Chapter 1

1

When I married Caleb Vance, his family had just gone bankrupt.

To support him, I worked like a dog during the day and ran a food cart late into the night.

I scraped together every penny to fund his startup while raising our son, Connor.

I never regretted it because I believed our lives would eventually get better.

Yesterday, Caleb's company finally went public.

We held each other and cried, thinking our days of suffering were over.

But today, I stood frozen in front of my breakfast burrito cart, staring at a viral livestream on my phone.

Caleb was on screen, looking sharp in a designer suit.

He told the reporters how he had single-handedly fulfilled a secret performance bet with his family.

Now, he was returning to the Vance Group to take over as CEO.

Standing beside him was Sienna Scott, the woman he claimed was his loyal junior who had supported him for years.

I walked home in a daze.

My seven-year-old son was lazily banging on the keys of a custom-made piano.

When he heard the door, he turned around and looked at me with cold eyes.

"Mom, you're so shameless. You'll do anything for money," he spat.

"Dad already told me everything. You didn't pass the evaluation, so you aren't coming back to the Vance family with us."

My son, who used to cling to me and act sweet, was now wearing a face I didn't recognize.

His words cut through me like a knife.

Then, he turned back and gently stroked the piano keys.

I had spent an entire year working double shifts to save up for that custom piano.

The whole situation felt like a cruel joke.

"Connor, what did you just say?"

My voice was thick and trembling.

Connor didn't even look at me.

"I said you're shameless and greedy!"

"My classmates' moms are all clean, beautiful, and smell like perfume. But you? You stand at my school gate with that disgusting cart after work."

"You embarrass me. You always smell like cheap grease and smoke. It's sickening!"

"Dad said the lady of the Vance family could never be someone as sloppy and money-hungry as you. I don't want a mom like you!"

The silence in the room was only broken by the random tinkling of the piano.

I stood there, my blood running cold, unable to move.

For eight years, I had ignored my pride to sell food on the street.

I had worked myself to the bone, refusing to buy new clothes or makeup just to save money.

I never complained, no matter how exhausted I was.

And after all that sacrifice, all they saw was "sloppy," "greedy," and "shameless."

Rage and disappointment surged in my chest at the same time.

I took a few steps forward, reaching out to grab Connor's hands to stop that annoying noise.

But he shoved me away with all his might.

"Don't touch my piano! If you break it, you couldn't afford to fix it even if you sold burritos for a month!"

His piano?

Did he have any idea that this piano was bought with the money I earned, one burrito at a time?

I had literally just paid the final installment this morning.

I took a deep breath, trying to stay calm and talk to him.

But a wave of pure exhaustion washed over me.

Forget it.

Why was I arguing with a child?

The person who really owed me an explanation was the one who turned my life into a circus.

My phone rang at that exact moment.

When I saw "Hubby" flashing on the screen, a sudden wave of revulsion hit me.

I answered, and Caleb's cold voice hit me like a bag of ice.

"You saw the news, right?"

"The divorce papers are in the study. Sign them. Sienna will be over to pick them up in a bit."

"Pack your bags and get out. This isn't your home anymore."

He started to give more arrogant orders.

But I cut him off.

"Aren't you going to give me an explanation?"

He paused for a second, then let out a mocking laugh.

"Nina Jenkins, has the grease from your cart finally rotted your brain?"

"Fine, let me make it clear."

"Everything was part of a bet with my family. If I could build a life and a career without their help, I'd become the CEO."

"You were just a character playing the role of 'wife' during my trial. And because you're so unrefined, the evaluation team decided you didn't make the cut."

"The future of the Vance Group has nothing to do with you."

His tone softened, but it was even more piercing.

"As for Sienna, she's the perfect wife for a CEO. She's the woman who belongs by my side."

I was so disgusted I couldn't even find words.

"Unrefined? You didn't think I was unrefined when you were taking my money to start your company."

"That was just part of the test. Without that money, your score would have just been lower."

I could feel the blood rushing to my head.

"You're a heartless monster."

"Call me whatever you want, as long as you remember to sign those papers."

Before he hung up, I heard him sneer.

"Since you look down on the Vance family so much, don't bother Sienna when she gets there. Don't make me despise you even more."

The room fell silent again.

I looked around at the house that felt both familiar and alien.

My marriage, my eight years, my entire life.

It all became a joke the second he hung up that phone.