At my husband Damien Shaw’s birthday party, he kissed his assistant right in front of me. I didn’t cry. I didn’t make a scene. I even thoughtfully turned on the air conditioning for him. He was beaming, showing off to a dozen of his buddies. “You gotta find a wife who’s both chill and devoted,” he boasted. “I just mentioned an open marriage, and she was totally on board. But she loves me so much, she’s never brought another guy home.” Everyone nodded, but a knowing smirk played on their lips. Damien had no idea that I’d actually been on dates with every single one of those guys. Just last night, the professor sitting in the corner kept pressing me: “Sister, when are you finally going to make this official?” Damien’s words cast a subtle hush over the private dining room. Everyone exchanged mocking glances, a silent understanding passing between them. My phone, however, wouldn’t stop vibrating. Every single message was an invitation from one of Damien’s friends to meet up again. I silenced my phone and ignored them all. The first time I found lipstick on Damien’s shirt collar, I cried, screamed, broke things, and threw tantrums. I even pathetically begged him to cut ties with those other women. But he just gave me a cold look. “Everyone believes in open marriages now. It’s totally normal for couples to do their own thing.” “If you’re unhappy, you can go find someone else too.” He said it, but he was dead certain I’d never betray him. And to be fair, I couldn’t bring myself to casually hook up with others. Not until he got serious with Chloe Green. Chloe was my most trusted assistant. When her parents were in a car accident, I paid their medical bills. When she couldn’t afford rent, I let her stay in my empty apartment for free. I treated her like a friend, but Damien was sleeping in the same bed with her. After that, I snapped. Every time Damien spent time with Chloe, I’d flirt with one of his friends. Especially the one in the corner, Julian Hayes, the youngest professor at a prestigious university. He was young, handsome, amazing in bed, and, crucially, richer than me. He wanted nothing from me, just constantly whispered in my ear, trying to convince me to leave Damien, that “old man,” and make him my official partner. Last night, he clung to me, wanting me again and again. But then, at the most crucial moment, he’d stop, purposely trying to force me to agree to his proposal. My phone vibrated again, a message from Julian. *Sister, Damien treats you like this, and you’re still not planning to leave him?* *Divorce that old man, and I’ll take you to the biggest manor in Germany for our wedding. Everything the Hayes family owns will be your dowry.*
The Hayes family was one of the most powerful and respected families in the nation, so that offer was incredibly tempting. But I still didn’t reply. Seeing no one was engaging, Damien assumed everyone was bored and ordered a few more pretty girls to liven things up. “Plenty of beauties and good wine tonight, everyone, let loose and have fun!” Chloe, who had been wrapped around him moments ago, instantly looked displeased. She pouted, her sweet voice carrying a hint of possessiveness. “They can do whatever they want, but you can’t.” “If you dare to hold any other woman’s hand, you won’t be sleeping in my bed tonight!” Damien wasn’t annoyed. He ignored everyone else, cooing at her. “Come on, sweetie. After my birthday, I’ll spend all my time with you, promise I won’t touch anyone else.” “Tell me anything you want, consider it your compensation.” Chloe gave a mock-coy huff, then suddenly pointed at me. “Then I want the ring on Anya’s finger. Will you give it to me?” I froze, my gaze dropping to the plain band on my left middle finger. After being completely disillusioned with Damien, I’d taken off my expensive wedding ring, but I hadn’t been able to part with this unassuming platinum band. Only because it was the engagement gift Damien had given me years ago. When he first put this ring on my finger, he wasn’t the powerful CEO Damien Shaw. He was just a green, naive kid. To buy this ring, he worked part-time nights while attending classes during the day, nearly working himself into the hospital. Later, we found success in our business, and he gave me countless valuable pieces of jewelry, but none of them made me as happy as this ring. I stubbornly wore this ring, as if guarding the purest love of my youth. Damien frowned, refusing Chloe. My hand, clutching the wine glass, slowly relaxed. A flicker of relief sparked within me. But the next second, he said, “An old, worthless ring, what do you want it for?” “That old-fashioned style doesn’t suit you at all.” Chloe wouldn’t listen to him. She chirped sweetly, “But I like that one! I want it!” I knew Chloe didn’t actually want the ring; she wanted to provoke me. Because she understood what that ring meant to me. I looked at Damien, my voice flat. “Do you want me to give it to her?” Damien didn’t even glance at me. “If the little girl likes it, give it to her. I’ll buy you a new one tomorrow.” Turns out, when you’re hurt to the extreme, you can’t cry. I expressionlessly took off the ring, severing the last thread of affection I had for Damien. Chloe forced the ill-fitting ring onto her ring finger. Someone joked, “That ring clearly doesn’t fit you. It looked much better on Anya.” Chloe sneered, “Whether it fits or not isn’t important. What matters is that it’s on my hand.” “Right, Anya?” I didn’t answer. She flashed a smug, mocking smile and turned, burying herself in Damien’s arms. I sat in the corner, downing half a glass of whiskey, the burning sensation bitter on my tongue. Then I pulled out my phone and replied to Julian’s message. *I agree.*
Damien didn’t come home the next day either. After getting ready, I left to meet my lawyer. As soon as I walked into the firm, I saw the divorce papers laid out on the table. “Ms. Thompson, this agreement needs to be confirmed by both you and Mr. Shaw.” “If there are no issues, after signing and getting through the one-month waiting period, you’ll be completely free.” I nodded and asked the lawyer to contact Damien. But he cruelly hung up ten calls in a row. Just as I was about to go find him myself, the call finally connected. But what I heard was a man’s heavy breathing and a woman’s moans. The lawyer looked incredibly awkward. My heart was utterly calm, and I spoke flatly, “Damien, you need to sign the divorce papers, you…” Before I could finish, Damien cut me off. He sounded extremely impatient. “I’m busy. You just sign for me, don’t notify me about every little thing.” After he spoke, I heard Chloe’s voice again. She deliberately called out loudly, urging, “Damien, don’t stop!” As the call disconnected, I faintly heard Damien’s low reprimand, laced with a tenderness he hadn’t shown me in ages. “Why are you getting out of bed without shoes? You’ll catch a cold.” I forced a smile, unable to decipher the feeling in my heart. “He’s authorized me to sign, so I will.” The lawyer also sensed Damien’s attitude and reluctantly handed me a pen. My fingers moved lightly, signing both Damien’s and my own name. The divorce papers were signed. Next, to tackle the company issues.
Damien owned three companies. The largest, “YiZhi Designs,” was the high-end jewelry company he and I built together. Though he provided most of the capital, the company’s design team was my brainchild, nurtured with my own efforts. Some were my old classmates, others were up-and-coming designer influencers. Back then, they came to YiZhi, which had nothing, out of loyalty to me, willing to start from scratch. Gradually, we made a name for ourselves in the industry and attracted investors. At the annual International Jewelry Design Competition, my team’s designs went viral, officially ushering in the era of YiZhi Designs, practically monopolizing the domestic jewelry design business. Damien’s success today owed much to me and my team. But now he was not only favoring new hires with connections but also letting Chloe abuse her power. If I hadn’t been there, those long-time employees would have left ages ago. I planned to take them with me to start our own jewelry design company. With that thought, I began recruiting. The process was surprisingly smooth, with many shareholders even willing to follow me. My mood improved slightly, but Chloe had to ruin it again. *Anya, honestly, in terms of looks and ability, I’m not better than you. But do you know why Damien likes me more and more, and hates you more and more?* I’d grown accustomed to Chloe’s malice, feeling nothing inside. Ever since Damien started openly flaunting their affection in front of me, she’d tried every trick in the book to make my life miserable. Anything I liked, she’d find a way to coax Damien into giving it to her. On my birthday, she took Damien to the vet for her pet dog. Every time they were intimate, she’d immediately send me pictures from their bed. I initially wanted to ignore her, but then she sent a pregnancy test result. *Because you can’t give Damien children, but I can.* *Damien isn’t someone who just seeks pleasure. He keeps looking for one woman after another because all he really wants is a child of his own. You live off him, but you can’t even fulfill this tiny request, so of course he’d grow to resent you.* *A woman who can’t even have children is so pathetic. If you have any self-respect, you should hurry up and leave him so I can take your place. We’ll be the happiest family of three.* Even though I had already decided to leave, Chloe’s words still stung. I stared intently at that pregnancy test result, my breathing starting to falter.
Actually, Damien and I once had a child. Back then, he was just starting his business, with no connections or resources, like a small-time guy being forced to drink excessively at business dinners. My heart ached for him, so I snatched his glass and drank for him. The people at the table, seeing I was pretty, had bad intentions and pushed all sorts of drinks—white spirits, red wine—in front of me. To avoid offending anyone, I accepted them all and passed out drunk. When I woke up groggily, I found myself in a hotel bed, a pool of red beneath me. A man, looking utterly annoyed, grabbed Damien’s collar. “Why didn’t you tell me she was pregnant sooner? I was halfway through and now I’m in a mess!” Damien glared at him fiercely but was beaten bloody by the man’s bodyguards. The sun was scorching that day. He carried me for three miles, but it still wasn’t enough to save our baby. And I permanently lost the ability to have children. In the hospital, Damien’s eyes were bloodshot. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry… I didn’t protect you or our baby.” He knelt before me, vowing, “If we can’t have kids, we won’t. My feelings for you will never change.” I fell into a deep depression during that time. Damien pleaded with countless doctors until I finally rekindled my hope for life. To protect me, he paid a fortune to silence everyone who knew. After establishing himself in the city, he personally made sure that man who hurt me paid a painful price. For all these years, no one dared to bring up that incident in front of me. Other than Damien, no one would have told Chloe these things. I tore up all my photos with Damien, smashed every piece of jewelry he had given me. Only when my palm was cut by broken glass did a sliver of rationality return. Indeed, all promises are only true the moment they are spoken. I packed a small bag and left without looking back.
Damien came home the next day with a new ring, only to be shocked by the wreckage of the house. His first thought was that Anya had been in danger. But no matter how many times he called, no one answered. Suppressing his panic, he checked the security footage and saw Anya leaving with a suitcase last night. He wanted to chase after her but was stopped by Chloe. “Damien, Anya has such a temper! I just said she couldn’t have kids, and she actually ran away.” Damien froze. “What do you mean?” Chloe didn’t notice Damien’s darkening mood and continued her snide remarks. “I was so happy about being pregnant with your baby that I wanted to share the joy with Anya, but I didn’t expect her to be so petty.” “A worthless hen who can’t even lay an egg, what’s she putting on airs for…” Chloe’s words were cut short as Damien grabbed her by the throat. His expression was sinister. “Who gave you the guts to flaunt yourself in front of her? I told you to keep quiet, are you deaf?!” Chloe had never seen Damien so fierce; it was as if the gentle man she’d intimately spent the night with was someone else entirely. Her face turned beet red, and she was on the verge of suffocating when he finally let go. “Damien, I didn’t do anything! Don’t be so mean to me…” Damien didn’t soothe her as he usually would. Instead, he warned her in a low voice, “I’m telling you one more time. You’re just a plaything. The child in your belly will call Anya ‘Mom’ someday. Don’t desire what doesn’t belong to you!” Chloe trembled with fright, crying and apologizing to Damien. Just as Damien was growing incredibly irritated, he received a call from Anya. He took a deep breath, trying to soften his tone, but what he heard was an unmistakably intimate sound. Damien instantly exploded, his voice deep and cold. “Anya Thompson, what are you doing? Who are you with?!” My heart skipped a beat. I pushed Julian’s head, which was buried in my chest, away, my gaze falling on the phone I’d accidentally brushed.
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