Chapter 2

Channing's POV

"Mom, Bridget and I are over."

That night, I drank an entire bottle of strong liquor. I had never been much of a drinker, but that night, I desperately needed the numbness alcohol could provide.

Bridget called several times in between and sent me voice messages.

"Channing, there's a 30-day waiting period after filing for a divorce. So, even if Keaton and I take care of the paperwork tomorrow, I still won't be able to marry you until a month later.

"Don't rush, and don't pressure me.

"I'm not coming home tonight. Mrs. Joplin won't let me leave."

Silently, I deleted all our chat history and drifted into a drunken sleep.

The next morning, I felt like my head was about to explode because of my hangover. Even so, I still forced myself to go to the office and began preparing my resignation paperwork.

The company belonged to Bridget's family.

She had a younger brother, but he had died unexpectedly. So, she became the sole heir. She asked me to manage the company's finances because she didn't trust outsiders.

Therefore, I gave up my own career plans and became the man behind her. Later on, she said office romances would be frowned upon, so she insisted that we keep our relationship a secret at work.

Over those seven years, Bridget gained complete control of the company with my help.

Even though anyone who wasn't blind could see how I felt about her, I was still denied the official status as her other half in front of everyone.

"Once we get married, you'll be my legitimate life partner."

She was always making empty promises. It was like dangling a carrot in front of a donkey to make it work. The carrot was always tantalizingly close, yet forever out of reach.

But now, I was tired. I didn't want to play this game anymore.

I was calmly preparing for my resignation according to protocol when the company group chat suddenly started pinging nonstop. One exclamation after another came from my coworkers.

"Ms. Sherman and Keaton are married!"

"Oh my goodness! They even posted their wedding photos in the group."

"Look how happy Ms. Sherman is! She looks every bit the blissful woman basking in love."

"Keaton's really got what it takes! He only interned here for three months and already managed to win over the beautiful boss. He's married a rich, beautiful woman and is living his best life."

"He's practically exempt from putting in hard work to make it in life. This is basically like being reborn into a privileged life."

Everyone in the office was envious of Keaton.

"But if Ms. Sherman married Keaton, then what about Mr. Peterson? I always thought Mr. Peterson and Ms. Sherman were a couple," someone muttered quietly.

"What about him? He's a shameless homewrecker who got carried away with his own fantasies. He let his delusions get the better of him," someone else answered in a deliberately loud voice.

I'd always been meticulous at work. Whenever I handled reimbursements, I carefully checked every invoice and receipt. I never gave the people under me a chance to fudge the numbers.

As a result, I'd offended quite a few people.

Previously, they had been wary of my relationship with Bridget and had kept their resentment to themselves. But now that I had clearly fallen out of favor, they seized the chance to kick me while I was down.

"Exactly! He used to act like he had some special authority just because he was carrying out Ms. Sherman's orders. Did he really think he was her husband? Pfft! What a delusional idiot!"

"I bet this lapdog is about to pack his things and get the hell out of here."

They talked loudly, making sure I could hear every word.

A few coworkers who had a conscience wanted to defend me. But just as they opened their mouths to speak, they suddenly stopped.

It was because Keaton had appeared.

He was dressed in an ostentatious white suit and was carrying a huge bag of wedding favors. He handed candy to everyone he passed, and every coworker greeted him with flattering smiles, scrambling to curry favor with him.

"Congratulations, Mr. Joplin!"

"May you have a happy married life and a baby soon."

"You're the man, Mr. Joplin. You and Ms. Sherman are a match made in heaven!"

Keaton was merely a junior assistant who was still doing his internship. But after becoming Bridget's husband, he had instantly become the company's second-in-command.

Everyone called him "Mr. Joplin" so naturally, and Keaton clearly enjoyed hearing it. No one seemed to think there was anything wrong with it.

After handing out all the wedding favors, Keaton walked over to me.

He pulled a bottle of champagne from his bag and handed it to me. "Mr. Peterson, I've handed out all the wedding favors. Here's a bottle of champagne you can use to toast to our happy marriage on the wedding day."

He had a blatantly provocative look in his eyes.

My coworkers burst into laughter.

The office was full of cheerful amusement, while I became the clown everyone enjoyed mocking and ridiculing.