Harper Clay POV:
"An ironclad prenup?" I frowned, my voice trembling slightly despite my best efforts to keep it steady. "When did I ever sign a prenuptial agreement with you?"
Sterling shrugged, a casual, almost pitying smile on his face. "Ten years ago, right before the wedding, when I had my lawyers set up our life insurance policies. Didn't you read the fine print in that stack of documents?"
A freezing, bone-piercing chill instantly shot from the soles of my feet to my scalp, making my teeth chatter. Ten years ago... So, at the very beginning of that supposedly sweet, fairy-tale marriage, when he was just a rookie, he was already calculating this exact day! He had been guarding his wealth against me since day one!
A massive wave of despair swallowed me whole like a black tide. My heart felt like it was being crushed by an invisible hand, hurting so much I couldn't breathe. I looked at the handsome face I had been obsessed with for a decade. Now, all that remained was a deep, bone-deep hatred. A furious fire ignited from the darkest depths of my soul.
"Heh..." I suddenly let out a low, dark laugh. I raised my eyes, meeting Sterling's icy glare head-on. "Sterling, maybe you're right. Maybe I can't touch your millions. But what if tomorrow, I walk right into Megan's elite figure skating club? What if I stand in front of all her glamorous sponsors and high-society friends, and tell them the touching story of how my dear sister loves my sloppy seconds and shares a husband with me?"
"Harper!" Sterling's face instantly darkened like a thundercloud. He took a menacing step forward. "Don't you dare!"
"Watch me!" I didn't back down an inch, my voice spiking with raw aggression. "I have nothing left! My husband, my sister, my family... they're all gone! What the hell do I have to lose? A person with nothing fears nothing! Try me, Sterling. Let's see if your sponsors love a scandal!"
Sterling stared dead into my eyes, his chest heaving. Megan's pristine reputation... that was her lifeblood, her capital, and the very thing she needed to stand proudly by his side as the new 'Captain's Wife'. He couldn't afford to gamble.
Sterling narrowed his eyes, his voice low and dangerous. "What do you want?"
My fingernails dug into my palms. I enunciated every single word with absolute clarity. "I want the small apartment downtown on 5th Avenue. Transfer the deed to my name. Immediately. And $20,000,000 in cash to get me settled."
That apartment was the most insignificant piece of real estate in his massive portfolio. But right now, I needed a safe place to land.
Sterling's brow smoothed out. The apartment and the cash were a drop in the bucket for his $80 million net worth. Using this insignificant price to buy Megan's reputation and silence a desperate woman... it was a bargain.
"Fine." Sterling's eyes were venomous. "Take what you want and stay the hell away from Megan. Otherwise, don't blame me for what happens next."
I felt like I had heard a joke, but I couldn't laugh.
"Seven days. Bring your ID to the lawyer's office to sign the divorce papers." Sterling dropped his final sentence and strode out of the living room without looking back.
The massive, cold living room was instantly empty. The adrenaline that had kept me standing abruptly vanished. My strength was completely drained. My legs gave out, and I collapsed heavily onto the cold leather sofa.
With violently trembling hands, I pulled out my phone. The screen light illuminated my face, which was as pale as a sheet of paper. I dialed my best friend, Chloe Foster. She answered on the first ring.
"Hey, Harp? What's up?" Chloe's energetic voice came through.
"Chloe..." The moment I opened my mouth, the choked sobs I had been suppressing could no longer be contained. A broken, shattered voice leaked out. "... Come get me... please... take me away..."
Chloe's tone instantly shifted to sheer panic. "What happened?! Where are you? I'm on my way!"
Forty minutes later, Chloe's flashy red Porsche screeched to a halt in the driveway. She stormed into the house like a hurricane. At a glance, she saw me curled up in the corner of the sofa, looking like a ghost, and the ruined anniversary cake box sitting mockingly on the coffee table.
"Harper!" Chloe rushed over, wrapping her arms tightly around my freezing body. "What the hell happened? You and Sterling were perfect! Did you guys have a fight?"
Feeling the genuine warmth of my best friend's embrace, the last string of my tightly wound nerves completely snapped. The humiliation, fury, and despair I had suppressed all day burst forth like a broken dam.
