Chapter 4

I held my ground, staring him down, refusing to yield an inch.

In the past, when we attended galas and the paparazzi swarmed us, he had openly acknowledged me as his wife.

But at the concert, he had humiliated me in front of thousands of people, stripping me of even the most basic respect.

Now, every entertainment outlet was running the same story: Vanessa was the other woman who ruined our marriage, and Ethan was ashamed of my background and the fact that I had to scrape by to take care of my sick brother.

Yet Cole Enterprises hadn't released a single statement.

Because Ethan was protecting Vanessa.

I couldn't hold it in anymore. Tears spilled over my lashes, dropping one by one.

Ethan rubbed his temples in frustration.

"Now is not the time for a divorce."

"You've seen the news. She can't be branded as the other woman."

My throat burned as I forced the words out, throwing them at him like stones. "But she is a homewrecker."

Ethan's gaze turned to ice.

"I knew her first. You're the homewrecker."

My nails dug so hard into my palms they almost broke the skin.

I never imagined that, as his legal wife, I would be called a homewrecker by my own husband.

"I expect you to cooperate with the company's crisis PR," Ethan said, his tone flat, like he was negotiating a business deal. "Your brother still needs his treatments, doesn't he? Keep those divorce papers quiet."

I froze. A tear hung suspended on my eyelashes.

I stared at him, utterly horrified.

He knew my brother, Leo, was my only family, yet he was weaponizing his illness to blackmail me.

What he didn't know was that I had already contacted an overseas medical research team. I was in the middle of transferring Leo into a clinical trial.

Today was moving day.

I lowered my eyes, pretending he had backed me into a corner.

"I understand."

Ethan visibly relaxed. He immediately pulled out his phone and made a call.

"Release the statement."

A second later, a push notification popped up on my phone.

Ethan Cole and his partner were never legally married and parted ways amicably long ago. Ethan Cole confirms Vanessa Hart is his official girlfriend.

I let out a dark chuckle.

Ethan sounded almost patronizing as he tried to console me. "I'll get the best doctors for your brother."

I didn't reply.

That night, while Ethan was treating Vanessa to a candlelight dinner at a high-end restaurant, I left the signed divorce papers on his desk. Then, I uploaded a certified copy of our marriage certificate—issued by Los Angeles County—to the internet.

The caption was just one sentence:

Ethan says the one who isn't loved is the real homewrecker.