THE SILENT BREAK UP

(SERENE'S POV)

I switched the phone to a loud speaker and placed it on the bed.

"You didn't go to the hotel," Jonathan asked in a conflicted tone.

"Of course not," I replied, drinking my calming tea. "I didn't even make it halfway."

"I am coming over right now," he declared and I immediately heard shuffling of fabric and muffled footsteps, followed by Claire’s soft and desperate voice. “Jonathan, wait, please..”

“Do you think they are sleeping together?" I asked Athena, she stood in the doorway watching everything play out. 

Athena scoffed helplessly. "You really are the blindest woman on this planet, aren't you? Of course they are."

"Really?" I asked again, it was really hard to believe the facts.

Without answering, she gathered the legal documents I had got from that beast into a neat pile. "I never liked the bastard anyway," she muttered as she closed the door.

Immediately she left, I stood up and turned toward the full length mirror. I sighed in relief when I saw red bruises from the allergy covered most of my skin perfectly masking all evidence Raymond had left on my skin.

Muffled voices drifted in from the hallway outside, they got here fast.

I ran back onto the bed, pulling the duvet over my body, soon I heard knocking. 

"Come in," I replied softly.

The door swung open, and Jonathan rushed into the room, his face filled with panic. "Oh, my sweet Serene…." He said affectionately and my skin reacted from his touch.  

He immediately stepped back, his face draining of color as he looked at the new bruises covering my skin. "What is going on?" He asked in fear.

I reached out, my fingers trembling slightly as I pushed his hand away. "I saw it splash all over me," I whispered, forcing my shoulders to shake. 

Jonathan was focused on my hand, his gaze not leaving the red spots spreading, his jaw tightened and he stepped back. 

"This is getting completely out of hand, Serene," he said, rubbing his head. "We have to find a permanent solution for this ridiculous allergy. How are you supposed to care for our children if you break down like this every time you touch something dirty?" He said, his voice full of worry, I almost forgot all the accusations against him. 

"Serene..." An annoying voice said behind him, my face instantly darkened the moment I saw her. 

"What on earth happened?" She asked, her hands covering her mouth in a dramatic way.

"She already explained," Athena answered, cutting off her performance. She leaned against the doorframe, her arms folded tightly over her chest.

Claire blinked, turning around. "But..."

“What?” Athena asked, her expression chilling. “Were you hoping for something worse to happen to her instead?” 

Claire flinched. Jonathan’s head snapped toward her, his brows knitting together as a look of genuine suspicion crossed his face.

“No no, that's not what I meant.” She said hurriedly. 

Athena sighed, ready to go to war with her but a notification on my phone got both our attention. 

"What? What is it?" Jonathan asked.

Athena snatched the phone from my shaking hands. As she scanned the screen, her jaw gradually dropped opened too. "Is this real?"

"The email has their official seal," I stammered, tears of happiness filling my eyes. "It is real. I can pay off every single penny of my debts with this."

Athena threw the phone onto the bed excitedly, and threw her arms around my neck, squeezing me until I could barely breathe. "I am so proud of you," she said softly into my shoulder.

"What is happening?" Jonathan demanded, looking back and forth between us.

I pulled away from Athena and looked up at him, suddenly remembering our wedding, one which I was planning to end anyway. 

"Jonathan?" I called, keeping my voice carefully calm. "Can we postpone the wedding?"

He immediately froze. "Why?"

"I just got accepted into the official Culinary Community," I explained, gesturing toward the phone. "I have my first major contract starting next week. It has a very big check attached to it."

"But our wedding is in seven days!" he argued, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

"Please, I don't want to walk down the aisle drowning in debt. With this money, I can even finally hire a proper medical specialist for my skin." I explained.

“I can take care of you Serene, you don't even need to work.” He said aggressively. 

“But?” I said sadly. “Your mother already despises me for my poor background. Just imagine if she finds out about my debts."

He sighed, the tension in his shoulders slowly leaving.

"And," I said, sounding excited, "if we push it to six months, your mother will be back in the country to attend."

"Six months?" he asked in shock.

"That’s the length of the contract," I replied.

"Is it a wedding, a gala, or an entire holiday?” He asked suspiciously. “What kind of insane client hires a private nutritionist to cook for six whole months?"

"Someone really wealthy with aging parents," Athena answered.

He looked down thinking. Claire stepped closer and whispered something softly into his ear. As he listened to her, his eyes kept darting between me and her.

"Fine," he said. "We can postpone it. But don't you dare think about bailing on me, Serene. Remember, you are the only woman who is ever going to be my wife." He said possessively, it sounded like a threat. 

Claire scoffed behind him, “Serene loves you Jona, of course she will marry you.” She looked at me with a challenge but I smiled.

Keep dreaming, I thought. There is no way in hell this wedding is ever happening.

The next day, I sat in the conference room of my agency, my hands shaking excitedly.

"Is this figure real?" I asked, looking up at my manager and company agent. "A full million after taxes?"

Both of them nodded.

I slammed my hands onto the polished table, and stood up happily. "Yes! Absolutely yes! I don't care what crazy billionaire this is, I am taking the deal!"

"Wonderful!" The manager said happily, sliding a file toward me. "You just need to sign right here on the dotted line."

I picked up my phone, stepped back, and began taking pictures of every single page of the contract.

"What are you doing?" my agent asked, her smile replaced by worry.

"This deal is too good to be true," I replied, settling back into my chair calmly. "My sister is a lawyer. She is going to review every clause before I put my signature on it."

Athena called after some time. "Is it real?" I demanded immediately.

"It is real," Athena confirmed. "I am so happy for you, Chinta!" she said as she tried to hide that she was crying. "I just read through everything, it is completely legit. Except..." She paused. "There is a big clause. If you leave or break the contract before the six months are up, you owe the employer a f*e of five million dollars."

I laughed wildly. "Then I guess we are going to be rich, because I am not going anywhere."

Without another second of hesitation, I pressed the pen to the paper and signed my name.

I stood at the gates of the grandest estate I had ever seen in my life. I adjusted the navy executive suit Athena had forced me to wear, took a deep breath and knocked.

The door opened on its own and behind it stood an elderly woman with silver hair pulled into a neat bun.

“Goodmorning maam, I am Serene…” She smiled brightly.

"Oh, come in, my dear!" she said, her face lighting up genuinely. "Oh, goodness, you are even more beautiful than in those pictures!"

I blushed shly. "Thank you so much."

She beamed, turning around and lifting what appeared to be an ancient telephone.  "Hello, everyone. Please come down and meet our newest team member."

I looked around in panic, what exactly did she mean by team member?

Within two minutes, twelve people in perfect uniforms stood in front of me.

"Hello, Mrs. Milton," a petite woman in a polished chef's uniform stepped forward. "I am Patricia Hamis, the head chef."

One by one, the introductions continued, from the head of housekeeping to the two estate gardeners.

"And that covers the main staff," the elderly woman concluded."Welcome to the team, dear."

"Nanny Min?" A deep voice echoed down the grand staircase "Are you really not going to introduce me?"

There he was, standing at the bottom step of the stairs in grey sweatpants, sweat dripping from his body, like he had just walked out of a workout session. His muscles looked amazing in that vest and that sweatpants perfectly outlined his…. Fuck what was I thinking?

“Eyes up here, doll face,” he winked at me, and I boiled, both in anger and embarrassment.