Chapter 5

The group turned around instantly.

Their smiles froze.

Ethan's face went completely pale, his smug expression vanishing.

"Rhi? What are you doing here?"

He rushed over to me, his brow furrowed.

"Why did you come to the office without letting me know? Is this how a supportive wife behaves?"

"I've been too lenient with you, and now you think you can just show up whenever you want. Your allowance for the next month is gone."

I didn't argue. I just handed him a stack of papers.

The divorce agreement was tucked right in the middle of his "check-in sheets."

He didn't even look at them. He just quickly scribbled his signature on the bottom line, thinking it was just more household paperwork.

Once I had the signed document back in my hands, I looked at him calmly.

"Go ahead. Deduct it."

My calm demeanor made Ethan uneasy. He snapped, trying to mask his guilt with anger.

"It was just a joke between guys. Can't you be a little more mature?"

"Besides, you heard them. Having a beautiful assistant by your side is completely normal in our circle."

Before I could speak, Chloe grabbed my sleeve, tears instantly streaming down her face.

"Mrs. Vance, it's all my fault! Please don't blame Ethan. If I hadn't tempted him, he wouldn't have done this."

I frowned, completely baffled by her sudden waterworks. I hadn't even said anything to her.

"I just came to—"

Suddenly, Chloe dropped to her knees, sobbing loudly.

"Mrs. Vance, please forgive Ethan! I don't want your place. I just want to stay by his side and support him. Please don't fire me!"

The onlookers stared at me with pure disgust, murmuring about how heartless I was.

I tried to pull my sleeve out of her grip.

But before I could even apply any force, Chloe shrieked.

She threw herself backward, rolling down the short flight of concrete steps. Her forehead struck the sharp edge of the stone tile with a loud thud.

Blood immediately pooled from her hairline, dripping down her face.

"It hurts... it hurts so much!"

She clutched her head, curling into a ball. "Ethan... my face... am I disfigured?"

Before I could process what had happened, Ethan violently shoved me aside, screaming at me.

"Rhiannon! Are you insane?!"

"Chloe just wanted to work. How could you push her?!"

I stared at him in disbelief. "Ethan, are you blind?"

"I didn't touch her. You all cornered me and accused me of things I didn't do. How is this my fault?"

Ethan was shaking with rage. "You are completely out of control, Rhiannon! Your allowance for the rest of the year is docked!"

"I'm not coming home tonight. Stay there and think about what you've done!"

With that, he scooped Chloe into his arms and rushed her to his car.

The engine roared, and the car sped away, leaving me alone on the street.

The scrapes on my palms stung sharply in the wind, making me tremble.

I let out a self-deprecating laugh.

"Look at this, Rhi," I told myself. "This is the man you defied your grandfather to marry. This is the toxic, abnormal marriage you endured."

But it was fine. This unbalanced relationship was finally over.

I walked into the Starbucks next door.

Julian Sterling was already waiting for me. The moment I sat down, his eyes fell on my bleeding palms.

He frowned instantly and called the barista over to get a first-aid kit.

Watching this handsome, powerful man carefully clean and bandage my scratches, I smiled bitterly.

"Grandpa, your judgment was always better than mine."

Just like Ethan’s "probation period." I had given him three years to prove himself.

He failed.

So, it was time for me to start a new chapter.

At the hospital, Ethan knew deep down that Chloe had faked the fall.

But he couldn't let me challenge his authority. In his mind, rules were rules, and they couldn't be broken.

He stared at his phone, feeling a strange, hollow anxiety creeping in. He sent me a WhatsApp message:

"Do you understand what you did wrong now?"

I didn't reply.

Three hours passed. Still no response.

Ethan’s heart began to race. A weird feeling of losing control washed over him.

Suddenly, a breaking news notification popped up on his phone:

"Julian Sterling, heir of the Sterling Group, announces his engagement to Rhiannon Shaw, heiress of the Shaw empire, on March 18th."