FLORA’S POV
"Well, well, if it isn’t the Kensington housewife," Melissa sneered, leaning against the wall like she owned the place. Her designer outfit screamed sophistication, and that smug expression plastered on her face made me want to disappear into the floor—or better yet, shove her into a broom closet. "What are you doing here, Flora? Delivering Jayden's lunch like a good little servant?"
I clenched my fists, mentally counting to ten. Reacting to Melissa was like giving a toddler a sugar high—she thrived on it. "I’m here to see my husband," I said, my voice calm and composed, though inside, I felt like a shaken soda can ready to explode.
Melissa’s eyes gleamed with malice as she straightened from the wall. "Husband?" she scoffed, her tone dripping with contempt. "Oh, honey, is that what you call him after you trapped him in that pathetic excuse of a marriage? Everyone knows you’re nothing more than a glorified nanny in his life."
My cheeks burned with embarrassment, but I held my ground, refusing to let her see me crumble. "I’m not here to argue with you, Melissa. I have something important to discuss with Jayden."
"Oh, I’m sure you do," Melissa drawled, her voice thick with sarcasm. "But let’s be real, Flora—what could you possibly have to say that matters? You couldn’t even cook a decent meal for his family, and now you think you can come in here and demand his attention?"
Before I could retort, she stepped even closer, invading my personal space with the precision of a predator closing in on its prey. "You know what your problem is, Flora?" she hissed, her words like poison-coated daggers. "You’re just too weak. That’s why Jayden can’t stand the sight of you. You’re nothing but a burden—fat, useless, and always in the way."
Tears stung my eyes, but I blinked them back. I wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction of seeing me break down. Not here. Not now. "You don’t know anything about my marriage," I said quietly, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me.
"Don’t I?" she smirked, her eyes glinting with twisted delight. "I know Jayden and I were perfect together before you ruined everything. And now, after all these years, he is finally realizing what a mistake he made."
Her words cut deep, like shards of glass piercing my heart. But somewhere, in the midst of that pain, I found a sliver of courage. "If that’s what you believe, then why are you so threatened by me?"
For a split second, her smirk faltered, but she quickly recovered, masking her insecurity with arrogance. "Threatened? Please. I’m just enjoying watching you squirm. But since you’re so desperate for Jayden’s attention, why don’t I give you a little show?"
Before I could react, she grabbed my arm and began dragging me toward the elevator. "What are you doing?" I demanded, trying to pull free from her iron grip.
"What else? Removing you from these premises. You don’t belong here. Go home and do the house chores waiting for you."
Anger flared up inside me like a wildfire. I wrenched my arm free and spun her around to face me, my eyes blazing with fury. "Enough, Melissa!" I shouted. She froze for a moment, caught off guard by my outburst, but quickly regained her composure. "I won’t let you treat me like this, no matter who you think you are. Jayden is my husband, and our affairs are none of your business." I stepped closer, pointing a warning finger at her. "If anyone has the right to ask me to leave, it’s him, not you. Do you understand?"
Melissa’s face suddenly twisted into a look of horror, and she stumbled backward, clutching her cheek as if I had slapped her. She let out a dramatic gasp, loud enough to draw the attention of everyone within earshot.
"You... you hit me!" she cried, her voice trembling with fake outrage.
My eyes widened in shock. "What? I didn’t—"
Before I could finish, Jayden appeared, storming out of his office with a younger woman trailing behind him, her arms full of files. His face was a thundercloud of fury as he took in the scene before him. "What the hell is going on here?" he demanded, his gaze darting between Melissa and me.
"Jayden!" Melissa whimpered, tears streaming down her perfectly made-up face. "I was just talking to Flora, trying to be civil, and she... she just hit me out of nowhere!"
My heart sank as I watched Jayden’s expression harden. "That’s not true, Jayden. I didn’t touch her—"
"Shut up, Flora!" Jayden snapped, his voice slicing through the air like a whip. "I don’t want to hear your excuses. How could you do something like this? Melissa is a guest in my company, and you just attacked her?"
I felt the tears I had been desperately holding back finally spill over, cascading down my cheeks like a broken dam. "Jay, I swear, I didn’t—"
"Enough!" He held up his hand, silencing me with the force of his words. Then, turning to Melissa, his tone softened, dripping with concern. "I’m so sorry about her behavior, Miss Pembroke. I apologize on her behalf." He glanced at the girl beside him, a young assistant who looked like she would rather be anywhere but here. "Cherry, take Miss Pembroke to the infirmary. She doesn’t look too good."
"Yes, sir," Cherry replied, her voice barely above a whisper as she guided a sobbing Melissa away like she was escorting royalty.
Jayden turned back to me; his eyes cold as ice. "You. Come with me." He grabbed my arm with a grip that was more forceful than necessary, practically dragging me down the hallway and into his office. The door slammed shut behind us, the sound echoing like a gavel in a courtroom.
"What the hell are you doing here, Flora?" he demanded, his voice seething with frustration.
My lips trembled, words choking in my throat. I couldn’t bring myself to tell him about the pregnancy. The excitement that had driven me here had evaporated, leaving behind a pit of regret. Why hadn’t I just waited until he got home? Maybe then I could have found the right moment—if there ever was one.
"You keep doing this," Jayden continued, his voice cutting through my thoughts. "You keep embarrassing me. Now, look at you, here, slapping Melissa and causing a scene."
"I didn’t touch her!" I protested; my voice shaky but determined.
"Then why did she look so pale? You’re still mad about last night, aren’t you? But confronting her here—especially after our conversation this morning? Really, Flora? You know we’re trying to land a deal with her father’s company, right?"
"I don’t know anything about your deals, Jayden," I replied, exasperated.
"Of course, you don’t," he snapped, rolling his eyes like I was the densest person in the world. "That deal fell off because of our marriage, and now I’m trying to fix it. But here you are, ruining things for me again. Can you not just stop being selfish for once? Maybe things would actually go right."
His words hit like a punch to the gut. I clenched my fists, trying to keep my composure. "I’m not the selfish one here, Jayden. It’s not my fault we’re married. Stop blaming me for everything. We both know this marriage wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t—"
A brief knock interrupted me. I sniffed, quickly looking down at my feet as Jayden’s assistant pushed the door open, her expression a mix of awkwardness and urgency.
"Sorry to interrupt you, sir, but Miss Melissa Pembroke just fainted."
"What?" Jayden’s voice was laced with concern, his face immediately etched with worry. It was like a dagger to my heart, watching him panic over her while I stood there, invisible.
Without another word to me, Jayden rushed out of the office, following his assistant down the hallway. I stood frozen in place, feeling more alone than ever. The small brown envelope in my hand suddenly felt like it weighed a ton—a bitter reminder of the life growing inside me, a life that Jayden would probably never truly care about.
I watched as the door of his office closed behind them with a finality that echoed in my chest. It felt like a door had shut on my hopes, too.
With a deep breath, I turned and left the office. As I made my way to the elevator, I forced my head to stay high despite the crushing weight of everything around me. I might have been falling apart inside, but no one else was going to see that.
FLORA’S POV “What the fuck!” Jayden’s voice sliced through my sleep like a sharp blade, jarring me awake, but I kept my eyes closed, hoping if I stayed still long enough, he would go away. But he started tapping my leg, each tap more insistent than the last. With a sigh, I finally opened my eyes and met his gaze—his face was a mix of fury and disbelief. “You’re still sleeping?” His tone was harsh, almost accusatory, like I had committed some great crime by daring to stay in bed by this time. “Mm-hmm,” I mumbled, rolling over and burying my face into the pillow. “What is it, Jay?” I asked, even though I knew exactly why he was waking me up. “You should be awake, picking out my outfit for work.” His words were clipped, the frustration evident. “I told you I’ve got an important meeting today, Flora.” I propped myself up on my elbows, feeling a knot tighten in my chest. I knew what I was about to say wouldn’t go over well, but I was done letting it slide. “You didn’t tell me an
JAYDEN’S POV ‘I want a divorce.’ Those four words had been running laps in my head all morning, like some mental marathon I didn’t sign up for. Since Flora dropped that bomb on me, I couldn't shake the thought. How? How could she want to walk away from everything now? I paced my office restlessly, trying to piece together what the hell went wrong. This wasn’t just a personal mess—it was a business nightmare waiting to happen. If things got ugly, it would blow up in our faces, and the company would take a hit too. I couldn’t afford a scandal at this moment. My mother would disown me before she let that happen. And, honestly, I wasn’t ready to lose Flora. She had grown on me, like an old habit I didn’t know I would miss until it was gone. I hadn’t exactly been eager to marry her at first, but after three years, marriage does something to a man. Flora—well, she’s a good woman. Obedient, hardworking, humble. She’s never in my way, never seeking the spotlight, and most importantly
ALEX’S POV “I’m just tired of these women thinking they can snag a piece of my fortune. Do they even marry me for love?" I grumbled, heading over to my wine storage. I grabbed a bottle of whiskey, pulled two glasses down, and started pouring. “Three divorces in four years. I mean, come on, that’s insane, right?” David, sprawled out comfortably in front of me, grinned like he found my misery somewhat amusing. “Your fantasies are what’s crazy, man. These women aren’t lining up to be subdued, you know?” I handed him a glass, shaking my head. “I’m not forcing them into anything.” I poured generously into my own glass. “I lay it all out, upfront. They know exactly what they’re signing up for. So why do they bail after just a year? It’s like they hit an expiration date.” David knocked back his drink in one go, barely tasting it. “This is exactly why I’ve stayed single. I’m not getting dragged into that kind of circus.” David had been my closest friend for as long as I can remember. Eve
FLORA’S POV I was downright baffled when someone from Le Jardin—one of the most expensive restaurants in Rockshire showed up at the Kensington estate with a food delivery. Apparently, it was my husband’s order. Now, I had never had the pleasure of tasting their gourmet meals, though I had always been curious. Maybe I even daydreamed about it. I almost texted Jayden to ask why the servants were suddenly arranging and decorating the dining table like we were hosting royalty. And why he felt the need to drop a small fortune on restaurant food when we had a fully staffed kitchen. But then I remembered—he stopped replying to my texts ages ago. Honestly, why bother? For all I knew, it could’ve been another Kensington family dinner, where everyone gets together to blatantly judge the rest of Rockshire. Frankly, I wasn’t up for it tonight. I was already preparing to fake an illness, maybe something dramatic enough to keep me locked away in the bedroom while they critiqued the world on
FLORA’S POV The next morning, I woke up later than usual, dragging myself into what had once been our room—mine and Jayden’s. I needed to gather a few things before I finally walked out of the Kensington estate for good. Thankfully, Jayden wasn’t in there. The last thing I wanted was to face his half-hearted, “I’m sorry, babe” apology attempt, which would barely qualify as an apology. Last night, I had locked myself in the guest room, cried until I fell asleep. And not those cute, single-tear movie sobs either—it was the ugly kind of crying that leaves you exhausted. Honestly, I wasn’t even sure why I cried so hard. Maybe it was because I knew it was the last time I would shed any tears over my soon-to-be ex-husband and his unbearable family. Even though I was the one asking for the divorce, it didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. I had loved Jayden for so long—aside from my dad, he was the only man I ever truly cared for. And yet, here I was, realizing he had been cheating on me with
FLORA’S POV The harsh brightness of the room hit me the moment I opened my eyes, making me wince and squeeze them shut again, waiting for the ringing in my ears to settle. For a brief moment, I felt like I was floating, weightless, but my entire body ached like I had been thrown down a ten-story building. Something warm touched my arm, and then I heard a voice—a voice I knew too well. “Oh my God, you’re awake. You made it.” I blinked a few times, staring up at the ceiling, slowly piecing together where I was. My head felt heavy, but I managed to turn it to the side and saw my mom, her bittersweet smile tinged with tears. She rubbed my arm gently, like she was trying to ground me back to reality. “Mom?” I croaked; my throat dry. “What are you...?” My voice trailed off as memories flooded back. The last thing I remembered... I glanced down at my body, panic creeping in. Then I looked at my mom, her eyes silently pleading with me to stay calm. She nodded, trying to reassure me. “Yo
FLORA’S POV I had forgotten what it felt like to be free. For two days after I left the hospital, I stayed in bed, weighed down by the ache of losing my baby. That child had been my anchor, giving me the courage to finally stand up to the Kensingtons and ask for a divorce. But what hurt even more than the loss was Jayden blaming me for what happened. Since we left, he hadn’t stopped calling. At first, I answered a few times, hoping for—well, I don’t know what I was hoping for. Closure? An apology? But instead, Jayden just spewed his usual nonsense, giving me “chances” to come back and promising to “forget everything” if I did. When I didn’t respond, he switched tactics, sending increasingly threatening texts about how I would regret it if I didn’t take him up on his offer. The audacity was truly something else. How could he not see that he was only making everything worse? It was like he thought this was all just some negotiation and not my entire life falling apart. Last night
FLORA’S POV One thing about the Kensingtons—they believed money could buy anything. I had heard Lisette say it countless times: Everything and everyone has a price, if you know the right one. It was one of her many reasons for treating me like a temporary accessory rather than her son’s wife. To her, I wasn’t Flora, a person with feelings—I was a commodity her family had “purchased.” They never accepted that I had married Jayden for love. From day one, they had slapped the “gold digger” label on me. That’s why they never saw the divorce coming. As Lisette stood there with her two bodyguards, one of them holding a briefcase like we were in the middle of a corporate meeting, I exchanged glances with Sasha and Mom. What “deal” was she planning to offer? Curiosity got the better of me, so I gave Mom and Sasha a subtle look, telling them to stay calm. Then, I moved to the couch and sat down, facing Lisette. “Alright, let’s hear what you’ve got,” I said, trying to sound more casual