Chapter 3

3.

Claire used her free time to have her lawyers meticulously separate her assets from Damian's.

She packed up everything in her name that had belonged to him and sent it to the Sterling estate.

That afternoon, Claire had a meeting with a business partner, Mr. White, at a golf course.

They discussed the details of their deal as they played.

Suddenly, a shrill scream cut through the quiet afternoon.

"Don't touch me!"

Claire looked up to see Lily, tears in her eyes, shoving away a man in a leather jacket.

It was Chad Weston, a notorious Greenwich playboy.

A month ago, Claire would have rushed to protect her, to put Chad in his place.

But now, she acted as if she hadn't seen a thing. She calmly reset her stance, swung the club, and sent the white ball flying in a perfect arc, landing it straight in the hole.

At that exact moment, Damian strode onto the course.

The instant he saw Lily being harassed, his eyes turned to ice.

The man who always put business first charged forward and sent Chad sprawling with a single punch.

Then another...

He lost all control, beating Chad with a savage, primal fury.

"I can't believe Sterling brought Lily here. This is a members-only event, you're supposed to bring your wife."

"Looks like he's found a new favorite. Did you see that? Chad just asked for her number, and he nearly killed him."

The murmurs from the other members buzzed in Claire's ears.

Chad spat out a mouthful of blood and passed out.

The club manager quickly had him carried away for medical attention.

Damian rushed to Lily's side, his voice tight with worry. "Are you hurt?"

Lily threw herself into his arms, sobbing pitifully. "Damian, I was so scared..."

Damian awkwardly patted her back, a gesture so gentle it was like a knife in Claire's chest.

In the span of a minute, Claire saw a storm of emotions cross Damian's face: anxiety, rage, concern, fear―

All the emotions that had once been reserved for her were now directed at another woman.

She let out a bitter, self-mocking laugh. The golf club slipped, grazing her ankle and tearing the skin.

She winced, squatting down to clean the wound with a wipe, when a hand clamped down on her wrist.

Damian was standing in front of her, his face a thunderous mask.

"Claire, Lily saved my life," he said, his voice low and seething with anger. "Stop making things difficult for her."

Claire yanked her hand away, looking him straight in the eye. "So you think I hired him to harass her?"

Damian was silent for a moment.

Those three seconds of silence were more damning than any accusation.

"You've been targeting her for the past month," he finally said, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Transfer the Montauk Point beach house to her name as compensation."

The pain in Claire's ankle spread to her heart.

Her knuckles turned white as she gripped the golf club, her voice trembling with disbelief.

"You know... you know I bought that for our baby!"

She had picked it out herself during her first pregnancy.

It faced the ocean and had a beautiful garden.

When Damian found out, he bought ten more houses in her name.

"Our baby will have anything they want," he had promised.

And now, he wanted to give it to Lily.

She took a deep breath, her voice hoarse. "If you want to give her a house, give her your place on the Upper East Side."

Damian's face darkened.

That was the home she had designed and decorated for them.

Every piece of furniture, every painting on the wall, was a testament to her love for him.

She had once called it their forever home.

Now, she was giving it away without a second thought.

Lily peeked out from behind Damian. "Is that the one I'm living in now? If Claire wants it back, I can move out..."

Claire's blood ran cold. He had already given her heart away.

Damian saw the vacant look on Claire's face and sneered, as if to punish her for her recent rebellion.

"Fine. She gets both houses. A gift."

Claire's body trembled with a rage so intense she could no longer control it. She swung the golf club with all her might, aiming for both of them.

CLANG!

Damian threw himself in front of Lily, taking the full force of the blow.

A sickening crack echoed as his wrist broke, but he didn't even flinch.

But when he saw Lily clutching her head, pale and sweating with fear, his expression turned deadly.

"Claire!" he roared, flinging the bent club away. "You better get your temper under control. This is the last time I'm putting up with your shit."

The force of his shove sent Claire sprawling to the ground. Her palms scraped against the gravel, stinging with a raw, burning pain.

Damian didn't even glance at her bleeding hands or her injured ankle. He wrapped a protective arm around Lily.

"If you're so broken up about it, then sign the damn divorce papers," Claire spat from the ground.

Damian ignored her, shielding the terrified Lily as he quickly walked away.

Claire used the discarded club to pull herself to her feet.

All around her, people were staring, savoring the drama.

She lifted her chin, straightened her back, and surveyed the crowd.

"Anyone who wants to see me fall," she announced, her voice ringing with cold authority, "better make sure their fortune is big enough to pay for the privilege."