Chapter 4

Sarah stopped in her tracks. Her expression remained calm, but she didn't take Charlotte's offered hand.

As Charlotte's smile faltered, James stepped in to ease the tension, "Grandfather heard about us,” he said in a deep and restrained voice. “He wants you to join us for dinner tonight. Your phone was off, so I came to get you."

"I see." Sarah checked her phone - it was indeed dead. She nodded. "I'll charge it and join you later."

The message was clear- she wouldn't be going with them.

James frowned. "I can wait while you-"

"No need," Sarah cut him off with a smile. "I'll make my own way there."

When he fell silent, Sarah glanced at Charlotte. "And tomorrow at nine, if you're free, let's get the divorce papers finalized."

For some reason, James felt unsettled. "Why the rush?"

Sarah nodded firmly. “Cause it's urgent."

James was taken aback, his expression darkening as he led Charlotte away.

After a few steps, Charlotte whispered something intimately to James, then turned back to Sarah, her eyes gentle, "Miss Sanders, I owe you my thanks."

"For what?"

Charlotte glanced back at James waiting in the distance, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Her smile was sweet with nostalgia and gratitude. "When James and I separated years ago, it was just bad timing. When I returned, I thought we'd lost our chance. I know how much you loved him. If you hadn't been so understanding, we might never have gotten back together."

"You're wrong." Sarah met her eyes. "I'm not divorcing him to bring you two together. I'm not that selfless. I'm divorcing him because I don't want to love him - and I won't anymore.”

She'd spent three years trying to be the perfect Mrs. Chancer, and failed. In that time, she probably had better odds winning the lottery than making James love her. Why keep forcing it?

The moment she decided on divorce, she knew she had to let go. Yes, she'd done everything for James, only to have him bring another woman to her doorstep. But Sarah had no regrets.

Charlotte stood speechless.

Sarah considered for a moment, then added coldly, "Whatever happens between you two is none of my business anymore."

Dinner was set for eight-thirty. Sarah reached her apartment just after seven.

Maybe it was the relief of leaving the Chancers, but Sarah felt unusually light. After a shower, she put her phone on charge. There was still plenty of time.

For the first time in ages, she picked out a rose-red dress she loved, switched to contact lenses, and put on makeup.

She'd never done this at the Chancers'. When she first married James, she used to wear makeup, but his mother said it was too flashy for a proper wife. James never bothered to look at her anyway.

Now she could do as she pleased. After getting ready, she took a cab to the Chancer family estate.

"This way, Mrs. Chancer," the butler said, eyeing her transformation with surprise but maintaining his usual respect. That he was still using her married name told Sarah that Richard Chancer, James's grandfather, wasn't ready to accept the divorce.

She was right.

At the dinner table sat James and Charlotte, with Richard's face dark with disapproval, the atmosphere thick with tension.

Seeing her, his expression softened. “Sasa, come," Richard said warmly. "It's been too long since you've had dinner with me.”

James looked up instinctively, his gaze falling on Sarah. Something stirred in him.

Without her glasses, her almond-shaped eyes were striking, with their subtle upward tilt and gleaming with an inner light. Combined with her rose-red dress, she looked alluring and confident.

Nothing like the meek, compliant woman he thought he knew.