Chapter 2

Alexander only married me because Tracy pressured him into it.

Tracy and my mom were childhood best friends, and they'd made a pact to become family someday.

After my mom passed away unexpectedly, Tracy took me in.

To fulfill her promise to my mom, Tracy forced Alexander to marry me.

On our wedding night, Alexander smashed our wedding photo, his eyes red with fury as he pointed at me.

He snapped, "Don't think I don't know exactly what you're after. You really believe that forcing me into this marriage means you get a piece of everything I have?

"Let me tell you, my money, my status, you won't get even a single cent of it."

I kept explaining myself, trying my best to play the perfect wife, hoping I could melt his icy heart one day.

But even after we had a son, he still looked down on me, like I didn't matter at all.

He watched every penny I spent, never letting me buy anything for myself.

I clenched the rose in my hand until the petals crumbled.

I was beginning to feel truly worn out.

I handled every detail of Tracy's funeral on my own.

Alexander had me blocked the entire time.

I tried to get in touch with his secretary, but all I got was a snide response.

"Mrs. Stone, you really should stop making up excuses to get Mr. Stone to spend money on you. If there's nothing important, please don't bother contacting us again," the secretary said.

I walked home in a daze, completely numb inside.

As soon as I opened the door, a tinkling, girlish laugh rang out.

A graceful woman, elegant and alluring, playfully clenched her fist and gave Alexander a light punch on the chest.

"You're so bad. You bought me so many things, I can't even carry them all home," she pouted.

Alexander took her playful anger in stride, gently taking her hand and pulling her into his arms.

"Then just make yourself at home here," Alexander said, his voice full of affection.

But the second he noticed me, all that adoration disappeared from his eyes.

He immediately frowned.

"Go ahead, tell me, nothing's missing from the house, so what did you sell to get so much money?" he asked.

My smile was tinged with bitterness.

"Do you really think I'm always out to steal your money?" I asked, my voice trembling.

He sneered.

"Emma, I know what you're after. If you can't get cash from me, you'll find some other way to bleed me dry. Since Sophie's been in a good mood lately, I won't make a scene. Just be honest, I won't come after you," he said.

I yelled, my eyes brimming with tears, "Alexander!

"Do you really think I'm always out to get something from you? Is it so hard to believe I just wanted to cash in my own jewelry?

"Since you're so obsessed with what I took, fine, I'll tell you. The only thing I ever took was what belonged to me, my jewelry."

With that, I threw the empty jewelry box down onto the floor.

It was empty.

Alexander's brows knitted as he looked at me, clearly not believing what he was seeing.

"You," Alexander stammered, at a loss for words.

I'd always been a devoted, good wife.

But now, I was shouting at him, my voice shaking with anger and my breath coming in uneven bursts.

He'd never seen me like this before.

Just as Alexander was about to speak, Sophie, as if by accident, opened a box.

"Huh, Tracy's jewelry was gone too?" she said.

In that instant, Alexander's eyes flashed coldly.

Nathan had been frail since he was a kid, and more than once, he'd ended up in the ER.

Every time, Alexander just wouldn't trust me. He even cut off my living expenses.

But it was always Tracy who came to my rescue.

She even sold off her own jewelry just so I could make it through those rough patches.

But now, Alexander didn't see it that way at all.

He slapped me hard across the face, his eyes red with fury.

"It's one thing to sell off the family's luxury items, but how could you lay a hand on mom's jewelry?" he shouted.

I pressed my hand to my cheek, laughing through my tears.

"Me? You really think I took anything from mom's jewelry?

"Do you even remember when Nathan was hospitalized with pneumonia? I was literally on my knees outside your office, begging you to pay for his treatment. And you? You still think I was just trying to get money out of you, don't you?

"Let me tell you, if Mom hadn't sold off her jewelry, Nathan wouldn't even be alive today.

"You're the one who took her jewelry, not me!"

He was caught off guard for a moment.

I moved in closer to him.

To my surprise, he instinctively took a step back.

I kept closing in on him, refusing to back down.

I asked, "All these years, you keep saying I'm after your money. But tell me, in ten years, have I ever gotten anything from you?

"When Nathan was sick, I was the one holding him through the night. When he was in the hospital, I was the one sitting by his bed. Every single time he was on the brink, Mom and I desperately gathered money to save his life.

"Ten years, I've been the one raising Nathan, saving every penny just to get by. What more do you want from me?"

As I spoke, I raised my hand to slap him.

But just then, someone suddenly stepped between us.

And my hand landed solidly on Sophie's cheek!

"Sophie," Alexander shouted, panicked.

Sophie held her cheek, looking pitiful, like she was suffering in silence.

She said, "Alexander, Sophie, please, can't you just talk it out? If I'd known you'd end up fighting, I never would've mentioned Tracy's jewelry. If anyone's to blame, it's me. Oh, it really hurts."

Sophie winced, pressing her hand to her face, tears glistening in her eyes.

Suddenly, a powerful force slammed into me, shoving me hard.

My back crashed against the wall. Years of carrying Nathan had wrecked my back, and the pain shot through me as I collapsed to the floor, unable to get up.

Alexander held Sophie close, his eyes filled with heartache.

"Dummy, why'd you jump in front of me like that? Let me take a look," he said.

Sophie shook her head, tears shimmering in her eyes. She said, "It's fine, really. I was the one who said something I shouldn't have and made you two fight. Emma didn't mean to hit me, so don't worry."

"Sophie?" A familiar voice called out from the doorway.

I looked up and saw Nathan, and I felt like I had someone to lean on.

"Nathan?" Sophie said.

Sophie flashed a quick smile.

She continued saying, "It's really fine, she didn't mean to hit me. Honestly, it doesn't hurt that much."

Right then, Nathan immediately looked over at me.