Chapter 3

A heavy silence settled between us.

Adele stared at the divorce agreement in disbelief.

I was so nervous I could barely breathe. Just as I was wondering whether I should say something more, Adele suddenly let out a snort of laughter.

She took the agreement without hesitation and signed her name.

"Kenneth, did you really think you could threaten me with some divorce agreement you printed off on a whim? Let me make this clear. Moving out isn't up for discussion. Whether I sign this or not, you're leaving."

I took back the signed agreement, and even my voice sounded lighter. "Fine. I'll move out."

Adele's expression stiffened, and a flash of irritation surged into her eyes. She pressed her fingers to her temples several times, as though she wanted to say something more.

Cyrus' voice suddenly rang out behind her. "Adele, where are you?"

She immediately turned and called back, "I came down for some water. I'll be right up!"

She hurried off so quickly that one of her slippers fell off along the way, as if she were terrified Cyrus would not be able to find her.

Only when she reached the landing did she seem to remember something. She turned to look at me standing outside the door and spoke slowly, stressing every word. "Kenneth, I suggest you stop making a scene. Do you really think you can survive without me?"

Compared to the Bellamys, the richest family in Marlow Bay, I truly amounted to nothing. Ever since I married her, I had lived off the Bellamy family's money like a kept man, so it was no surprise she would ask me that.

Even so, her contempt made my chest seize painfully.

I lowered my eyes without a word and gently pulled the door shut, shutting out the strange look in her eyes.

Over the next few days, I hired a lawyer to handle the divorce. When I learned that I only had to get through a 30-day waiting period before the divorce was finalized, my whole body finally relaxed.

After that, I rented a single room in a run-down neighborhood on the edge of the city. It was nothing special, but it was livable.

I sent my résumé to more than a dozen companies, but since I had no work experience, I never received a single interview offer.

With my savings nearly gone, I signed up as a food delivery driver. The work was exhausting but fulfilling, so fulfilling that I barely had time to think about Adele. That was why, when I saw her again, it felt like a lifetime had passed.

"Kenneth?" Adele's eyes turned cold. "What are you doing here?"

Cyrus stepped out from behind her, wrapped in a towel with his hair a mess, his face dark with anger. "Are you following us?"

Adele frowned, contempt and mockery flickering in her eyes. "Kenneth, weren't you the one who wanted me to sign that agreement? What, now that it's signed, you're following me around to keep tabs on me?"

Cyrus was so furious that his eyes turned red, and he swung at me again. "First, you wormed your way into the house Adele and I share, and now, you followed us to a hotel? Kenneth, do you have no shame? Are you really that disgusting?"

This time, I neither dodged nor backed down. I raised my hand and caught Cyrus by the arm, stopping his fist midair. "You're overthinking this, Mr. Wakefield. I'm here to deliver your order."

I pulled a box of condoms out of the delivery bag and threw it straight at Adele. "You're quite adventurous, aren't you, Ms. Bellamy?"

My eyes were full of mockery as I buried the ache in my chest. "What, is the house not enough for you anymore? You had to get a hotel room too?"

Adele paused for a beat and frowned. "You—"

I stepped back and cut her off before she could finish. "Your order has been delivered. If you're satisfied, please leave a five-star rating."

I slammed the door behind me and walked away without a second glance.

I never expected that the moment I got downstairs, Adele's bodyguards would pin me down.

"What are you doing?" I struggled, but one of them clamped a hand over my mouth. They practically dragged me into the elevator and threw me back into the room I had just left.

A used condom, still sticky, hit me square in the face. The rank smell made my stomach heave, and I nearly threw up.

Adele gritted her teeth. "Kenneth, you've got some nerve. If you want to act like you don't care, at least make it convincing. How dare you put glue inside the condoms? If I hadn't caught it in time, you could have killed Cyrus. Do you even realize that?"