Chapter 3

3

"Jade, what are you talking about？ I'm not sleeping around!"

Holden shouted, grabbing my wrist tightly.

Pain shot through my arm, and I winced.

But looking at his bloodshot eyes, I just laughed in his face.

"Holden, do you think I'm an idiot？ I can find out exactly how many boxes of protection you've bought with her."

"Stop screaming in my office. My family is the only reason your family isn't on the streets. Learn your place."

Holden finally looked panicked.

He realized this wasn't just me being moody.

His face stiffened, and he slowly let go of my hand, his voice softening.

"Jade..."

"We've been married for so long. Can you really bear to see me lose everything？"

His pathetic expression made me want to gag.

I waved my hand to stop him from talking.

"Save it, Holden. Just sign the papers."

I stepped back to put some distance between us and looked him in the eye.

"You knew how much I loved and trusted you. But you never cared about me, not even once."

I let out a long sigh.

"So I'm done chasing you. You always complained I was annoying, right？ Well, now you're free."

"I hope you and Celine are very happy together."

Holden's face turned even paler after I said that.

"I didn't... it's not like that," he struggled to say.

I shook my head, feeling more disappointed than ever.

Holden was such a coward.

He wanted his first love by his side, but he couldn't let go of the wealth I gave him.

He was just too greedy.

I didn't want to deal with him anymore. I had a meeting in the afternoon.

But when I reached the elevator, he chased after me and blocked my way.

"Jade, wait! Let me explain!"

I looked at him coldly, wondering what kind of lies he would tell now.

He looked at me, his tone turning desperate.

"Baby, I know I shouldn't have stood you up for Celine. But three years... don't you care about us at all？"

"If you really didn't love me, why would you still keep those sketches you drew of me in your room？"

"I saw them. They were stained with your tears from last night."

A small, smug look flickered on his face when he said that.

My body froze. A cold chill ran down my spine.

He saw them.

Last night, after seeing the evidence of his betrayal, I had broken down.

I sat by the window, flipping through a thick stack of drawings I had made of him over the years.

Every time I looked at one, I couldn't stop crying. The tears blurred the ink on the paper.

But I wasn't crying for him. I was crying for the three years of my life that I threw away on someone who didn't deserve it.

For three years, I lost myself. I changed my personality to please him, acting sweet and obedient.

My old friends used to say I was a wild girl who feared nothing. They wondered what happened to me.

How did I become someone who sobbed over a worthless man？

The real Jade Sawyer shouldn't be like this.

Since I stayed silent, Holden took it as a sign of weakness. He actually reached out to hold my hand.

"Let's not get a divorce, okay？ Your eyes are so red. Why don't we go home and rest？"

A breeze from an open window hit my face, snapping me back to reality.

My eyes were sore because I hadn't slept, not because I was reconsidering.

I yanked my hand away from his and blinked.

"Holden, in three years, this is the first time you've ever tried to keep me or apologize. Why？"

"Deep down, you're just terrified that without me, the Harrison family will lose everything."

"Am I right？"

Holden went dead silent, his gaze dropping to the floor.

The answer was written all over his face.