Chapter 5

The old me would never have dared talk back to him. I'd have swallowed my pride and done everything I could to smooth things over with him.

But not anymore.

I shook my head and held the divorce papers out to him again.

"Let's get a divorce," I said firmly. "So, you can finally make things official with Ruby."

"Chloe!" Nick exploded, his eyes burning with rage. He snatched the papers from my hand and tore them to pieces.

"I only see Ruby as a sister. Don't you dare twist our relationship into something it's not. If you insist on being this unreasonable, forget about ever getting another raise or promotion."

Without giving me a chance to respond, he stormed out and slammed the door so hard the walls shook.

I let out an annoyed sigh.

Fine. If he wouldn't sign the divorce papers, I'd hand in my resignation first.

I unlocked my phone, and a barrage of messages flooded my screen.

"Ms. Sheeran, you're not working Saturday? How come you're still not here?"

"Well, this is a first. I'm surprised not to see our resident workaholic at her desk!"

I ignored them all. I submitted my resignation to HR, then went to an attorney to have the equity transfer agreement notarized.

I meant what I said. Those shares were going to Ruby as a wedding gift, and I wasn't going back on my word.

Not long after, a notification popped up on our internal portal saying that my resignation had been rejected.

I called Judy McLean from HR to ask what was going on.

She sounded caught in the middle. "Ms. Sheeran, Mr. Ferguson rejected it. There's nothing we can do. This is the location Mr. Ferguson sent. You should go there if you need to speak with him."

Unsurprisingly, it was the luxury restaurant inside the hotel Nick and Ruby frequented.

By the time I arrived, the private dining room was buzzing with laughter and chatter.

"Ms. Holm, your skin is amazing. You look so classy. We're all jealous!"

"Here's to you, Ms. Holm! Hope things keep going great between you and Mr. Ferguson!"

I frowned and shoved the door open.

Everyone inside was leaning toward Ruby, crowding around her as she sat at the head of the table.

She was wearing the long dress Nick had ironed that morning. With her flawless makeup, she looked every bit like a wealthy heiress. And pinned to her chest was a department manager's name badge.

The moment I walked in, the clinking of glasses stopped, and the entire room fell silent.

Ruby stood awkwardly for a moment before walking over and taking my hand as if we were best friends. She gave me a sweet smile and led me toward the table.

"Chloe, what took you so long? I've been waiting for you. Come sit down!"

I gave her a mocking smile and pulled my hand away.

Why would I sit down now? To pick at cold leftovers like a beggar?

Nick, who had been sitting stiffly since I walked in, finally moved.

He reached out and pulled Ruby behind him, shielding her with his body. Then he gave me a cold sneer.

"I thought you wanted to resign. What are you doing at our team-building event?"

I looked around the table. Almost every senior executive in the company was there. There were people I'd worked closely with for years, yet not a single one of them had told me about the team-building event.

They looked embarrassed, avoiding my eyes.

Nick must have told them to keep it from me so I wouldn't show up and cause trouble. This wasn't team building. It was Ruby's promotion party.

When I didn't respond, Nick's gaze darkened.

"I don't think you're cut out to be a department manager. This position is beyond you. You're too impulsive. From now on, you'll start over as an intern."

The moment he made his stance clear, the bootlickers at the table chimed in.

"Yeah, Chloe, you've been getting a bit ahead of yourself lately. You really should listen to Mr. Ferguson."

"You used to work every day without a break, but now you couldn't even be bothered to work overtime today. You definitely need to work your way back up."