Under Kate's arrangement, Peter smoothly entered the Walsh Group, becoming a mid-level manager.

Meanwhile, I remained an insignificant employee, with only a few top executives knowing I was the CEO's husband.

From then on, Kate and Peter were inseparable, commuting together daily, and occasionally he would visit our home.

To please Kate, my mother often came to help. Kate loved her soup, and she had it every few days.

Last week, Kate wanted to eat minestrone.

After receiving the call, my mother immediately went to the market to buy fresh ingredients, but she accidentally fell in the kitchen, hitting her head.

My mother didn't want to trouble Kate, so she called me while I was on a business trip in a nearby city. I immediately called Kate, asking her to take my mother to the hospital.

Kate refused, saying she and Peter had something important to do and were unavailable.

In the end, I called an ambulance and asked a neighbor to help take my mother to the hospital.

However, because too much time was delayed, my mother passed away after several hours of treatment in the ICU.

Her only thought before she died was to see her daughter-in-law one last time.

She wanted to tell her that the minestrone was ready.

I found out afterward that the five-star hotel Peter booked was less than a five-minute drive from my house.

If Kate had rushed back then, my mother might not have died...

I turned off the light and was about to sleep when Kate came in.

She had already taken a shower and changed into a sexy nightgown, lying beside me as usual.

"Still mad at me?"

I lay with my back to her, saying nothing.

Kate wrapped her arm around my waist and whispered softly in my ear, "Honey, this time it's my fault. I shouldn't have lied to you."

"But there's really nothing between Peter and me. That bracelet has no special meaning. You're overthinking it."

"You're an adult, yet you're throwing a tantrum and even talking about divorce."

"If your mom knew, what would she think?"

I said coldly, "Don't mention my mom. You're not worthy!"

Kate sat up straight, her eyebrows furrowing. "Tobias, I've already humbled myself to apologize to you. You're really pushing it, aren't you?"

"Your mom always doted on me the most. Why can't I mention her?"

"Do you believe I'll call her right now and let her judge?"

"Go ahead if you want."

After saying that, I left the bedroom with a pillow and slept alone in the living room.

After a few seconds of shock, Kate slammed the door shut to show her anger.

The next day at work, as I went downstairs, I saw Peter leaning against a BMW, holding a bouquet of vibrant roses.

When he saw me, he greeted me with a smile. "Morning, Tobias. Where's Kate?"

I gave Peter a cold look and said that Kate was still at home.

If he wanted to find her, he should go up himself.

Just then, I heard the sound of high heels behind me.

It turned out Kate had come down too.

She was wearing a professional black outfit with light makeup, looking noble and aloof.

Peter's eyes lit up, and he immediately went up to her.

"Kate, you look beautiful today. Even the most beautiful flowers pale in comparison to you.

"I personally picked these roses. Happy Valentine's Day!"

Kate glanced at me nonchalantly, then took the roses and said thank you.

My gaze grew even colder.

Peter smiled slightly. "Tobias, don't misunderstand. When I was young, I used to give Kate roses every Valentine's Day. It's a habit.

"Only those years abroad I didn't give them."

Kate snorted. "No need to explain to him. He's just a blockhead."

Peter looked surprised. "What's wrong, Kate? Did you argue with Tobias?"

"No. He just mentioned divorce," Kate said resentfully, "All because of that bracelet you gave me."

Peter turned his gaze to me, his eyes full of meaning.

"I'm sorry, Tobias. I originally bought that bracelet for my girlfriend.

"But she broke up with me the day before yesterday. Since I had already bought it, I didn't want to waste it, so I gave it to Kate.

"I didn't expect it to cause trouble for you. I'm really sorry."

Looking at his "sincere" face, I showed no expression and turned to leave.

"Hey, Tobias, I'm telling the truth. Don't misunderstand!"

"Enough, Peter. Tobias won't listen right now. Let him be."

...

In the following days, Kate ignored me.

She didn't speak to me proactively. Every time I brought up divorce, she only responded with rolled eyes and indifference.

Over the years of our marriage, we had cold wars a few times due to conflicts.

Under my mother's persuasion, I always chose to compromise, thinking of various ways to please Kate, and then we would reconcile.

This time, my mother is no longer around.

And I have no intention of going back to my old ways of being a pushover. I'm determined to divorce her.

One afternoon, while I was working, the female supervisor came over and asked me to help move some things in Peter's office.

Peter got promoted to general manager after his business trip. His new office happens to be next to Kate's.

The female supervisor was recruited by Peter and was a real sycophant, often giving me a hard time over trivial matters.

I refused, saying I had a back injury and couldn't do heavy lifting.

Her face immediately darkened. "Tobias, I'm ordering you, not asking you.

"A grown man can't even move a few things? Who are you fooling?

"I think you're just being lazy!"

Her voice was loud, drawing the attention of everyone in the office, and whispers began to fill the air.

"What's wrong with Tobias? He's usually so compliant, but now he's standing up to the supervisor?"

"Maybe he's just in a bad mood today."

"It's hard to find a job these days, isn't he afraid of getting fired?"

"He's been with the company for years, he's a seasoned hand and doesn't fear anything."

The female supervisor slammed the table. "Tobias, I see your stubbornness. You're even daring to defy your superior, huh? Do you believe I can deduct all your bonuses this month?"

"Go ahead and deduct them, or, better yet, fire me."

"You think I don't dare?"

I pushed the keyboard away, stood up, and grabbed my bag to leave.

The female supervisor was stunned for two seconds before chasing after me in a rage.

"Tobias, stop right there!"

She grabbed my bag forcefully, and off guard, I stumbled, hitting my back hard against the corner of the table.

A sharp pain shot through me, and my vision darkened. I almost passed out.

Just then, Kate and Peter happened to pass by.

"What's going on here? Why is there such a commotion? Don't you all have work to do?"

As she spoke, Kate didn't even glance at me.

The female supervisor immediately bowed and scraped, explaining. "Ms. Walsh, Tobias was disobeying work orders, causing a disturbance.

"Don't worry, I will discipline him properly."

Peter pretended to ask, "Ms. Lewis, what task did you assign to him?"

"Just to help move some things, but he refused. I said a few words to him, and he started throwing a fit."

Kate finally looked at me, coldly asking, "Tobias, you're making a scene over such a small matter?"

Just as I was about to speak, Peter said hypocritically, "Ms. Walsh, don't be mad. Tobias must have some unavoidable reason for refusing Ms. Lewis' orders."

"You don't need to speak for him. Taking money to do the job is only right. The company pays him, and during work hours, there is no reason to refuse tasks from superiors," Kate's eyes grew colder. "I think he's just being unreasonable and looking for trouble."

Enduring the pain in my back, I gritted my teeth and said, "Kate, there's no need for insinuations. I quit this job!"

Kate's face darkened even more upon hearing this.

Peter continued to fake concern. "Tobias, it's just a small matter, no need to make a fuss about quitting.

"Ms. Walsh is saying these things for your own good.

"Listen to my advice, go back and work properly, and this matter will be over.

"You've been with the company for so many years, even if you haven't achieved much, you've worked hard. The company won't mistreat you."

As he spoke, he reached out to pat my shoulder.

I showed a look of disgust and pushed him away.

"Ouch!"

I barely used any force, but Peter stumbled and fell, lightly hitting his head.

Seeing this, Kate was very worried and hurriedly went to help him.

"Peter, are you alright?"

"I'm... I'm fine, just a little dizzy."

Peter gritted his teeth, pretending to be innocent and aggrieved.

"Tobias, I was just trying to advise you, with no other intentions.

"We're all working for the company, so why resort to violence?"

Kate's delicate eyebrows shot up in anger as she glared at me. "Tobias, apologize to Peter!"

In all the years we'd been married, I had never seen my wife this furious; her anger was almost spilling from her eyes.

I gave them both a cold look, clutched my waist, and walked towards the door.

Apologize to this hypocrite? Not a chance.

The ever-loyal female supervisor immediately blocked my path, shouting angrily, "Tobias, you can't just hit someone and then walk away without apologizing!

"Security!"

Soon, a group of security guards rushed over.

The lead security manager, Milo Walsh, was Kate's younger brother and my brother-in-law.

Ever since I got married, he, like the rest of the Walsh family, had never looked at me with any respect.

Hearing the female supervisor's loud yelling, Milo didn't hesitate to have his men pin me down tightly.

Many colleagues also came out to watch the commotion, crowding the corridor.

Kate's face was dark as she said coldly, "Tobias, if you don't apologize to Peter, you can forget about leaving the company."

Even at this moment, Peter didn't forget to act. "Ms. Walsh, I'm fine. Tobias probably didn't mean it. Please forgive him."

Seeing his hypocritical, ugly face, I silently clenched my fist and instead of getting angry, I laughed. "Keep acting, Peter. Keep it up in front of everyone!"

Kate's brows furrowed tightly, and in the next second, a fist the size of a cooking pot landed heavily on my stomach.

A sharp, piercing pain surged through me, and I almost blacked out.

"Tobias, I've had enough of you! You think you can keep being arrogant?"

Milo punched me in the waist again, right where I had hit the corner of the table earlier.

I screamed in agony as waves of pain crashed over me, making it hard to breathe.

The previous injury felt like a thousand steel spikes piercing through, each nerve excruciatingly painful.

Kate was stunned; she seemed to remember something and immediately ordered them to release me.

Milo, looking unconvinced, said, "Kate, Tobias is just acting. Don't fall for it.

"I only hit him lightly. Who's he trying to fool with this exaggerated act?"

Just as he finished speaking, a gush of bright red blood stained my white shirt, causing the crowd around us to gasp in shock.