Chapter 3

Brandon sneered. "Take it yourselves. I'm not interested."

"And don't wait up for dinner. I have a reservation."

He turned on his heel to leave. Victoria yelled, outraged, "Brandon Hayes!"

Brandon paused at the double doors and glanced back over his shoulder. "If you’re so bored, Mom, I can arrange an early retirement for you. I hear that private retreat in Switzerland is lovely this time of year."

"Why don't you go spend a few months there?"

Victoria's voice caught in her throat.

Brandon gave me one last lingering, unreadable look before walking out.

Once he was gone, Victoria's chest heaved with rage. She spat in my direction, "Useless! You can't even keep a leash on your own husband!"

I nodded calmly. "You're right, I really can't. Which is why I won't be staying for dinner either, wouldn't want to ruin your appetite. Excuse me."

I turned around and walked out. Victoria shrieked behind me, "What kind of attitude is that?!"

I didn't care.

If Brandon didn't give a damn, why should I break my back cleaning up his garbage?

Yet, somehow, Victoria still managed to leak a heavily edited couple's photo of Brandon and me to the press, trying to squash the separation rumors.

Later that evening, while having drinks with Sam, I saw the photo online and laughed bitterly. Right below the post, Brandon had commented from his verified account: "Photoshopped."

The internet exploded in an instant.

Sam slammed her drink on the table, cursing. "What a complete dickhead! He’s publicly humiliating you!"

"Is his family just going to let him get away with that?"

I shook my head. "They can't control him anymore."

I looked up at her, my eyes gleaming. "Help me get even, will you?"

"What do you have in mind?"

"An eye for an eye."

We shared a wicked grin. Within an hour, a photo of me laughing and chatting intimately with an extraordinarily handsome, sharp-featured guy at a luxury hotel lounge was leaked online.

In the photo, I was smiling radiantly. We stayed talking until the early hours, and I even went back to his penthouse!

Not to be outdone, Brandon was spotted kissing Hannah right outside a five-star hotel entrance.

The comment sections went into absolute meltdown.

"The Hayes couple is going blow for blow! Cheating wife versus the return of the first love!"

Suddenly, the Hayes name was plastered all over every social media platform, and my family got dragged into the spotlight right along with them.

My phone rang off the hook with frantic, furious calls from my parents. No matter how much they cursed at me, I let it go straight to voicemail, chilling at Sam’s place and watching the drama unfold.

Finally, a message from Brandon popped up. I exhaled slowly.

"What do you want?" I texted back.

"We need to talk. The Grandview Hotel, Suite 1206. Get over here now."

I agreed without hesitation, grabbed the signed divorce papers, and headed straight there.

When I arrived, Hannah was the one who opened the door.

She gave a faint smile and brushed her hair behind her ear. My eyes locked onto the ring resting on her finger.

Noticing my gaze, Hannah smiled warmly, dripping with false innocence.

"Chloe? Brandon is finishing up a conference call inside. Please, have a seat."

I arched an eyebrow. "Unique ring."

I had designed that ring myself right after we got married. Brandon told me he’d hand the sketches over to his company's jewelry division to craft a one-of-a-kind piece.

And now, he had regifted my design to Hannah.

She offered me a cup of coffee, her tone practically dripping with gloating condescension.

"It was a gift from Brandon. I told him I couldn't accept it, but he insisted. Honestly, he shouldn't just be throwing rings around like this!"

Her pathetic pick-me act was almost laughable. "It's just a ring. The design was flopping anyway, so giving it away to someone like you makes total sense."

Her smile froze, and her eyes turned cold. "Chloe, you just got lucky three years ago when you took my place. But now that I'm back, it's time for you to step down."

I slammed the divorce papers onto the coffee table. "If you have the guts, get Brandon to sign this. I'm already done."

Seeing the divorce agreement, her eyes lit up. She lunged forward to grab it, but the inner door swung open, and Brandon walked out.

Hannah instantly switched gears, her voice turning soft and tearful. "Chloe, Brandon and I are just friends! Please don't misunderstand, you can't just end your marriage over this!"

Brandon looked at me, his face utterly thunderous. "Divorce? Chloe, did you finally find 'true love'?!"

"Yeah," I looked right into his eyes. "I found someone who actually makes me feel something new."

"Brandon, you're terrible in bed. Let's get a divorce."