Chapter 1

At the company retreat, my husband downed three glasses of whiskey in a row to shield his intern from drinking.

Finally, he even swapped her cocktail for a glass of lemonade.

As soon as the retreat ended, I asked him for a divorce.

"Elara Sterling, what is wrong with you now?" he snapped.

"Is this really just because I helped her with a few drinks?"

I nodded slowly.

"Yes. Exactly because you helped her with those drinks."

1

Gideon Caldwell sat in the driver's seat and lit a cigarette.

He let out a mocking laugh.

"Elara, are you kidding me? Divorcing over something so trivial?"

"I am the CEO. Taking care of my employees is part of the job. I would have done the same for anyone else."

"Stop throwing the word divorce around. Do you really think I won't agree to it? Stop being so dramatic."

My heart felt nothing. I was already numb.

This wasn't the first time something like this had happened, and it wasn't the first time Gideon had used those exact words.

"I am not being dramatic."

"I will have my lawyer draft the papers tomorrow. I am tired, Gideon."

He slammed his fist against the steering wheel, his expression turning fierce.

He looked at me with a sneer.

"Don't forget, the Sterlings are still begging the Caldwells for that merger! What grounds do you even have for a divorce?"

I reached up and flipped down the sun visor, pointing at the vanity mirror.

There was a clear fingerprint on the glass. I never used the vanity mirror in this car.

Gideon let out a frustrated laugh.

"What does that even prove?"

"Just because of a glass of lemonade and a fingerprint, you are judging me?"

I knew he would never admit it.

"You will find out why very soon," I said quietly.

Less than two minutes later, someone tapped on the car window.

I rolled the window down. The person outside froze, clearly not expecting to see me.

"Gideon... oh, Elara? Why are you here too?"

I noticed that while Lyla Hart spoke, her eyes remained fixed on Gideon with a look of pure dependency.

She didn't give me a single glance.

"Why? Am I not allowed to be in my husband's car?" I asked.

Lyla's eyes instantly welled up with tears. She looked at Gideon, appearing deeply wronged.

"Elara, don't take your temper out on Lyla," Gideon barked.

"Elara, please don't be mad. There is really nothing between me and Gideon. He would have done this for anyone. Don't blame him."

"I'll stay away from him from now on. Gideon is so busy with the company every day; he's already exhausted. Please don't pick fights with him anymore."

Seeing my cold expression, a few tears escaped her eyes.

"Elara, if it makes you unhappy... I'll resign!"

I looked at her with pure disdain.

"Fine. Then resign."

"Enough!" Gideon roared at me.

"Why should she lose her job because of your baseless jealousy? Elara, I really underestimated your ability to make a mountain out of a molehill!"

"Will you only be happy when you've pushed everyone into a corner?"

The rage in his eyes was something I had never seen before.

Why did Lyla come looking for him so late? Why did she know exactly where he was parked? And why was she so shocked to see me?

A sudden wave of sadness washed over me.

My compromises, my tolerance, and my efforts to keep the peace had only made them bolder. My entire existence had become a joke.

I pushed the car door open and turned to leave.

"Remember to sign the papers tomorrow."

Gideon chased after me and grabbed my wrist.

"I'm only nice to Lyla because she was your brother's classmate. There is nothing going on!"

"She's a family friend. She's like a little sister to us. If I don't look out for her, she'll get bullied in the corporate world. Didn't you tell me to take care of her yourself?"

"Stop being so unreasonable. If you want lemonade that badly, I'll buy you a damn factory. Is this really necessary?"

I shook his hand off. Over his shoulder, I saw the triumphant smirk on Lyla's face.

"I'm done, Gideon. This is the end for us."