Chapter 2

Jaxon's gaze was dark, and Liana's was devoid of emotion. The atmosphere in the parking lot instantly turned suffocating.

The young woman, Clarissa Beech, looked at Liana. Instead of putting some distance between herself and Jaxon, she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned close to his ear to whisper something.

Liana found the scene an eyesore. She retracted her gaze, got into the car, and drove off. She didn't spare Jaxon another glance.

Shortly after she arrived home, the sound of another car's engine came from downstairs. She stood before the glass cabinet in the walk-in wardrobe, removing her necklace, when a warm body pressed itself to her back. Jaxon's domineering presence invaded her senses.

He pressed his hands to the cabinet and leaned forward to look at her face from behind her. He asked, "Are you mad?"

Liana didn't look at him. She casually put the necklace away before saying indifferently, "I'm mad enough to kill. You'd better watch out."

Jaxon watched her for a while before saying, "The Beech family wants to work with us on Shooting Star, and I've been liaising with their eldest son, Keith Beech. Ms. Beech is his younger sister."

"So, he won't work with you if you don't spend time with his sister?"

"I'm explaining myself to you, Liana. Don't get sarcastic with me!"

"I don't see the point in explaining." Liana finally deigned to look at him, her clear gaze seemingly seeing right through his soul. "If you're sick of being with me and want a new lady of the household, I'm perfectly fine stepping down and making way for her."

Jaxon's expression turned ugly. "What did you just say?"

She sighed. "I said we can get divorced."

She pushed him away and turned to leave, but he grabbed her and yanked her back. He gripped her jaw and warned, "You'd better not even think about that."

Liana didn't say anything. She hadn't just thought about it. She'd put her thoughts into action, too. She didn't want him anymore.

Jaxon stayed home until late that night before being summoned away by a phone call. Liana clearly heard the dainty female voice on the other end of the line. The latter sounded like she was crying.

The following morning, Liana's divorce lawyer cum good friend sent her a screenshot of Clarissa's latest social media update. The picture was of two hands making a heart shape on top of a mountain in the middle of the night. It was captioned, "Feeling each other's heartbeat in the gentleness of the sunrise."

Liana immediately recognized the larger hand as Jaxon's. She sat there with a glass of water in her hand. She didn't know how long she remained in that position.

When she put the glass down, it made a sound as it came into contact with the table. With that, it seemed that another piece of her heart had died.

…

Jaxon didn't go home for the next few days. Liana only saw him during a meeting at work. He sat at the head of the table while she sat with the rest of the managerial staff. Their gazes barely met throughout.

Liana didn't head upstairs to his office to look for him. Instead, she spent her free time looking for a new place to stay and browsing listings. She also took the chance to get rid of the things Jaxon had given her over the years, such as anniversary gifts, birthday gifts, Valentine's Day gifts, and marriage gifts. She even sold her wedding ring.

She didn't even want him anymore. So, what was the point in keeping trash left from a failed relationship?

…

One night, Sarah Anderson, the owner of a club called Wonderland, invited Liana over.

It was almost 11:00 pm, so Liana wanted to turn her down. However, she changed her mind when she considered the connections and network she needed to build in preparation for starting her own business after the divorce and leaving Prestige Corporation.

She saw Sarah as soon as she arrived. "I could've just gone upstairs myself, Sarah. You didn't need to come down."

Sarah linked arms with Liana and pulled her into an elevator. "I was afraid you'd lose your way. You've never been here, right?"

That was true. It was Liana's first time there.

They headed upstairs, and Sarah brought her to a large private room with a huge screen in the middle. It split the room in half.

Liana noticed many people on the other side of the screen, but Sarah didn't lead her there. Instead, she brought Liana to the side with only one person. The person looked familiar. She seemed to be the girlfriend of one of Jaxon's friends.

The woman recognized Liana. Her expression turned slightly awkward when she saw Liana. Nevertheless, she still forced a smile.

Liana took off her coat and sat down. Sarah left her there.

Liana picked up a drink and sipped it. She gradually started paying attention to the conversation on the other side of the screen—it was about her.

"I just realized that Jaxon doesn't bring Liana to our gatherings anymore."

"Duh. Look at how young and cute Ms. Beech is. He brings her everywhere he goes now and treats her like she's his princess."

"Well, it's been years. It's high time for Jaxon to have a change of scenery."

"He's slept with Liana for eight years. No matter how pretty she is, he's bound to get sick of her."

"She's an idiot, if you ask me. She's spent many years by Jaxon's side, yet she's not getting anything out of it but abandonment. Maybe I should show her some love since he doesn't want her anymore. You guys know how long I've drooled after that waist of hers."

Liana's gaze turned frosty as she listened to them. She recognized two of the voices. They belonged to two of Jaxon's friends who had always sucked up to her.

The woman with Liana felt so awkward that she didn't even dare look at her. She thought that Liana would flee when she saw the latter get up.

However, Liana simply cleared her throat and headed to the screen with her drink in hand. She leaned against the screen and joined the conversation. "I think you guys are mistaken about something. Jaxon was an inexperienced virgin when he got together with me. I've slept with him for eight years, too, haven't I?"

Silence instantly descended upon the room, and the people on the couch turned to look at her in horror.

As she spoke, another man entered the room. The people on the couch glanced at her before turning to face him, their expressions quickly shifting to one of despair.