Chapter 2

Now that Mason burned through all his money, he blamed it on me.

How hilarious.

Seeing my silence, Mason assumed I was guilty. He shoved my arm away and pointed toward the heavy hospital doors.

"If you can't come up with fifty thousand dollars today, we're getting a divorce right now! I refuse to stay married to a gold-digging, disrespectful failure of a wife!"

Divorce.

That word cleared my head in an instant.

"Fine by me."

My voice wasn't loud, but it was solid as steel.

Mason froze, caught completely off guard by how fast I agreed.

I met his stunned look, delivering every word with razor-sharp precision.

"We can get a divorce. But before we sign anything, we're going over every single bank statement from the last five years, line by line."

…

I turned to grab my purse, where I kept all our financial cards and my personal ledger.

A hand blocked my path.

Hannah.

She stood near the door, blocking the exit with a face full of fake concern, though she couldn't completely mask the smug satisfaction underneath.

"Sophie, why burn bridges?" she whispered, leaning in so close only I could hear, "You've been a jobless housewife out of the game for five whole years. Without Mason, how are you even going to survive? Save your breath. Mason's heart hasn't belonged to you in a long time."

Looking at her smug expression, a wave of anger washed over me.

"Get lost." I shoved her aside.

Hannah's smug face instantly vanished, replaced by an expression of tearful heartbreak, as though she'd suffered some terrible grievance.

She took a dramatic step back, trembling as she looked toward Mason. "Mason, I was only trying to talk to her..."

Before she could finish, Mason bolted forward, grabbing my wrist and jerking me backward while shielding Hannah behind him.

Pain flared up my arm where his fingers dug into my skin.

"Sophie, what the hell is wrong with you?" Mason roared, "Hannah was just trying to help. Can't you understand that?"

"Help?" A bitter, sarcastic laugh escaped my throat. "She's an outsider. What right does she have to meddle in our marriage?"

That instantly set off the powder keg.

Phoebe's shrill voice blasted through the private room. "Hannah isn't an outsider! She's family! She saved this family!"

She stormed up, shoving a finger right in my face.

"When Mason got promoted, do you think he became a director on his own?" she spat, "Hannah begged her uncle, who's an executive, to pull strings for him! You actually thought you had something to do with it?

"And when I failed my college entrance exam, who secretly saved up her own allowance to pay my tuition, comfort me, and push me to keep going?" Phoebe continued, her chest heaving, "It was Hannah!

"Open your eyes and see who actually cares about us!" she yelled, "All you ever do is drain my brother's bank account! Honestly, Hannah is the one who actually deserves to be my sister-in-law!"

Phoebe sounded completely convinced, staring at Hannah with pure, uncritical worship.

Hannah pulled gently on Phoebe's sleeve, putting on a humble, self-sacrificing smile. "Phoebe, don't say that. It was nothing, really."

What a seamless, pathetic tag-team act.

I stopped wasting energy on the peanut gallery and turned back to Mason.

Throughout the entire display, he hadn't said a single word to correct her.

I looked him dead in the eye, my voice dropping. "Mason. Do you actually believe that?"

Mason looked away, unable to hold my gaze, mumbling under his breath, "Phoebe isn't wrong... Hannah really did help out our family a lot..."

"Is that so?" I let out a dry laugh.

Ignoring him, I stepped closer to our great savior standing behind him.

"That works out perfectly, then.

"Hannah, since your uncle is such a big shot, why don't you tell me his name and company?" I said, keeping my tone light, "I used to be a senior partner at a top accounting firm, so my network is pretty huge. Maybe I even know him.

"Oh, and while we're at it, refresh my memory," I added, crossing my arms, "When exactly did you pay Phoebe's tuition, and how did you transfer it? Cash or Venmo? Exactly how much was it? I need to write it down, because if my family owes you a debt, I'm going to make sure every single cent is paid back before this divorce is final."