Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Lyonna’s footsteps had just crossed the threshold of the dining room when the sharp ringing of a phone shattered the silence. Lyonna stopped in her tracks, but she did not turn around. She knew exactly who was calling.

Behind her, Darren immediately reached into his suit pocket without rushing. The man calmly answered the call, and his cold expression suddenly softened. Darren’s voice changed drastically, becoming so gentle—a tone Lyonna had never once heard during their two years of marriage.

“Alright... I’ll come right now,” Darren said calmly into the phone, sounding so attentive before the call was abruptly ended.

Lyonna’s blood suddenly boiled. The pain, irritation, and anger she had managed to suppress earlier now exploded all at once. Her husband had just agreed to give her one hundred days, and now the shameless man was about to run off to meet another woman right in front of her.

Without thinking, Lyonna quickly turned around. Before Darren could walk away, Lyonna had already closed the distance between them and snatched the phone from the man’s hand with a rough movement.

“What are you doing, Lyonna?” Darren’s voice remained flat. There was no raised voice, only a sharp gaze fixed on his wife’s hand holding his phone.

Lyonna pulled her hand back, glaring at Darren with eyes blazing with anger. “Starting today! Our contract starts today, not tomorrow!”

Darren scoffed softly, his expression remaining cold and composed without showing excessive emotion. “Don’t make things up. We agreed that the terms would take effect tomorrow. I’m busy today. Viona just got out of the hospital, and she needs my presence.”

“I don’t care!” Lyonna corrected firmly, her voice leaving no room for argument. “Starting today, this very second! Take me to the city park now.”

Darren looked at her with a faint, sarcastic smile etched at the corner of his lips. His gaze slowly traveled from top to bottom, calmly yet mercilessly assessing his wife’s appearance. “Take you to the park? Do you think I’m unemployed? I have plenty of important schedules. I don’t want to accompany you to the park. It’s very, very boring.”

Hearing her husband’s refusal, Lyonna’s hand tightened around Darren’s phone. Her breathing quickened, but she refused to appear weak in front of the man.

“If you refuse and choose to go see Viona now,” Lyonna threatened coldly as she raised Darren’s phone screen directly in front of her husband’s face, “I will call your father this very second, or send the divorce lawsuit draft along with a recording of our conversation to the national media. Choose between accompanying me to the park, or watching your family company’s entire stock value plummet because of the young CEO’s marital scandal.”

Darren fell silent. The vein at his temple tensed slightly, the only sign that the threat had successfully provoked his displeasure. However, he did not explode. Instead, the man stared at Lyonna even more intently, radiating an aura of cold dominance.

“You’re quite bold to use such a despicable method, Lyonna,” Darren hissed softly, his voice low yet filled with emphasis.

Before the argument could continue, the sound of a knock on the main door, followed by approaching footsteps, made them both turn around. The dining room door was pushed open, revealing a middle-aged couple walking in elegantly. It was Mr. and Mrs. Graham, Darren’s parents.

“Darren, Lyonna. Are you two arguing?” his mother, Mrs. Clara Graham, asked, her casual tone breaking the tension between them.

“Oh no, Mom. We’re not arguing at all,” Lyonna quickly replied, neutralizing her expression.

The middle-aged woman smiled gracefully. “Good. Oh, right. Tonight, there’s an important dinner gathering with senior investors from overseas. It’s time for the two of you to get ready and attend together as a couple. Show everyone how harmonious your marriage is.”

Darren slowly shook his head, openly displaying his reluctance. He looked at his mother, then briefly glanced toward Lyonna with a silent, contemptuous smile.

“Mother, I don’t think it would be appropriate for me to bring her in front of the important investors,” Darren said calmly without the slightest hesitation, deliberately hurting Lyonna in front of her own parents. “Her current appearance does not represent the standard of a CEO’s wife who should be proudly presented. Bringing her to a formal event would only bring shame to the Graham family.”

“Darren!” Mr. Graham reprimanded him in a heavy voice, glaring at his son. “Watch your words! Regardless of Lyonna’s appearance, she is still your legal wife!”

Lyonna remained silent, swallowing every cold word that came from the lips of the man who carried the status of her husband. There were no tears left; all that remained was a determination that was growing stronger in her chest.

Ignoring his father’s reprimand, Darren calmly walked past Lyonna, intending to leave the mansion. However, just as he passed his wife’s shoulder, Darren stopped for a moment and whispered a controlling remark directly into Lyonna’s ear.

“Remember... the agreement takes effect tomorrow,” Darren whispered sarcastically before finally walking away from the dining room without looking back.

Mrs. Clara Graham, who was standing not far away, furrowed her brows in confusion upon hearing her son’s incomplete statement. The middle-aged woman looked at her daughter-in-law with a probing gaze.

“Starting tomorrow... what does he mean, Lyonna?” her mother-in-law asked curiously.

Thump.

Lyonna blinked briefly, pushing away the shock that had momentarily gripped her chest. She took a deep breath, straightening her back, which had felt exhausted from carrying the burden of her broken marriage. In front of her in-laws, she had to maintain the last bit of dignity she possessed. She could not appear weak, let alone allow Mr. and Mrs. Graham to discover the flaws in their marriage or the ridiculous divorce plan she had just made with Darren.

“Ah, it’s nothing, Mom,” Lyonna replied with a thin smile, forcing it to appear as smooth and natural as possible. Her voice sounded calm, hiding the tremble in her throat. “Darren was just talking about his busy schedule tomorrow morning at the headquarters. You know, he’s been very busy handling a new project lately.”

Mrs. Clara narrowed her eyes, staring intently at her daughter-in-law as though searching for any doubt behind Lyonna’s expression. However, seeing her calm demeanor, her mother-in-law finally nodded in understanding. “Good, then. Remember, tonight the two of you must look united at the dinner gathering. I don’t want to hear any bad gossip about your marriage.”

“Alright, Mom. In that case, I’ll go to my room first to get my phone,” Lyonna said politely before leaving the dining room, which suddenly felt suffocating.

As soon as the door to her luxurious bedroom was firmly locked from the inside, the defenses she had desperately built up collapsed instantly. Lyonna’s legs went weak, causing her to slide down and fall against the back of the door. Her tears broke free without a sound. Every cold humiliation Darren had hurled at her—the calculated words that mentally degraded her, the calculating gaze, and the outright rejection in front of both his parents—struck the pit of her stomach mercilessly. Her chest tightened, tears streamed down her cheeks, releasing the immense pain of two years of devotion repaid with rejection.

However, her sobbing did not last long. Lyonna knew that lamenting her fate would not change anything. She bit her trembling lip, then roughly wiped the remaining tears from her face with the back of her hand.

She stood in front of the large, gold-framed mirror in the corner of the room, staring at her own reflection. Her body had indeed changed; she was fat, far from ideal, and did not conform to the cruel beauty standards glorified by men like Darren. Yet, in the mirror, Lyonna’s eyes radiated the fiery determination of a woman who refused to submit.

Who says being a plus-size woman is shameful? she thought sharply.