Chapter 2

The study went dead silent for a heartbeat. Then, Matthew surged to his feet. "Half?" His grip tightened on Grace until his knuckles turned white.

He looked at me as if I'd lost my mind. "Celia, have you no shame? Grace and I are true love. For the sake of love, I could walk away with nothing. You want money? Is that all you can see?"

Grace looked up too. A flash of pure greed flickered in her eyes before she quickly pulled her "above-it-all" mask back into place.

She sighed softly, her voice laced with just the right amount of disappointment. "Cece, Matthew's feelings are real. How can you be so... shallow? True love is priceless; you can't put a dollar sign on it."

I stood up slowly. The click of my heels against the hardwood floor rang out in the silent study.

I walked right up to them, taking in Matthew's twisted, furious expression and Grace's phony noble demeanor. Then I laughed. I laughed until I was almost in tears.

"True love is priceless?" I said deliberately, each word like a poisoned needle. "Matthew, Grace, you two are hilarious.

"You're over here preaching about a love that moves mountains, yet you're terrified I'll take a bite out of your 'happily ever after' fund. If it's true love, what's a little money? Or is it..."

I leaned in, locking eyes with Matthew. "That your 'true love' can't actually stand the test of money? That you need me to walk away empty-handed just so you can appear more noble?"

Matthew's face instantly flushed red, and Grace turned pale.

"You..." Matthew pointed at me, his finger trembling. "Celia, don't push your luck!"

"What do I need luck for?" I straightened up, pulled a pen from my bag, and swiftly signed my name on the divorce agreement. Then I tossed the pen onto the coffee table.

I said, "Matthew, for the past five years, I stayed by your side while we climbed from hell to heaven.

"Now that you've made it big, you've decided I'm beneath you. You want a more noble 'soulmate.' Fine, I'll step aside. But I'm taking every cent I'm owed."

I slid the signed agreement toward him. "Sign it. Once you do, you and your 'true love' can fly the coop and live happily ever after."

Matthew glared at me as if he wanted to tear me limb from limb.

Grace gently tugged at his sleeve and whispered, "Matthew, forget it... as long as we're together, nothing else matters..."

Matthew took a deep breath, snatched up the pen, and scrawled his name across the agreement. The sound of the nib tearing into the paper was grating.

Once he was finished, he threw the pen aside and looked at me coldly. "Celia, I hope you won't regret this."

I picked up my copy of the agreement and headed straight for the door. As I reached the threshold, I paused and glanced back one last time.

Matthew had his arms around Grace, whispering something soothing. Grace was leaning into his chest, unable to hide the smug triumph playing at the corners of her mouth.

The sight was an eyesore.

"Oh, by the way," I said flatly. "I wish your 'true love' lasted forever. Just try not to tear each other's throats out over money someday. It would be such a tacky ending."

With that, I pulled the door open and walked out without looking back.

The hallways of Hawthorne Manor felt endless.

As I paced toward the exit, my hand instinctively drifted to my abdomen. It was still flat, but I knew a tiny life was inside me. The child I was carrying for Matthew.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. When I opened them again, my gaze was like ice.

This child shouldn't have been conceived. It didn't belong in a world built on cold calculations and betrayal from the very start.