The CEO’s Wife Who Chose Herself

Chapter 1

Umuulan nang gabing iyon. Hindi malakas, pero tuloy-tuloy — parang may mabigat na bagay na hindi tumitigil bumagsak.

Elaine Flores sat across from her husband inside Aron’s private office at Salazar Holdings.

Hindi sa bahay.

Hindi sa kwarto nila.

Dito. Sa lugar kung saan siya palaging mas komportable kaysa sa kahit saan.

The divorce papers were placed neatly between them.

Maayos. Organised. Just like him.

“You know this marriage was never my decision,” Aron said quietly.

Hindi siya galit. Hindi rin siya defensive.

He sounded… tired.

“Our grandparents arranged it. It was an alliance. I respected it for five years. But I can’t keep living like this.”

Elaine kept her eyes on the table. Ayaw niyang tumingin agad. Ayaw niyang makita sa mukha niya kung gaano kasakit ang marinig iyon.

“Living like what?” she asked, barely above a whisper.

“Like I’m tied to something I didn’t choose.”

Something.

Hindi someone.

Something.

Her throat tightened.

He continued, softer now. “I want to marry for love, Elaine. I want to wake up beside someone I chose.”

The room suddenly felt smaller.

She finally looked at him.

He wasn’t cruel. That was the worst part.

If he shouted, if he cheated recklessly, if he humiliated her — maybe mas madali.

But he was just honest.

“Did you ever try?” she asked.

Aron hesitated.

That hesitation hurt more than the truth.

“I tried to do my duty,” he answered.

Duty.

Elaine blinked slowly.

“I loved you,” she said, almost to herself.

The words slipped out before she could stop them.

Aron’s expression shifted — not love, not regret. Just discomfort.

“I know,” he replied.

That was all.

No “I’m sorry.”

No “I wish I could.”

Just… I know.

Her chest felt tight. Parang may pumipisil sa loob. For a second, she thought she might actually lose control in front of him.

Her fingers trembled slightly as she reached for the pen.

She stopped.

She inhaled.

Exhaled.

She would not beg.

“I won’t hold you back,” she said carefully.

He looked relieved.

Relieved.

That almost broke her.

She signed her name.

Elaine Flores.

The pen made a soft scratching sound against paper. It felt louder than the rain outside.

When she pushed the documents toward him, her vision blurred for just a second.

She blinked it away.

“You deserve the kind of love you’re looking for,” she said, voice steady but thinner now.

Aron studied her face.

“You’re stronger than I expected,” he said.

No.

She wasn’t.

She was just trying not to fall apart.

She stood up slowly. Her legs felt slightly weak, but she kept her back straight.

At the door, she paused.

“Goodbye, Aron.”

For a moment — just a moment — she thought he would say something more.

He didn’t.

She opened the door.

Outside, the hallway was quiet except for the soft tapping of heels against marble.

At the reception desk sat Mia, Aron’s long-time executive assistant. Young. Observant. Loyal.

Mia looked up when she heard the door.

And she froze.

Elaine must have looked fine at first — composed, elegant as always.

But then the tears finally gathered.

Hindi pa bumabagsak.

Pero nandun na.

Mia’s eyes widened slightly.

“Ma’am… are you okay?” she asked gently.

That question.

That one simple question.

It shattered whatever control Elaine had left.

She nodded automatically. “I’m fine.”

But her voice cracked.

Mia stood up from her desk instinctively, stepping closer.

Elaine tried to walk past her.

Tried.

But halfway down the hallway, her breathing changed.

Short.

Uneven.

She reached the elevator and pressed the button with shaking fingers.

The doors opened.

The second they closed…

She broke.

Not graceful tears.

Not silent crying.

Her shoulders shook. Her hands covered her mouth to muffle the sound, but a broken sob escaped anyway.

“I loved him,” she whispered to herself.

Five years.

Five years of hoping he would look at her differently.

Five years of convincing herself that love could grow from respect.

The elevator descended slowly, painfully slow.

When it opened at the lobby, she wiped her face quickly — but it was useless.

Her mascara had smudged slightly. Her eyes were red.

Mia had followed quietly, keeping distance but not leaving her alone.

She saw everything.

Elaine stepped outside into the rain without opening her umbrella.

The cold water mixed with her tears.

This time, she didn’t try to stop it.

She cried — not for the marriage arrangement.

Not for the family expectations.

But for the love she gave that was never returned.

Behind the glass doors of the building, Mia stood watching.

And for the first time since working for Aron Salazar…

She felt angry at her boss.

Because the strongest woman she knew…

Had just walked away completely broken.