As the conversation unfolded, it became clear. They believed I was the perfect match for their son, a woman who could not only support him but also help build their family’s empire. Victor seemed as surprised as I was, but he remained silent, his expression unreadable.

But Victor’s parents were determined to have me as their daughter-in-law. They saw in me a valuable asset, someone who could help secure the future of the Preston Group.

They didn’t want Victor marrying into another wealthy family after all, because they didn’t want to share their precious shares. They wanted someone like me, an intelligent, hardworking woman who had proven her loyalty to the company.

As a result, we married after I graduated from MIT.

But there were conditions. Until we had a child, our marriage was to be kept under wraps; only a handful of people within the company knew that I was Victor’s wife.

Despite the secrecy, I was happy. I loved Victor, and being his wife was enough for me. I dedicated myself to the company, to him, hoping that, in time, he would come to love me too.

At first, our marriage was awkward. Victor was distant, cold.

However, when I got pregnant, things started to change. He began to show a side of him I hadn’t seen before, a tenderness, a softness. Yet, I always sensed that his newfound affection wasn’t entirely for me.

But then I lost the baby in the fourth month, resulting the little warmth he had shown vanished entirely. He became colder, more distant. His parents expressed their regrets, but Victor’s reaction was muted, almost indifferent.

As a result, I buried myself in work, trying to ignore the pain of his coldness and the emptiness inside me.

However, on our third wedding anniversary, driven by desperation, I decided to take a bold step. I slipped a stimulant into his drink, hoping it would break down the walls between us.

As the effects of the drink began to take hold, Victor's expression darkened. He knew something was off, especially when my hands began to wander across his body.

“What did you do?” he asked, his voice tight with anger.

I leaned closer, my lips brushing against his skin.

“I’m just fulfilling my duties as your wife,” I whispered, my voice heavy with longing.

“How dare you!” he growled, his muscles tensing.

But the drink had dulled his resistance, and soon his desire took over. As his breathing grew heavier, he gave in, his hands roaming my body with a hunger I had never felt from him for almost two years.

“Is this what you want?” he said between ragged breaths, his tone a mix of anger and desire.

I nodded.

“Fine. But don’t blame me if I’m rough.”

For a moment, I felt a connection, however forced, as if this was how it was supposed to be.

But as the effects of the stimulant began to wear off an hour later, Victor abruptly pushed me away.

“You’re disgusting, Earlene!” he spat, his voice filled with revulsion.

Tears welled up in my eyes. “Is it so disgusting to want my own husband?” I asked, my voice trembling with pain.

“Yes,” he said without hesitation, his eyes cold and unyielding.

The brief moments of closeness we had shared were nothing more than a cruel illusion, a result of the drug, not any real affection.

“You’re cruel, Victor!” I cried out, my heart shattering.

He quickly gathered his clothes, putting them on hastily. “Have you forgotten how you became Mrs. Preston?” he asked, his tone sharp.

I would never forget. I was chosen for this role, not out of love, but out of a calculated decision to secure an heir and the future of the company. That was why, the harsh reality of my situation was clearer than ever at that moment.

I chuckled softly, the sound bitter, “No, I haven’t forgotten. But your parents want a grandchild too, don’t they?”

My face flushed with anger. If it hadn’t been for the forced smile on my lips, I might have looked like a ghost escaped from hell.

“I can still give them a grandchild, even if it’s not from you,” he said.

Those words haunted me so suddenly. Only then did I understand what he meant back then.

After that night, I indeed was success on getting pregnant. But under Victor’s coldness and my chaos mental health condition, I lost the baby again in my seven weeks pregnancy.

“This can’t go on,” I whispered to myself, my resolve hardening.

Finally, we had arrived at Preston Manor. The butler who had picked me up opened the car door and said, “Mrs. Preston, we’ve arrived. Do you need help getting out?”

“No, thank you,” I replied, my voice firm.

After getting out of the car, I said again, “Thank you for taking care of me all this time.”

Then, I made my way to the elevator and headed to my room. I opened the drawer containing the divorce papers I had prepared a few days after my miscarriage.

Back then, I was hesitant, clinging to the hope that I could win Victor's love back. But then, all of my doubts had vanished. I was done dedicating myself to the Preston family.

I signed the divorce papers with a steady hand, then placed them on Victor’s desk in the study. After packing my things, I took a taxi back to my family’s manor.

When I arrived, my mother was the first to greet me. She burst into tears as soon as she saw my condition.

“Oh my God, Earlene. I was about to visit you when I saw the news about the bridge collapsed accident on TV,” she cried.

I could not help crying when meeting my mother. All of the depression I had buried for three years had been poured so suddenly.

“Sweetheart, you must feel scared today. Come inside, I’ll call the doctor and nurse to take care of you,” my mother said again.

In the evening, my father and brother came home from the office to see me. My father was still the President of Grant Group, while my brother, Gavin, was the CEO of Grant City Mall, a branch of our family's business empire.

Our family had been billionaires since my great-grandfather’s time, while Preston family had only risen to prominence during his father's leadership.

That was one of the reasons my family had opposed my marriage to Victor from the start. But I had ignored their warnings, believing in my choice.

Gavin Grant, my older brother, was the first to mock me, “So, this is the result of your sincere love, sister?”

I snorted in annoyance, but my mother scolded him, “Don’t tease your sister. It’s a miracle she survived the accident and chose to come back home.”

My father, ever the stern figure, said in his usual firm tone, “Leave us alone.”

My mother, who had been holding my hand and listening to my grievances, gently let go. Then, she whispered, “Don’t worry. I’ll scold your father twice as much as he scolds you, okay?”

I nodded, reassuring her not to worry. I was ready for whatever consequences awaited me.

When it was just my father and me, he spoke directly. “Are you two officially divorced?”

I replied, “Not yet, but I have signed the papers, and he has agreed.”

My father sighed, whether in relief or exasperation, I couldn’t tell. After a long silence, he finally said, “Rest until you’re fully recovered, not just your body, but your mind as well.”

He turned to leave the room, but I stopped him.

“Dad, I am sorry for my mistakes. From now on, I will do everything as you say.”

He paused, then turned back to me with a smirk. “I heard from Gavin that you decided to cut off all cooperation between Grant and Preston, including removing the Preston brand from our Grant City Mall. Is that true?” he asked.

I nodded and explained, “Yes. After all, it was me who handled all those deals over the past three years.”

“You know it won’t be easy, right? So, once you’re recovered, work under your brother and manage everything properly. As for the space left by Preston, replace it with a better brand.

“Oh, you don’t forget about your own brand that you’ve been developing for the past five years, do you? Is it good enough to compete with Preston?”

My father’s words were rapid-fire, making my already dizzy head spin even more.

“You’re giving me a lot of work, Dad,” I complained, my tone playful despite my fatigue.

He sneered, “If you can’t handle it, you could always go back to Preston.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll start tomorrow,” I relented.

“In this condition?” my father asked, a hint of disbelief in his voice.

It seemed he had forgotten just how capable his daughter was after three years apart.

I replied confidently, “The only thing that injured is my legs, but I believe it will be fine in few days. My hands can still move, and my brain is still working just fine. So, don’t worry about it.”

*

The next day, I decided to make my departure from Preston official. I sent my resignation letter via email to the HR department, using my Preston staff email.

Then, using my Grant Group email, I sent a file contained the cancelation cooperation agreement with Preston, citing the failure to meet sales targets.

I knew every weakness Preston had. After all, I had been the one handling their external partnerships for the past three years.

I couldn’t help but imagine the look on Victor’s face when he discovered what I had done. He could easily replace me as his wife, but finding someone to replace my role in the company would not be so simple.

Sure enough, the day after, Victor called me. As soon as I answered, his angry voice boomed through the phone, “I agreed to the divorce, but I won’t accept your resignation. You need to finish your business at the office first.”

I sneered, “That wasn’t the agreement, Mr. Preston. Once we’re divorced, I’m no longer part of the Preston family, nor am I your employee.

“Enjoy the show, Victor.”

With that, I hung up and promptly blocked his number.

*

Once I had recovered, I made my way to the Grant Group office. Gavin had prepared a new office for me and even assigned me a new assistant, Jenny Starks, who had been my assistant at Preston.

Surprised, I turned to Gavin. “How did you manage to get Jenny here?”

Gavin grinned while explaining, “Surprised? She was my spy at Preston all along. I deliberately placed her as your assistant. Now, she’s the only one you can trust completely. Besides, you two make a great team, don’t you?”

I sighed, shaking my head at my brother’s cunningness. “Thank you for thinking ahead, Gavin.”

After settling in, I decided to visit Grant City Mall. I had always gone there representing Preston for three years, but that day, I was returning as its owner.

As we made our way through the mall, Jenny suddenly whispered behind me, “Miss Grant, have you met Mr. Preston’s new wife?”

“New wife? So, they’re married already?” I asked, more out of curiosity than hurt.

“Yes, everyone knows she’s pregnant too,” Jenny replied.

I nodded, feeling indifferent to the news. After all, Victor’s life was no longer any of my concern.

But as we continued walking, someone bumped into my shoulder, quite deliberately. To my surprise, she stumbled so bad to the floor.

“Ouch… Why did you bump into me?” the woman said, her voice dripping with shamelessness.

When I saw her face, I was taken aback. It was Margareth Alexander, a colleague and a close friend from my internship days at Preston. I bent down, intending to offer her a hand, but Jenny’s whisper stopped me.

“She’s Mr. Preston’s new wife,” she murmured.

“What?”

Margareth smirked, then dramatically pretended to struggle to stand, playing the part of a weak woman bullied by me. She had even brought someone along to record the whole scene.

“You must be angry because I stole your husband,” she said, tears brimming in her eyes as she tried to hug me.

I gently pushed her away, but she fell backward again and began to cry.

All around us, people stared at me as if I were a cruel villain.

‘What a cunning vixen,’ I muttered in my heart. But then, I sighed and said to Jenny, "Give her some compensation. I don't have time for her theatrics."

As I turned to leave, Margareth suddenly grabbed my injured leg, the one still healing from the bridge collapsed accident I was in a week ago.

Pain shot through me, but I stood my ground, waiting to see what act she would put on next.

"I'm sorry, Earlene. I didn't mean to deceive you. But if it weren't for you, I would have married Victor long ago. We've liked each other for the past ten years," she cried, tears streaming down her face.

It was astonishing. That woman had just thrown herself to the ground without a second thought, showing no concern for her so-called pregnancy. Then, she was playing the victim card, making me out to be the villain in this whole charade.

Before I could respond, a familiar voice crackled through a phone.

"What are you doing, Earlene?" Victor's voice rang out.

It turned out that Margareth's accomplices who had been recording, had switched it to a video call.

"First, you sabotage my family's business, and now you're pushing Margareth? Are you trying to make her miscarry?"

Questions flew from the phone, but I just smiled and gave Margareth a small, deliberate kick, forcing her to release her grip on my leg.

"Well, if I'm already being accused, I might as well live up to it," I said coolly.

I could hear Victor's outrage on the other end, but I ignored it and walked away, leaving Margareth behind. The crowd that had gathered began to disperse, some no doubt recording the scene on their phones. Still, I was confident that Jenny would handle the situation.

Sure enough, not a single video of me and Margareth surfaced on social media.

"She did a good job, didn't she?" Gavin remarked, interrupting my thoughts as I stared at my computer screen.

"When did you come in?" I asked, a bit startled. Then, I continued, "And without knocking, too."

"Don't forget, this is my company. I don't need permission to enter any room," he teased.

I rolled my eyes. "Fine, fine. Take a seat, Mr. President. What brings you here?"

"Nothing much. Just wanted to say you're doing great work. I still can't believe you were betrayed by a colleague, though," he said, chuckling.

I shook my head, still unable to wrap my mind around the fact that Victor's first love had been right under my nose all this time.