Chapter 2

"You want a divorce?" Yannick froze mid-step.

When I stayed silent, he demanded. "The wedding's almost here, and now you want to call it off?"

"I can't be with a guy who has a mistress behind my back," I said.

He looked at me, incredulous. "It was a one-time thing. That night was out of my hands.

"I told you, I love you. Our future child will be the heir. Even the strongest love has room for mistakes. Can't you be a little less idealistic?"

I looked him straight in the eye. "No, for me, there's zero tolerance for mistakes."

He nodded, but looked at me like I was crazy.

"You're not calm enough right now. Just take care of yourself for now. When you've cooled off, we'll talk," he said, then ripped the divorce papers in two and threw them straight into the trash.

But what Yannick didn't realize was that when I make a decision, it's final. There's no room for negotiation.

The next day, we didn't need to say a word. We both knew that the wedding was off, no questions asked.

He thought I'd calm down in a few days, and we'd just pick up where we left off with the wedding.

But what landed on his desk instead was a freshly drafted divorce agreement, courtesy of my lawyer.

Yannick couldn't believe his eyes as he stared at the divorce papers I relentlessly sent his way. When talking things out with me got him nowhere, he ended up reaching out to my parents.

I got home that day.

I walked in to find his parents sitting on the couch, both shooting me disapproving looks.

Yannick sat alone in an armchair, looking all stern. "Jocelyn, this is just too much. You're being totally unreasonable."

My dad was the first to speak up. "We know what happened. That night wasn't Yannick's fault. No one could've resisted with those drugs in their system.

"Besides, he took care of things right away. You two have been together for so many years. Why throw all that away over this?"

My mom clutched her chest, looking heartbroken. "Jocelyn, how could you do this? How could you abort the baby over something like this? Don't you know how hard it is for you to get pregnant?

"Just because of that woman, you're willing to lose your child out of spite. How could you be so foolish?"

Yannick finally spoke up. "Mrs. Strathmore, Mr. Strathmore, Yasmine's pregnancy has been terminated. Don't worry. After Jocelyn and I hold a wedding, we'll still have our children."

I was stunned. Yasmine had an abortion? But wasn't he just defending her baby at the wedding?

He looked at me. "Jocelyn, I know I really upset you this time. But you can relax. There's no other baby anymore. From now on, I only have you by my side."

My parents jumped in right away. "Alright, Jocelyn, Yannick's already done all he can. It wasn't even his fault. Just stop making a fuss, okay?"

I just set the divorce papers down on the table. "This isn't up for debate. If you won't sign, Mr. Pendleton, then we'll take it to court."

Smack.

Suddenly, my mom slapped me across the face. Her hand trembled as she pointed at me. "Who do you think you are, talking like that? If it weren't for Yannick, our family wouldn't be where it is today.

"He just slipped up; it's not like he did it on purpose. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?"

My dad frowned at me, about to say something, but Yannick cut him off.

I clutched my face, jaw clenched tight. "All these years building his business, I've been right there with him. How can you say it's all thanks to him?

"I'm just not the type to let things slide. I'm not sticking around for a guy who messes up. This is my marriage. Don't I get to call the shots?"

"That's enough." Dad finally lost it.

He shoved Yannick out of the way, snatched up a vase, and flung it right at me.

"Watch out." Yannick lunged forward, shoving me out of harm's way.

The vase crashed into Yannick's head, and blood instantly streamed down, blurring his vision.

"Yannick?" My parents rushed over, scrambling to catch him before he hit the floor.

He forced his eyes open, and the first thing he did was look straight at me.

"Jocelyn," he called out, his voice barely above a whisper.

I paused, torn for a split second, but in the end, I stepped back, pulling away from Yannick's hand.