engagement. From stability. From me. And now you want to rewrite history?"
Isabella watched the exchange carefully, seeing what Evelyn didn't expect—Nolan wasn't defensive.
He was resolved.
"I'm not rewriting anything," Nolan said. "I'm telling the truth."
Evelyn's smile thinned. "The truth doesn't keep companies afloat."
"It keeps families alive," he replied.
Evelyn scoffed. "Families?" She glanced pointedly at Isabella. "You mean the one that already failed?"
Isabella inhaled slowly.
"You don't get to define failure," she said calmly. "You weren't there."
Evelyn's eyes hardened. "I was there when you walked out."
Isabella met her gaze without blinking. "You were there because you wanted him. Not because he chose you."
The silence that followed was razor-sharp.
Evelyn laughed softly. "Still emotional. I see why Nolan found it exhausting."
Nolan turned fully toward Isabella then. "Go inside."
She hesitated. "Nolan"
"Please," he said quietly. "This isn't for you."
Her instinct screamed to stay, to protect herself, to protect Juan.
But she saw something in Nolan's eyes.
Finality.
She nodded once and turned toward the house.
Behind her, Evelyn spoke again—louder now, sharper.
"You can't seriously think this ends well," she said. "You think the world will applaud you for choosing your ex-wife over your future?"
Nolan didn't hesitate.
"She was my future," he said. "I just didn't understand it in time."
Isabella paused just inside the doorway, heart pounding.
Evelyn's voice dropped dangerously low. "You're making a mistake."
"No," Nolan replied. "I already made it. Four years ago."
A beat.
Then Evelyn said softly, venomously, "If you don't reclaim your position, Nolan, someone else will. And I won't protect you from what follows."
Nolan's response was calm. Lethal.
"I don't need your protection anymore."
Isabella closed the door quietly.
Inside, her legs felt weak. She leaned against the wall, breathing shallowly.
Upstairs, Juan laughed at something on his tablet.
Her heart clenched.
Minutes later, the front door opened.
Nolan came inside, expression tight but controlled.
"She won't stop," Isabella said quietly.
"I know."
"She wants your name," Isabella continued. "Your legacy."
Nolan looked at her, eyes dark. "And she'll burn anything in her way to get it."
Isabella swallowed. "Including me."
"Yes," he said honestly.
"And Juan?"
Nolan's jaw clenched. "Never."
Isabella searched his face. "You're sure?"
"I will destroy anyone who tries," he said without hesitation.
The certainty in his voice sent a chill through her.
Outside, Evelyn's car pulled away.
But Isabella knew
This wasn't over.
The woman who wanted Nolan's name back had just declared war.
And the battlefield was her past.