CHAPTER 5

Tonya's POV

One of the men looked at him briefly before shifting his attention to me. "We are here to help Miss Tonya move her belongings to our boss's mansion," he said politely. "We are acting under the instructions of Mr. Blackwood."

For a few seconds, nobody moved.

The two men in black stood near the door, waiting patiently, while everyone in the living room stared at them with shock. My parents looked at each other, and Sonia’s hand remained on her stomach as she watched them with a confused expression.

Philip looked the most shocked of all. I could almost hear the question running through his mind.

How did Jael know where I was?

I was sure none of them had expected this. They had probably thought I would walk out of the house with my suitcase and spend the night somewhere on the street. They had watched me reject Philip’s money, and I could tell from the way my mother had spoken to me that they expected me to regret it.

But Jael had made sure I wouldn’t be left with nothing.

One of the men stepped forward politely. “Mr. Blackwood sent us to help Miss Tonya move her belongings to his mansion. He wants everything she needs packed and taken there immediately.”

Philip’s face changed the moment he heard those words. He stared at the man for a few seconds before turning his eyes toward me.

“His mansion?” he asked, disbelief clear in his voice. “You’re saying Jael wants Tonya to live with him?”

“Yes, sir,” the man answered calmly.

Philip’s expression became darker. He looked at me as if he had suddenly realized that I had somewhere to go after all.

“Tonya, you don’t have to do this,” he said, his voice suddenly softer than it had been when he handed me the divorce papers. “You can stay here. If you don’t have anywhere else to go, then stay in this house. You don’t need to go to Jael’s mansion.”

I stared at him, unable to believe what I was hearing.

Just a few minutes ago, he had told me he wanted his freedom. He had given me divorce papers and calmly explained that he had fallen in love with another woman. He hadn’t cared where I would go or how I would survive.

Now that another man had offered me a place to stay, he suddenly wanted me to remain in his house.

“Why?” I asked, my voice trembling as I looked directly into his eyes. “Why do you suddenly want me to stay, Philip? You just told me that you don’t love me anymore. You said you wanted your freedom, and you gave me divorce papers without even asking where I would go. So why are you suddenly acting like you care about me?”

Philip rubbed his forehead, clearly frustrated by my question. “Because I don’t want you to make a decision you’ll regret later. You are upset right now, and you’re not thinking clearly. Whatever happened between us, you don’t have to rush into Jael’s arms just because your marriage is over.”

Before I could answer, Sonia stepped forward, her brows pulled together in confusion.

“Philip, what are you talking about?” she asked, looking from him to me. “You were the one who wanted this divorce. You were the one who told Tonya she couldn’t stay here. So why are you suddenly telling her she can remain in the house?”

Philip turned toward her, and his expression tightened. “Sonia, this has nothing to do with you. I’m only saying that Tonya doesn’t have to leave with Jael.”

Sonia’s eyes narrowed. She slowly rubbed her stomach as she studied him. “But why does it matter to you where she goes? You just divorced her. If you wanted her to stay, why didn’t you think about that before giving her those papers?”

Philip didn’t answer immediately. His silence told me more than his words ever could. He wasn’t suddenly worried about me..He was worried about Jael.

I turned toward the two men and pointed toward the stairs. “Please take my bags to the car. Everything in my room belongs to me, so make sure nothing is left behind.”

The men nodded before walking upstairs.

Philip immediately stepped closer to me.

“Tonya, please listen to me before you do something you’ll regret. Jael Blackwood isn’t helping you because he’s a good man. He has never been that kind of man, and you know that better than anyone. He destroyed your family’s business, and now he’s offering you a place to stay because he wants something from you. Don’t make the mistake of thinking he’s your savior just because he’s helping you now.”

I stared at him, feeling something inside me slowly breaking all over again. It was almost funny. The man who had sold me to Jael was now warning me about Jael.

“You know what, Philip?” I asked, my voice quiet as I fought back the tears gathering in my eyes. “You might be right. Maybe Jael does want something from me. Maybe he has his own reasons for helping me, and maybe one day I’ll find out what those reasons are. But do you know what I find interesting?”

Philip frowned, watching me carefully.

I took a slow breath before continuing. “You’re warning me about a man who might take advantage of me after you spent the last two years doing exactly that. You married me because my parents needed your help. You knew you loved Sonia, but you allowed me to believe that I could become a good wife to you. You took everything I gave you, and when your company started falling apart, you didn’t think twice before using me again.”

My voice cracked, but I refused to look away. “You asked me to sleep with another man so you could save your company. You didn’t care how humiliated I would feel. You didn’t care how much it would hurt me. All you cared about was getting your money.”

Philip lowered his eyes..“Tonya, I know I hurt you, but I never wanted things to end this way.”

A bitter smile appeared on my lips. “You didn’t want things to end this way?”

I shook my head as tears finally slipped down my cheeks.

“Then how did you want them to end? You wanted to divorce me after getting your money. You wanted to go back to Sonia. You wanted to start a new life with the woman you actually loved. You got everything you wanted, Philip.”

I wiped my tears with the back of my hand..“So don’t stand here and pretend that you suddenly care about me because Jael is giving me somewhere to go.”

My parents remained silent throughout the conversation.

I turned toward them, and the hurt in my chest became even stronger..“And all of you have been doing the same thing.”

My mother looked down. My father shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

“For years, I have been the one everyone runs to whenever something goes wrong. When the family needed help, I sacrificed myself. When Sonia needed to finish school, I sacrificed myself. When Philip needed his company saved, I sacrificed myself.”

I looked at each of them, my heart aching as I realized just how much of my life I had given away.

“And not one of you stopped to ask what I wanted.”

My mother finally opened her mouth. “Tonya, we only wanted what was best for the family.”

I laughed through my tears. “What was best for the family was always what was best for everyone except me.”

She fell silent.

The men returned with my suitcases a few minutes later.

One of them carried my largest suitcase while the other carried the rest of my belongings.

I picked up my handbag and walked toward the door, refusing to look back.

Philip followed me outside. “Tonya, please listen to me. You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into. Jael isn’t doing this because he cares about you. The moment he gets what he wants, he’ll throw you away just like everyone else.”

I turned to him, tears still filling my eyes. “Maybe you’re right, Philip. But at least I’m willing to take that chance after everything you’ve done to me.”

I turned toward the car, but Philip suddenly grabbed my wrist. “Tonya, don’t go.”

“Let me go, Philip,” I said, trying to pull my hand away.

Before he could respond, the car door opened.

Jael stepped out.

His eyes immediately fell on Philip’s hand around my wrist, and his expression changed.

Philip quickly released me, but Jael was already walking toward us.

He stopped in front of Philip, his eyes cold and dangerous. “I gave you a chance to walk away,” Jael said quietly. “Don’t make me regret it.”