Semua Bab My Adoptive Son Was Husband and Best Friend’s Bastard: Bab 1 - Bab 10

Ethan piled on. "Yeah, say sorry to my mom, or everyone's going to think you've lost your mind."He grabbed my arm and started hauling me across the floor, ignoring the wine soaking through my clothes and my sharp cry of pain.I stood my ground in front of the whole crowd and spat three times in their direction."Rachel, drop the act. You were loving every second of it. What happened? Can't keep going?"Before she could answer, Derek lit up his phone screen.A naked photo of me stared back at everyone in the room.He leaned in close, voice low and threatening. "Vivian. Unless you want these pictures everywhere, you're going to sign the divorce papers. Right now.""Give up custody, leave with nothing, keep your mouth shut, and I'll let you walk away with your dignity. Otherwise..."His breath was warm against my ear.Every vein in my body went cold.The whole room was watching, soaking up every second.I smiled. "Fine. Let's do it."My easy agreement seemed to catch Ethan off guard.Der

Rachel clucked her tongue. Derek sighed."Vivian. We were married for years. I get it, you don't have money. But stop overextending yourself. You snuck in there, couldn't afford anything, and made yourself look like an idiot. Why do that to yourself?"Then he offered her some unsolicited advice, with a leer that turned my stomach.I didn't bother responding.Give your enemies enough rope.When the auctioneer came out a few minutes later with a miserable-looking Ethan in tow, Derek and Rachel finally got the news about the card's payment hold."Dad, Mom, the auction house says the large transaction on the card is delayed three days. They're saying I bid too high for a standard hold, and I need to pay three-point-five million up front as a deposit before they'll release it.""What?"Both of them shrieked.Derek went dark. "What kind of operation is this? You don't get the item, and you still have to pay a deposit? That's insane."Rachel nodded vigorously. "Exactly! It's a scam. My son ha

Ethan blinked like he was seeing things. "Vivian, what are you doing here? Didn't you go off to scrub toilets somewhere?"Rachel looked like her head was on fire, but she still couldn't resist. "You think dressing up in designer clothes makes you someone? You're still a nobody, Vivian."Derek didn't even speak. He pulled two crumpled dollars from his pocket and dropped them on the sidewalk between us."Today is Ethan's first day at his internship. Stop embarrassing yourself. Take a bus to the police station and turn yourself in, and don't come crying to me when I stop playing nice."Ex-husband. The thought nearly made me laugh.Ethan was already speed-walking toward the building entrance, too anxious about being late to deal with me.All three of them were a mess, father and son dark-circled and ragged, Rachel wobbling in heels that were one step from snapping.The security guard at the door didn't even look up from his watch."No appointment, no entry. New staff and family need to reg

The office around us took the cue and called out together:"Good morning, Ms. Ashford."The three of them hadn't moved and weren't moving.The HR manager, afraid of being caught in the blast radius, turned on Ethan."Say it. Right now. Ms. Ashford."He practically willed the words into Ethan's mouth by sheer force of anxiety.Derek clenched his jaw and held out. "Vivian. What are you pulling here? You make one call and suddenly Ethan's own company bows to you? Tell me what you did.""Forget the small talk."Rachel had never been able to stop herself, even now. She stepped forward the same way she always had, hand raised, gunning for my face.She never got there. A bodyguard had her flat on the pavement, limbs twisted.She thrashed and screamed."Vivian, you bitch! You can't do this to me. Derek's not going to let you get away with this! Ethan, Ethan, come help me!"A bodyguard grabbed her by the hair and yanked her head back.I crouched down to her level and met her narrowed, rage-blur

On the screen, all three of them were talking to a camera. Derek's eyes were red and swollen, and a mounted set of antlers hung on the wall behind him."My wife Vivian played the humble housewife for years while secretly being loaded. I handled every household expense. Our son just got into Harvard, and instead of celebrating as a family, she walked out because I didn't give her an expensive watch.""She even used her connections with our company's HR manager to cancel our son's internship. I know I've let her down over the years. But tuition isn't cheap, and I've done everything I could."Rachel handed him a tissue and faced the camera directly, cataloguing my supposed sins."Vivian, we've been best friends forever. A little tantrum is one thing, but have some perspective. Derek has given you everything you've ever asked for over the years. You mentioned an Hermès bag offhand, and he went and worked construction to buy it for you.""And you're walking out over a watch? Leaving your fa