# Chapter 40: A Hidden Surprise, A Hidden Storm
Hello everyone, it's me again! How are you all doing? I hope you're ready for another emotional ride, because today I’m going to walk with you through Chapter 40 of *The Untouchable Ex Wife* — a chapter where sweetness and worry collide in the most heartbreaking way. Let’s not waste another second. Let's step into Renee's world.
The car finally stopped before an antique shop. The moment the engine went quiet, something fragile and tender passed between Renee and Jovan. She thought they would go in together, and she genuinely wanted to push his wheelchair up to the shop’s entrance. But Jovan gently refused her help, saying, “Wait for me in the car. The driver can push me into the shop.”
He was always the man who hid his emotions behind a wall of mystery, and this time was no different. He did not want to expose the surprise he had so carefully prepared for her in advance. If she saw it too early, all his efforts would be futile. Renee looked at him, curiosity flickering in her eyes, and raised an eyebrow. “Okay, I would like to see what kind of trick you will pull.”
With deep curiosity mixed with amusement, she watched the driver push Jovan into the antique shop. The dusty, nostalgic door closed behind them, and all of a sudden, silence filled the car. Renee leaned against the back seat in slight boredom. She checked the time, and realized it was coincidentally afternoon in Beach City. The two children might have gone home from school by now, and that thought brought a gentle warmth to her heart. She decided to give her brother a video call.
But something was wrong.
Her brother always answered her calls within seconds. He had never left her hanging like that. Strange. She tried repeatedly, but every attempt yielded the same empty, unanswered result. A crease soon formed between her brows as a bad premonition overwhelmed her. Her heart started to race, and she could not shake the feeling that something terrible was unfolding in Beach City.
She immediately called Margaret. Margaret picked up just as quickly, almost as if she had been staring at her phone, waiting anxiously. But her voice carried a strange mix of relief and alarm.
“Miss Ren, what a coincidence! I was about to call you.”
Margaret’s voice was tight. She tried to smile through her words, but the worry was unmistakable. Renee’s instincts screamed louder. “Margaret, you sound so anxious. Did... something happen?”
Margaret hesitated, her words tangled with fear. “Yes, Miss Ren. I don’t know whether I should report this to you or not. Both Chase and Miss Lei asked me not to tell you first, for fear that you’ll be worried.”
Renee’s heart tightened like a fist. “What’s wrong? Tell me now.”
Margaret finally let the truth pour out. Mr. Everheart had gone to the south for a business trip a week ago. He should have been back two days ago, but he was still missing. The two children missed their uncle very much, so they asked Margaret to give him a video call. However, she could not get in touch with him at all. Chase claimed that it was very normal, given their kind of business. Sometimes they needed to go to places where they simply could not connect with the outside world. Chase asked her to patiently wait for a few days. But Margaret’s heart was heavy with dread.
Renee’s mind spun. “So, you couldn’t get in touch with him for two days?”
Margaret sighed deeply. And then she added a terrifying detail. She heard from Chase that Mr. Everheart went to the south to collect a batch of treasures. The other party was rather violent and rough. Margaret was afraid that something terrible might have happened to him. And for Margaret, this was personal. Quinton was a descendant of the Everheart family, just like Renee. They were the masters Margaret had vowed to devote her life to. If anything ever happened to them, she would never forgive herself.
But the nightmare did not end there.
Margaret carefully lowered her voice and said, “Miss Ren, when will you settle your issues over there? When are you going to return to Beach City? Both you and Mr. Everheart are not around. So Miss Lei is the only one managing Azure Group. It’s already a mess.”
Renee’s chest tightened. “What happened?”
Margaret’s voice quivered with emotion. A few days ago, some people came to the company to cause trouble. Miss Lei fought against them head-on. Things escalated quickly, and before anyone understood what was happening, both parties were taken away by police officers. Miss Lei was injured too.
“What? Lei is injured and locked up?”
Renee felt her temples throbbing. A deep, suffocating guilt began to pour into her heart. It was not just worry anymore. It was regret, self-blame, and the painful realization that she had been away too long.
Renee and her partner had worked so hard, enduring endless hardships over four years, to establish Azure Group and build it into the powerful company it had become. During the half year Renee had been away, it was always her brother and Leia who helped to manage things. They were not business people. They knew little about electronic technology or corporate warfare. It must have been incredibly difficult for them to keep everything afloat alone.
Margaret continued, her voice cracking now. “That’s right. They were too strong. They came to the company to provoke Miss Lei. She was so angry that a fight broke out, and she hurt one of them. They quickly grabbed onto this incident and sued her for a criminal offense. Now... she’s still in prison. I don’t even know how much she has suffered.”
Margaret had long wanted to tell Renee about all of these affairs, but she had held herself back all that time, fearing she would affect Renee’s mood and distract her. But now, things were spinning out of control. They needed Renee desperately. If Margaret kept the secret any longer, the consequences could be disastrous.
Renee took a deep, shaky breath. She could not afford to panic. Not now. “Oh, okay, I got it. Don’t worry. I’ll come up with ways to deal with it.”
She clutched her phone, her knuckles pale. Great frustration and annoyance washed over her in waves. Her mind screamed that she should have gone home long ago. She never should have asked Quinton, Leia, and Margaret to carry so many burdens for her while she handled her own complicated life in another city.
She knew what she needed to do. But then she inevitably looked toward the antique shop. Jovan was still in there, waiting to present the surprise he had meticulously prepared for her. He had gone to such lengths, and he had no idea about the storm crashing down on her heart.
Renee was now trapped between two worlds: one full of romantic promises she could almost taste, and one full of obligations, danger, and people she loved who needed her to come back.
What would happen to Jovan if she left?
What would happen to her family if she stayed?
The car felt too quiet and too small as the weight of this impossible choice pressed down on her.
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**Reader's Impressions & Star Rating:**
I have to say, my heart was racing through the entire chapter. There is something so heavy about watching Renee finally receive a glimpse of happiness with Jovan, only for the past to yank her back with terrifying news. I really felt her pain, her guilt, and that desperate swirl of indecision at the end. Margaret’s worry, Leia’s sacrifice, and the mysterious disappearance of Quinton all come together like a storm cloud shadowing the sweet antique shop moment. This is the kind of chapter that makes you want to scream at the book and beg for the next one immediately. Intense, emotional, and beautifully layered.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Rating: 4.8 / 5 Stars
**Next Chapter Prediction:**
I predict Renee will be forced to make an almost impossible decision. She will probably leave the antique shop without letting Jovan reveal his surprise, and Jovan will be left stunned, maybe even heartbroken, unable to understand why she disappeared so suddenly. But knowing Jovan’s character, he will not simply let her go. He will uncover the truth, and instead of letting Renee face this crisis alone, he may abandon his plans and chase after her, ready to use his power and resources to protect her family. Meanwhile, I suspect the missing Mr. Everheart and the attack on Miss Lei are connected — someone is deliberately targeting Renee’s loved ones, and the next chapter may reveal the enemies pulling the strings from the shadows. One thing is certain: war is coming, and Jovan will choose a side.
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