LOGINJayda wore a red dress. Long wavy hair over her shoulders.But she looked different.The heavy makeup couldn't hide the exhaustion on her face.A glass of red wine in hand, she started walking toward me.Before she got close, a friend cut in."Hey, long time no see. How's life overseas?"I pulled my gaze away and smiled. "Not bad. You?""Same old. But you? You're basically famous back home now."He leaned in a little. "By the way... you hear about your ex-wife?"I shook my head, though something already felt off.She was a department chief. Shouldn't she be at the hospital saving lives?What was she doing at a business gala?Seeing my reaction, he dropped his voice, suddenly way too excited. "You seriously don't know? Her medical license got revoked. She can't practice anymore."That intern under her gave the wrong meds during surgery. Patient died right on the table. She's basically blacklisted now. So... she's trying to get into business."I stilled.Guess Jayda really
Sure, he grew up poor. But luck followed him around.When his family couldn't pay his tuition, a doctor stepped in and sponsored him.Not just money, either. Once the guy heard Dillon wanted to become a doctor, he started tutoring him—regular lessons, one-on-one guidance.That's how Dillon ended up ranking at the top of his med school.After he got admitted, the sponsor even sent him a monthly allowance for living expenses.But Dillon had other priorities.To keep up his flashy campus image, he blew the money on luxury brands.Sure enough, he blew through his cash and couldn't even afford food. The sponsor stuck to his principles and refused to give him another dime.Then Dillon happened to run into Jayda.With that slightly pretty face and a mouth full of sweet talk, he hooked her fast—and landed himself an internship at the hospital.No matter how many times I told Jayda he wasn't as innocent as he looked, she never believed me.In her mind, I just couldn't handle that he
Hospital work was already crushing. To help Jayda lock down her position, I ran myself ragged lining up the best professors for her.I sorted through all her past surgeries, organized the cases, summed up the experience so she could move up faster.We finally got a chance to take a vacation. I booked the hot springs trip ahead of time.She bailed.Not only that—she spent the night with Dillon. Then those explicit videos and photos leaked.And the whole having a child thing? Even worse.I'd brought it up with Jayda more times than I could count. Every time, same excuse—too busy with work.Three years of marriage. Still no kid.Kenneth and Melissa were convinced something was wrong with me.Jayda never once spoke up for me. Just let them believe it.And now?Now she suddenly wanted a child.I shook her hand off. My eyes burned. "So now you want a kid with me? When I kept begging before, you wouldn't even consider it."Sorry—I'm not that cheap. I show up when you need me and
Everyone froze, staring at me like they couldn't believe it.Dillon grabbed the papers and flipped through them. When he saw Jayda's signature, his eyes widened."You? A freeloader living off your wife—and you're the one asking for a divorce? There's gotta be a catch. Trying to grab a big chunk of the assets?"The panic on Jayda's face faded. What replaced it was pure disdain."Holden, are you really that broke now? Running scams for money? If you're struggling, I can support you. But do you really have to sink this low? Enough."I met her eyes, my voice flat. "Do you really think I have time to play house with you? Look again. You already signed it."She scoffed. "Stop lying. When would I have—"Her voice died mid-sentence as she flipped through the pages.Then she saw it.Her signature.She looked up at me, stunned."Two months ago," I said. "After that fight."The color drained from her face.She finally realized the document she'd signed in anger that night wasn't a re
I drove straight over.Before I even reached the door, Kenneth's voice was already booming inside."Look at the kind of man you married! Just because we didn't move in right away, he threw a fit and sold the place? Does he have any respect for us? Useless. Always making things worse. No real career and no manners!"Melissa patted his back and jumped in. "Exactly. Not nearly as thoughtful as Dillon. You've been married this long and still haven't given me a grandson. Is something wrong with him?"If you ask me, just divorce him. Dillon's young and full of energy. Much better for you!"Listening to them echo each other, I almost laughed.No kids all these years—was that really my fault?Jayda was the one who kept saying her career came first.She's the one who kept postponing it.Yet when her mom went after me, Jayda didn't defend me.She just said lightly, "Mom, it's not that simple."And when her mom suggested divorce, she didn't reject it.She even lowered her head, like s
Did he skip brushing his teeth this morning? Everything out of his mouth stank.I rolled my eyes. "I resigned. Try using your brain before you talk. Spreading rumors has consequences."Dillon's face went pale, but he forced himself to stay calm. "But Jayda scheduled you for a week of night shifts. You just walked out. Where's your sense of responsibility?"I laughed.I'd already resigned. Why would I care about any shifts?Not worth my time. I turned to leave.He chased after me and grabbed my arm. Just as I was about to shake him off, he suddenly stumbled backward and crashed to the floor."Ah!""Dillon, are you okay?"Jayda walked by right then. Seeing Dillon on the floor, she rushed over and helped him up.After making sure he wasn't hurt, she shot me a glare. "Holden Hart, what exactly do you want? Haven't you caused enough trouble? Now you're hitting people?""My fault," Dillon said quickly. "I just asked why he hadn't been at work for days and left the patient unattend







