7
09:02 G
Blake gave me a billion dollars. All our properties were liquidated and my half was transferred to me. I didn’t get any company shares. Before we got marri-
ed, Blake’s mother had made me sign a prenup, reli-
nquishing any claim to the company. The reason, she said, was to protect the business in case we ever
divorced.
We both thought a divorce was impossible. To please
his mother, we signed it.
When I went back to the house to get my things, I heard Blake’s mother berating him. “You gave her a billion dollars? Are you insane? After all these years, she couldn’t even give you a child! What right does she have to take a billion dollars?”
“She was the one who wanted the divorce! You could have refused unless she agreed to leave with nothi- ng! Why did you just give her so much money?”
Blake’s voice was tired. “Mom, she took care of me. She earned it. She didn’t ask for any company shares.
A billion isn’t that much.”
“Not that much? What, is her housekeeping work that valuable? Over a hundred million a year? And it’s not like you didn’t provide for her. You gave her a huge allowance every month! And she still wasn’t satisfied. She had the nerve to ask for a divorce! What a piece
of work!”
She saw me and stopped abruptly. But then, as if remembering I was no longer her daughter–in–law and had taken a billion dollars with me, she sneered.
Chapter 2
09:02
“Hah! Zoe, you really are lucky. You get married and
suddenly have everything. You get divorced and you‘
re a rich single woman. I just don’t get it. Where are
you going to find another man like my son? And you
actually went through with it! A high–school dropout,
marrying up, bringing your whole family up with you.
And now that you’re done using him, you just kick
him to the curb. Women with no education really are
the most scheming. Son, don’t worry. I’ll find you a
new wife. A smart one, with a good degree. Someone who can give you a smart baby. Thank god she coul- dn’t have children all these years. It would have been
a tragedy for the child.”
Blake scowled. “Mom, that’s enough!”
“What, did I say something wrong? Seven years! What woman can’t get pregnant in seven years? And she still has the nerve to divorce you and take all that money! You know there’s something wrong with a woman who can’t have children, right?”
Hannah, who had been hiding in the kitchen, saw her opportunity. Hearing Blake’s mother’s words, and see- ing me as the perfect cautionary tale, she emerged
with a tray of food.
“Mrs. Thorne!” She blushed and pulled a folded piece of paper from her pocket. “I know this might not be the right time, but I just wanted to tell you… I’m pre-
gnant.”
Blake’s mother, who had assumed Hannah was just a new maid, stared at her blankly. “With who?”
“With Mr. Thorne, of course!”
The shock on his mother’s face transformed into pure joy. “Zoe, did you see that? You don’t want my son,
Chapter 2
09:02
but there are plenty of women who will have his
children! Oh, my dear, come sit down, sit down!”
Hannah’s eyes were filled with triumph as she looked
at me.
Then I looked at Blake. His expression was strange, a flash of humiliation in his eyes as he looked at me.
I laughed, picked up my suitcase, and walked toward
the door.
“I bet someone is regretting this now, grinding their teeth to dust! Her ex–husband is already having a
baby with another woman right after the divorce! It’s
so satisfying! Thank god you divorced my son! Othe-
rwise, I don’t know when I would have ever gotten a
grandchild! Praise the ancestors of House Thorne! We
finally have an heir!”
I had never liked this woman. Before the wedding,
she had criticized everything about me, always maki- ng me feel like I wasn’t good enough for her son.
After the wedding, she was a constant source of tro- uble, always needing to have whatever I had, but better. She was jealous of me.
“Ma’am,” I said, pausing at the door. “Your son is steri- le. Stop blaming me. I wanted children too. But he’s the one who can’t.”
There was no need for a long speech. One sentence was enough to completely destroy them. And it sav- ed me a lot of breath.
The person whose face was the most priceless was Hannah. Her face went white as she stared at Blake. He hadn’t gotten angry before because he didn’t wa- nt his mother to know he was infertile.
Chapter 2
09:02
His mother’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. She
looked at her son’s expression and finally understo-
- od. She slapped Hannah across the face and started
pulling her hair. “You little tramp! You’ve only been with my son for five minutes and you’re already chea-
ting on him! Low–class women have no morals!”
Hannah screamed, begging Blake for help. But he
couldn’t be bothered.
I put down my suitcase and walked back in. Hearing
his mother’s words, I asked, “Ma’am, you’re always
going on about other people’s education. You didn’t
even finish elementary school. What makes you so
superior?”
Her hand froze in mid–air.
I had forgotten my car keys. I grabbed them from the
table. Blake, who had heard my voice and opened
his bedroom door with a hopeful look, saw that I was
only back for my keys.
SLAM. The door shut again.
My phone buzzed. It was a text from Blake.
【You enjoyed watching that, didn’t you?】
[Yes.】
He was typing for a long time, but no message came
through.
I checked into a hotel, planning to relax for a while before looking for a new place. With nothing better to do, I opened the old group chat. I sent an emoji, just to see if I was still in it. I was.
Phoebe replied first: [?]
Chapter 2
09:02
The others slowly started to emerge. Hannah had been kicked out. Blake’s friends still called me by my old title: [Zoe! What’s up?】
I sent a picture of my divorce certificate. Then I tagg-
ed Friend #1.
【So, when’s the spinning handstand shit show?】
The silence was deafening.
