Abandoned Wife: Rising Beyond His Regret

"Let's get a divorce," Theodore Clayton said it while reclining against the headboard. His wife, Brinley Carter, hadn't even gotten dressed yet. They had only just finished making love.

"What did you say?" She froze as the color slowly drained from her face.

Theodore carried himself with a calm, refined air, yet the words that followed sent a chill through Brinley.

"It's only a divorce on paper. Elianna is terminally ill. She doesn't have much time left. All she wants is to be with me. So... don't worry. After she's gone, we'll get married again. A year at most. "

Brinley almost laughed in disbelief. "So let me get this straight. You cheated on me, and now you want to divorce me so you can stay with your mistress until she dies, then marry me again?"

Theodore lowered his eyes toward her, his expression turning cold. "Don't put it that way. She only wants to leave this world peacefully. Is that really so wrong? She doesn't have much time left. Her parents have been bleeding her dry her whole life. In this world, I'm the only person she has."

His words made Brinley feel unsteady. "Then what about me?"

Wasn't he the only person she had as well?

Years ago, Brinley learned she was the fake heiress who had been switched at birth. For twenty years, she had lived as the beloved daughter of a wealthy family while unknowingly taking another girl's rightful place. After the truth was exposed, her parents resented her so deeply that they forced her into a business marriage.

The moment she saw Theodore in a coma, she recognized him immediately. He was the boy who had protected her from a thug years ago.

To repay him for saving her life fifteen years earlier, she agreed to marry him without hesitation, even though he was badly injured.

By the time the Carter family's real daughter returned, Brinley's biological mother had already passed away, while the parents who raised her wanted nothing to do with her. Theodore had become the only person left in her world.

For three years, she remained beside him through every painful step of his recovery. She gave up everything for him and loved him wholeheartedly.

And in the end, this was how he repaid her.

Her voice shook as she held back her tears. "What if I refuse?"

"Brinley!" Anger appeared on Theodore's handsome face. "I've already explained it to you. It's only temporary. In one year, you'll still be my wife. Elianna is weak right now. She can't deal with any emotional stress."

Brinley's heart broke completely. Her lips parted, but for a long time, no words came out.

Only then did she understand that the boy who once stood in front of her and said, "I'm here. Don't be afraid," had long since disappeared. Maybe he had never truly existed at all. Maybe it had all been just her imagination.

When Theodore noticed her silence, his expression eased slightly. "I already promised her I'd stay with her through this. You can continue living here. Other than the legal title, nothing else in your life will change."

As he finished speaking, he took out a black credit card and casually tossed it onto the nightstand.

"You know exactly how you became my wife. There are eight million on this card. I'll give you what you want, but don't be greedy."

His tone was light, almost careless, as though he were talking about something insignificant.

Yet every sentence struck Brinley like a blow to the chest.

How had she become his wife?

Back then, she had begged his family to let her marry him while he remained unconscious after the accident.

But after everything they had been through together, did he truly not understand what she wanted from him?

Never once had she imagined he would use money to insult her like this.

Her thoughts turned blank as bitterness flooded her chest. Even breathing felt painful.

Her voice trembled. "Then what we just did... was that a goodbye fuck?"

"Brinley!"

The atmosphere around Theodore instantly turned cold. His sharp gaze shattered the last traces of warmth left in the room.

"You know I never change my decisions once I've made them."

Silence filled the room, leaving only the sound of their breathing behind.

When Theodore saw her shoulders shaking, he let out a sigh. His voice carried both warning and disappointment. "Brinley, stop acting bitter and unreasonable."

Brinley slowly closed her eyes.

Bitter and unreasonable? He and Elianna were the ones hurting her, yet somehow she became the unreasonable one. What a cruel joke.

After a long pause, she let out a quiet breath. "Fine. I'll agree to the divorce. Let's take care of it tomorrow at nine. There's still a mandatory one-month waiting period, so dragging this out won't change anything."

After saying that, she got out of bed, adjusted the straps of her nightgown, and walked unsteadily toward the bathroom.

But the next second, Theodore grabbed her wrist. His brows drew together as his voice turned low and stern. "What are you doing now? Are you throwing a tantrum?"