"Shut up." Stanley couldn't bear to hear Iris' name at the moment. He was in a bad mood.He had a nagging feeling that Iris might be serious this time.Picking up on his unease, Lester suggested, "Maybe Iris is just acting intimate with Ted to make you mad.""You think so?" It did not look like that to Stanley.Henry chimed in, "Ted said he's liked Iris longer than you have, but you dated her for three years and were married for four, so you were together for seven years. Could Ted really have liked her secretly for eight years? I find that hard to believe. Can a person really hold onto feelings for that long without wavering?"Yes, he was trying to comfort Stanley, but it was also true that he found it hard to believe. Henry thought that kind of devotion was unrealistic. After all, there's no true love in this world. Iris was undeniably beautiful, but surely that was not enough to keep someone secretly in love with her for eight years?Stanley's thoughts were in turmoil. "You
Iris replied, "I'm busy right now. I'll go home in a few days and tell you all about it...""In a few days? Are you crazy? Come home immediately!" Cassie's voice grew sharper.Iris realized that Stanley must have complained to her mother, and she couldn't help but scoff.They were already divorced, yet he had the audacity to complain to his former mother-in-law. He had no shame.Without further discussion, she hung up. She was determined to deal with the case first no matter what.To avoid any more distractions, she temporarily blocked her family's phone numbers. In order to not be found, she decided to stay in the Cloud District until the trial. She didn't have any clothes to change into, so she bought new ones.Seven days later, the client appeared in court, with Iris serving as his defense attorney. As she expected, there were flaws in the evidence against her client. The woman had also hired a lawyer and pleaded not guilty.This was a favorable situation for them, and Iris
Cassie instantly moved to the seat next to Iris and held her daughter's hand. "Iris, it's not that I want to be mad at you, but you can't be so willful. Your father and I are just ordinary people, but after you married Stanley, we're able to live in such a nice house. He's injured now, but you're not there for him; you're failing as a wife right now.""What else did he say?" Iris inquired."He said you're upset with him and asked us to talk to you. Iris, isn't this enough? He already apologized to us. You should go back to him," Cassie persuaded.Iris scoffed, looking at her mother. "Mom, Stanley and I are divorced. The divorce papers are already finalized. Why should I go back?"Cassie was taken aback, and Dennis stared at his daughter in disbelief. "D-Divorced?""Iris, what in the world happened?" Cassie asked."He cheated on me, so we divorced." Iris produced the divorce certificate, ready to confront her parents.Cassie grabbed the certificate and inspected it. It was indeed
Dennis attempted to comfort his wife, saying, "As long as we have enough money to support ourselves, we'll be fine. Let's just live our lives without worrying about what other people think."Cassie retorted, "It's that mindset that's kept you from achieving anything in life. If you had money and influence, would people have looked down on me?"Her words instantly silenced him.Wiping her tears away, Cassie turned to Iris with determined eyes. "Go and reconcile with Stanley right now."Iris pursed her lips, remaining silent."Say something!" Cassie pushed her hard, causing her to stagger and bump against the table.Dennis signaled to his daughter with his eyes as he said, "You should leave first; don't argue with your mom right now."Iris gave her father a glance, took the divorce certificate, returned it to her bag, and walked out the door.Behind her, Cassie's voice rang out, "I don't care if you have to cry or beg; you must reconcile with Stanley!"Tears unexpectedly streame
Stanley preferred the old Iris – the Iris who loved him, obeyed him, and prioritized him above all else.Iris scoffed. "Then what kind of tone should I use?"Stanley stood up and approached her slowly, step by step. Iris retreated cautiously until her back was against the wall. She tried to escape to the side, but he blocked her with outstretched arms. "This room is so small. Where can you run to?"Trapped, Iris faced him defiantly. "Why are you saying these things to me, Stanley? Don't tell me you still like me? Even if you do, I'm sorry, I'll never like you or love you again..."Stanley grabbed her chin. "When did your tongue become so sharp, Iris?"Iris forcefully pulled his hand away, losing control as she screamed, "Don't touch me!"Stanley was taken aback, not expecting such a strong reaction. "Bleurgh..."Iris rushed into the bathroom, leaning over the sink to throw up.Ever since she heard that Stanley had slept with Wendy, she had developed a physical repulsion to hi
"Yeah," Jason replied lightly, his gaze lingering on her face before asking, "Which building do you live in?"Iris pointed to the highrise on her right. "Unit 2 in Building 1, a single apartment.""I live across from you," he said.Iris glanced at the opposite building, recalling that her landlord had mentioned it during her rental process. The opposite building wasn't an apartment building."Well, I'll see you tomorrow," she said, eager to escape. She felt embarrassed getting caught crying at her age."Okay," Jason replied.She quickly walked into the building. As he watched her running away from him, a smile appeared on his face.Iris opted to skip the elevator, climbing the stairs to the sixth floor instead. Panting, she opened the door and set her things on the table. After pouring herself a glass of water and drinking it, she reflected on her earlier awkwardness. Why should she feel embarrassed? Everyone has moments of weakness; she's human, not a god. It's perfectly
Iris picked up her cutlery and looked at her mother. "You should eat too, Mom." Had her mother finally seen the light? Iris wondered. Her mother's attitude was surprisingly good.Iris quietly let out a sigh of relief.She continued, "Don't you worry, Mom. I'll work hard to support you and Dad from now on. I can't promise that I'll definitely be rich, but we definitely won't have to worry about surviving...""Eat first, Iris," Cassie replied with a smile.Iris nodded and ate her stew. After finishing their meal, the two women exited the restaurant.Suddenly, Cassie grabbed Iris' hand, tears streaming down her face.Iris was taken aback. Just moments ago, everything seemed fine. "Mom, what's wrong?""Iris, please, go apologize to Stanley. Do it for me." Cassie had gone to see Stanley earlier today to apologize on her daughter's behalf, but her son-in-law, who had always treated her politely, refused to see her. She was driven away by security.She tripped on the stairs at t
Renee laughed and looked at Cassie disdainfully. "Did you hear that? Your daughter and my son are divorced, so stop bothering my son."Cassie's eyes wavered. She told Stanley, "I apologize on Iris' behalf."Stanley let out a cold chuckle. "Even if you kneel and beg, it won't change anything. Your daughter said she would rather die than come back to me."There was bitterness in his tone.He admitted that Iris' words had wounded him.He had his pride too.He was too proud to humble himself to ask to get back together after what Iris had said.Besides, he thought to himself, she was not the only woman in the world. There were many women who were more beautiful than she was."Get over here and apologize to Stanley at once!" Cassie yelled at Iris.Iris felt a bitter taste in her throat. She grabbed her mother's arm. "Let's go, Mom.""Now that you're divorced, stop showing up in front of my son, you hear me? I never approved of this mismatched marriage in the first place. I'm glad
Iris turned to her, surprised."You don't seem too happy," she teased. "Rather than getting married, it looks more like you're going to attend a funeral.""Is marriage something to be happy about? Aren't you a cautionary tale?" Yvonne shot back.Iris was speechless.She was indeed a textbook cautionary tale.Yvonne poured herself another glass. "Marriage isn't something to be happy about. I'm just fulfilling my parents' wishes."In the past, she just wanted to have fun and didn't want to get married. When her parents urged her to get married, her grandfather defended her.Now that her grandfather had fallen ill and was not in good health, he also wanted to see her get married.She could ignore her parents, but for her grandfather's sake, she had to get married.Iris sighed. "I'm sorry for being a bad example. You're not me. Most marriages don't end like mine. Most people do well."Yvonne smiled. "Are you trying to comfort me?""Kind of," Iris admitted."I'm very rational. I
She only realized that when she checked her phone at the end of the workday. Brad had called multiple times, but she merely glanced at the notifications without replying. There were also missed calls from Yvonne, who asked to meet up that evening.Iris messaged back, asking: [What time? Where?][Star Coast.][Got it.]Iris went to the underground parking lot. She took the stairs as the elevator was under maintenance. The maintenance was scheduled to be performed after work hours when there were fewer people.Her footsteps echoed in the dimly lit stairway, clattering loudly as emergency lights flickered on.A person in a black windbreaker, baseball cap, and face mask entered the stairway. Their head was bowed low, with half their face scrunched up inside their collar, obscuring their expression.Iris found her car, opened the door, and got in. Unbeknownst to her, a pair of eyes watched her intently from the shadows.The person's tightly clenched hands and the bulging veins o
Iris kept quiet and didn't say anything. She felt a pang of regret over the waste since those things cost money. He could have just given them away instead of throwing them away. However, she couldn't help but find his jealousy endearing. She couldn't believe a successful man like him would get so jealous."Let me help you," she offered. She closed the fridge and moved into the kitchen to help him serve the breakfast that Samuel bought."What time did you wake up?" she asked."Before seven," he answered.Iris glanced at the time; it was already past eight.Just then, her phone in the bedroom rang.She got up to answer it and saw it was Brad calling. She hesitated before answering."What time are you coming to visit me, Iris?" Brad asked, sounding forlorn."I have to go to the law firm. I haven't been there for two days. I can't put the case off anymore," she explained, politely declining.Though it was true she had to deal with the case, she could actually spare a couple of ho
Jason simply smiled without saying a word, leaving Iris feeling as though she had been unwittingly tricked. He seemed like an easy-going person, but there was an innate confidence and control about him that set him apart from others."You have a hidden agenda, don't you?" she asked."Once you finish the case in Southerland, I'd like to transfer you overseas," he replied.As for Brad Vassell, he would continue to stay at the law firm.The two would naturally be separated.Iris sat up straight, alarmed. "What did you say?"She was not going to sacrifice her career for a man! Their relationship wasn't at a stage where such sacrifices were warranted. Actually, no matter how much she ended up loving him, she would not sacrifice her career for him. She had already learned her lesson."With your skills, limiting yourself to marriage cases is a waste. Don't you want to tackle international cases?" He spoke casually, but his words were full of temptation.Iris was aware that Jason had
"I'll explain to her." Jason bent down, lifted Iris up and carried her to the bedroom.Iris, feeling sad, buried her face in his neck. "I'm sorry," she mumbled."It's not your fault. You didn't know she would be there." When Jason opened the bedroom door, the light passed over his face, illuminating the fleeting hint of danger in his eyes. "When you went to the Vassell family mansion, what did they say to you?""They just thanked me for mentoring Brad..." At that moment, Iris felt something was off. A family like the Vassells wouldn't need to invite her to their house for something so trivial. But if it wasn't to express their gratitude, why would they invite her? She wasn't close to them, and their statuses were vastly different."What was their intention?" she asked, looking up at him.All she saw was his firm jaw.Jason answered, "They had their reasons."He didn't blame Iris for easily accepting Brad's invitation; she wasn't part of their circle and naturally didn't know the
Iris was unbothered by Yvonne's antics; she would be more surprised if Yvonne didn't say something inappropriate.Yvonne closed the door with a smile. To be honest, she was genuinely happy for Iris, pleased to see her stepping out of her shell. She didn't care if Iris got together with Brad or Jason. She was happy as long as Iris could emerge from the shadows of her failed marriage without losing her confidence in men and still being open to love. After all, they say once bitten, twice shy. Yvonne feared that Iris might lose her ability to love someone after experiencing Stanley's betrayal.Iris approached the dining table, eyeing the fried chicken and beer. "We have dinner now.""Junk food," Jason remarked, glancing at it before pulling out his phone to make a call.Iris interjected, "Don't. It's fine to have junk food once in a while; it's not like we eat this every day. It would be a waste to throw it away."She opened the paper bag, retrieved the fried chicken, and set out gla
Iris stared at the crumpled note in the bin in surprise. She was only joking when she asked him if he was jealous.She thought a man as successful and mature as Jason wouldn't be bothered by something so trivial.Looking up at him, her tone shifted to a more cautious one. "Are you angry?"Jason sidestepped the question, suggesting instead, "What are those things in your fridge? Let's eat out."Iris hesitated. "But it's already so late...""I'll have someone bring us food," he interrupted, making the decision for them.She chuckled, "Stop being so childish. Why are you jealous of a kid?"Without warning, Jason removed the food from her hand, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her into his arms. He leaned in close, his warm breath tickling her neck.Iris turned her head aside, pressing her hands against his strong chest. Clearing her throat, she said softly, "Didn't you say you'll have someone bring us food? Shouldn't you make a call?""You're hungry, huh?" he asked, his voice casual
Jason asked, "What are you doing at this hospital?"This wasn't the hospital where Professor Sandler was."Brad had an accident; I came to check on him," she fastened her seatbelt."Is it serious?" he inquired, raising his eyebrows."His leg is broken," Iris replied."Oh, really?""Why do you look a bit pleased?" Iris asked, observing him closely. His side profile was illuminated by the light, so his facial contours were clearly outlined.He said somewhat absent-mindedly as he started the car, "We're love rivals; only one of us can emerge victorious."Hearing his tone, if Iris didn't know better, she would have thought that he was the one behind Brad's accident.He drove with one hand and held her hand with the other.Her hand was cold.He frowned and turned on the car's air conditioning.The car moved into congested traffic.It was early winter, and the roadside greenery appeared desolate. It was only a little after five, yet the streetlights were already illuminating the
"I didn't answer your call yesterday because I was with Jason Just. You've always wanted to know if there's anything between us, right? Well, I'll tell you now, there is something between us. We like each other." Iris felt that being completely honest was the best way to prevent Brad from harboring any unrealistic fantasies."You're just saying that to dissuade me, aren't you?" Brad wouldn't believe her. "Jason Just isn't even in the country. How could you have been with him?""He's in the country," Iris stated matter-of-factly.Brad's expression shifted to one of panic. "He... he's back?"Quickly regaining his composure, he continued, "Even if he's back, so what? You haven't been in touch with him for a year, and he hasn't come to see you. If you love each other, why didn't you keep in touch? Why aren't you married?"His words pierced Iris' heart like needles, and she felt a bitter ache. Yeah, why weren't they together? Why weren't they married?Because the obstacles between t