6: Battle of Words

“ARE YOU LISTENING?” Celene furrowed her brow as she observed Agnes. She had been talking constantly, giving an overview of the company’s operations, employees, and necessary knowledge, but it seemed like Agnes wasn’t paying attention to a single word she said.

“To be completely honest, no. I don’t see the need to listen to you as if you were above me. I am fully aware of how to—”

“I hold a higher position than you, as I am a general manager. So, watch your mouth and behave professionally. If you are unable to do so, perhaps it is best for you to quit.” Celene interrupted her mid-sentence, causing them both to stop walking in the empty hallway. They then turned to face each other, each raising an eyebrow in a challenge. “Where do you even get the audacity to ask my husband to give you a position in his company?”

Agnes chuckled; her expression filled with a hint of condescending amusement. She folded her arms and took a step closer to Celene, leaning in towards her face.

“I didn’t ask him, I just seduced him a little and acted pitiful, saying I wanted to work.” she sneered, “I wasn’t even expecting him to give me work, but he did it anyway because he was still into me,”

Despite being stressed and sleep-deprived, Celene held her jaw tightly as she struggled to restrain herself from slapping the wench right in her stupid smirk. She didn’t want to give in to the provocation, knowing that Agnes was trying to paint her as a villain again and play the victim.

“And you’re proud of how lowly of a woman you are?” she retorted and scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest as she stepped forward to mimic Agnes’ earlier actions. But being taller than her, she made sure to loom over her. “I pity your parents to have a shameless daughter like you who would proudly leech off a married man.”

Agnes couldn’t help but flinch, her face contorting with anger as Celene’s words hit a sensitive nerve. After all, her parents had abandoned her when she was 14, saying they couldn’t take care of her anymore because she was hard to handle. The memories of begging them not to leave her flooded back, causing her to tremble with fury. But she quickly regained composure, determined not to lose in this battle of words with Celene.

“You should pity yourself instead since you were an orphan. You grew up without a family, maybe that was the reason why you’ve become a gold digger.” Agnes snorted, “Did you think I wouldn’t recognize you? You were the waitress at the restaurant where I dumped Jarred four years ago, weren’t you?”

“So, what if I was?” Celene challenged, ignoring the insult thrown at her. “How was that relevant to this conversation?”

“Because you were the one leeching off Jarred first. You’re a cunning woman who exploited his emotional state during our breakup.” Agnes replied, but her comeback just made Celene laugh mockingly.

“Are you dumb? What would I leech off him when he wasn’t even successful that time?” She snickered, “I am the one who helped him achieve his success today. If there was a gold digger here, it was clearly you.”

“How can you be so cruel?” Agnes’ behavior shifted abruptly, and at that moment, Celene could sense that she was plotting something again. She turned her head to the side and saw Jarred approaching, his eyes narrowing at her as if warning her to stop harassing his ex.

‘Since when he was standing there?’

“She called me a gold digger first—”

“I don’t need your explanation,” He replied shortly, shooting a disapproving look toward Celene, “Are you seriously going to harass her even in the company? Don’t you have any shame or conscience?”

“I knew it, I shouldn’t have accepted the job you offered.” Agnes’ voice cracked slightly as she dabbed her crocodile tears.

“Don’t say that; I offered you the job because I know you need it.” Jarred’s hand moved in soothing circles on her back, as if they were alone and not facing his wife. Celene’s fist tightened, the intense emotions of pain and anger pushing her toward a breaking point. She longed to stand up for herself, but she knew it would be pointless; her husband had chosen sides, and it wasn’t hers.

Agnes had already taken control over him so quickly, and if this pattern continued, their marriage would become a complete disaster.

“Choose,” Celene abruptly broke their moment, causing Jarred to turn to her with a puzzled expression.

“What?”

“I said choose,” she repeated, her expression unreadable. “I know our relationship wasn’t on good terms lately, but how can you keep favoring your ex and act like I am not your wife?”

“What? When did I—”

“Don’t play dumb, Jarred. You knew exactly what you were doing. Did you really think I would let this go on? I agreed to have that conniving woman stay with us because of your promises and my trust in you. But seeing you siding with her without even listening to my side of things, was not something I can tolerate.” Celene steeled herself, trying her best not to shed any tears, “So, choose, kick her out of the house, or divorce me,”

Jarred’s eyes widened in shock when Celene uttered the word ‘divorce’. He gazed at her closely, noticing her pale complexion. For a moment, he was speechless as he pondered how to respond. Then, his gaze shifted to Agnes, who was standing behind him watching the exchange with tears in her eyes.

“Is that your answer?” Celene’s smile turned bitter, and she turned away, eager to leave. But her eyes widened in surprise when Jarred reached out and took her hand, preventing her from leaving. Agnes gritted her teeth with frustration; she was sure that Jarred would choose her over Celene and their marriage would crumble, but it seemed she needed to put in more effort to completely ruin their relationship.

“I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t realize what I was doing, let’s go to my office and talk there,” he said, and Celene nodded.

“What? What about me?” Agnes complained, causing Jarred to turn to her.

“Go back inside the office and ask someone to show you around,” he answered before pulling Celene gently along with their hands intertwined.

At that moment, she felt a sense of relief, and when she turned to see Agnes glaring at them, she couldn’t help but smirk. It was as though she had won this battle, but in the back of her mind, she worried that her victory would only be temporary, and she would soon be pushed aside again.

As the married couple walked into the office, a tense silence hung between them, but after several seconds, Jarred cleared his throat and turned to face his wife. Honestly, he was still taken aback when she brought up the topic of divorce over something that happened in the past few days. It was unexpected, and his immediate thought was that he couldn’t let go of Celene just yet. Not when he was planning to make a proposal deal with De Laruente Corporation, one of the country’s largest companies.

He knew his plan would not go smoothly without his wife’s top-notch business skills, which is why he decided to choose her instead of Agnes and apologize first.

“Why is it so easy for you to mention divorce? Have your feelings for me changed?” he asked, pulling her closer by the waist as he stared into her eyes deeply.

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that? Are your feelings for me still there? Do I even matter to you anymore?” Tears began to fall from Celene’s eyes as she turned her head away, unable to meet his gaze.

Seeing his wife in such a vulnerable state, Jarred took the opportunity to regain her trust. He smiled and gently lifted her chin with two fingers, making her look at him before speaking in a soft tone.

“Of course, you do matter to me. I’m sorry for how I acted the past few days; losing the deal with Mr. Nakamura really affected me. But I won’t let it bother me anymore, and I’ll make sure he pays for what he did to you.” He rubbed her cheeks with his thumb and wiped away her tears that fell freely, “If you’re willing to give it another chance, then please forgive me. I will do anything to make amends.”

“If having Agnes around is causing you distress, I can arrange for her to stay at the hotel instead of our home. And if you feel like I’m always taking her side, I’ll stop doing so for the sake of our relationship and your peace of mind.” His smile seemed genuine as he spoke, and his determination was clear.

However, Celene couldn’t help but feel unsure about whether she could truly trust what he said. After careful consideration, she allowed her foolishness to override her judgment and forgave him. But she made a promise to herself that he broke his word, she would never forgive him again.

“All right, just make sure to get your scheming ex out of the house tonight.” She conceded, nodding her head. Jarred’s relief was evident as he pulled her into a hug, grateful that Celene was easily fooled. He knew she only brought up the idea of divorce to threaten him, but he also knew she would never actually go through with it because she was deeply in love with him.

Since that day, their relationship slowly but steadily improved. Agnes didn’t even protest when leaving the house, which surprised Celene and made her feel that something was wrong. However, she didn’t dwell on it too much. At least, until she came back from her business trip and saw Agnes’ suitcase outside their bedroom.

To make matters worse, Celene could hear Agnes’ moans echoing through the door as she called out Jarred’s name, causing her heart to break at the realization of what was happening inside.