Chapter 4

Emily set her laptop on the conference table and nodded at me. "Ms. Summers, long time no see."

Without even glancing at me, Thomas gestured for her to take a seat.

Once everyone was there, he had the secretary hand out the project adjustment documents. "The company is putting all its resources into expanding overseas.

"Starting today, no more budget will be added to the domestic flagship project. All current funds and staff will be moved to the overseas team."

The room fell silent.

I flipped to the last page and saw the name of the overseas team lead written in: Emily Lane.

I started this project from scratch. When things got tough, Thomas was busy fighting for control of the company, so I was the one running around to over a dozen cities to sign our very first clients.

Last year, when the project finally started making money, he promised that once things settled down, he'd let me manage it solo.

Then, he gave everything, like the budget, the team, and the whole deal, to Emily.

The operations manager couldn't hold back. "Mr. Bennett, the domestic project is finally starting to pay off. If we cut off additional funding now, we might not recover our initial investment."

"The overseas market brings in more profit," Thomas replied. "This is a long-term strategy for the company."

"But Ms. Lane isn't familiar with our current operations," the operations manager said.

Emily smiled and closed her laptop. "I started, but Thomas has already handed over all the project files to me. The business model's basically the same. If the domestic team can handle it, so can I."

She called him Thomas instead of Mr. Bennett.

Everyone heard it clearly, but nobody dared to look up.

Thomas looked at me. "Claire, do you have any objections?"

I said, "No."

Emily's smile faltered for a moment.

She was clearly expecting me to challenge her, maybe even waiting for me to lose my temper in front of everyone.

But I calmly picked up my pen and signed off on the budget adjustment without a second thought.

Thomas's expression softened. "It's a temporary change. Once the overseas team settles in, I'll make sure you get a new project."

"Alright," I replied.

"You've been working so hard lately. You could use some time off."

With that, he made it look like I wasn't being pushed aside, but he was a thoughtful husband, giving his wife a break.

Emily slid another document over to me. "Since you've agreed, let's wrap up the project handover today. I want every client you've personally brought in over the past three years. All of them."

"The company's client files can be transferred as usual, but my personal work records aren't included in the transfer," I replied.

She glanced at Thomas.

Thomas frowned. "It's all for the company. No need to make such a big deal out of it."

"My personal records have plans I came up with on my own, and the company hasn't signed off on them yet," I said.

"Claire," he said, his tone firm. "Now's not the time to split hairs over this."

I pulled the risk separation agreement out of my file bag and set it down in front of him. "If the overseas team wants to use our joint investment returns, we need to sort out the risks first.

"Sign this, and I'll hand over the project right away."

Thomas flipped through a couple of pages.

The document spelled it out: once the overseas team took over, all profits, losses, and liabilities would be on him. None of my personal assets would be on the line anymore.

In the past, whenever he took on a project, I was always the one picking up the pieces.

He'd gotten used to me keeping the company out of trouble, and he took it for granted that I'd bail him out again.

"Do you really have to talk about our joint assets right here in the meeting?" Thomas asked.

"Didn't you say this overseas project was a long-term decision? Since it's long-term, we should follow the rules," I replied.

Emily said softly, "Thomas, Ms. Summers is looking out for the company. Sign it, and don't keep everyone waiting."

Thomas glanced at me, then finally signed the confirmation. "Happy now?"

I put the documents away and passed the handover list to Emily. "Everything we've got is on here. Once you sign, the secretary will handle the handover."

Emily flipped through the list and saw that my personal planning notes weren't included. Her face fell, but since Thomas had signed the risk document, she let it go.

The meeting wrapped up, and the executives started filing out.

Thomas told the secretary to close the door, then walked over to me. "What's gotten into you today?"

"Wrapping up the handover," I replied.

"That's not what I'm asking," Thomas said, barely holding back his anger. "You threw out the flowers and didn't wear the necklace.

"Suddenly, you came to the office to check the files, and now you're talking about dividing our assets. What are you so suspicious about?"

"It's not about suspicion." I placed the agreement we had kept for five years on the table.

Thomas's face shifted when he saw the familiar document. "Why did you bring this?"

"To keep our promise." I pulled out two more documents, stacked them neatly on top of the agreement, and slid them across the table to him.

The first was a clean break notice.

The second was the divorce agreement.

Emily stood by the door, not leaving. She stared at the papers, her smile fading away.

Thomas didn't open the documents.

His hand pressed down on the cover, his grip tightening until his knuckles turned white. "Claire, do you know what you're doing?"

"I do." I placed the pen right in front of him. "You said it yourself. If this day ever came, everything you own would belong to me."

Thomas looked up, his face going pale.