All Chapters of Split the Bill, Split the Marriage: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

Grace's POVBy the time I got home, it was already 9:00 pm.Ethan Mercer frowned the moment he saw me walk through the door. "Why haven't you been answering my texts? If this is about the prenatal bills, just send them to me. I'll cover half."He looked up at me, and irritation flickered across his face."But don't just tell me you're tired and expect me to figure out what you want."When Chloe Hart asked him for 3,000,000 dollars, he saw it as her belated attempt to act spoiled and get his attention.However, when all I said was that I was tired, Ethan immediately assumed I wanted something from him."I wasn't asking you to pay me back." My fingers tightened around the test results in my hand, my voice barely above a whisper. "I spent the whole day at the hospital by myself."They took seven vials of blood, and I spent four hours sitting around waiting for my turn. I just… had a rough day. I wanted to hear you say, 'That sounds exhausting.' That's all."Ethan fell silent for

Chapter 2

I put the necklace back in its box. "Why did you buy her something that expensive?"Ethan picked up his phone, a trace of discomfort crossing his face. "Chloe just went through a divorce. She's having a hard time. I only sent her something to cheer her up."Besides, since when do you care about expensive things? A gift is more about the thought behind it. The second you start comparing price tags, you've missed the point."So, when the gift was for me, only the thought mattered.When it was for Chloe, nothing less than the best would do."So, let me get this straight," I said quietly. "Chloe says she wants something, and you hand her 3,000,000 dollars and a 999,900-dollar necklace. But I spend all day alone at the hospital getting prenatal tests, tell you I'm tired, and you decide I'm fishing for money?"Ethan's expression darkened. "It's my money. I don't need your permission to spend it however I want. You got your gift. Why are you so obsessed with what Chloe got?"It wasn't

Chapter 3

Chloe pulled out the chair beside her and waved me over with a smile. "Grace, come sit with me. Ethan picked the whole menu around my favorites. See if there's anything you like."Nearly everything on the table was raw or chilled seafood.Ever since I'd gotten pregnant, my stomach had been unpredictable. Even the smell of seafood was enough to make me nauseous.I asked the server if I could have a bowl of plain chicken soup instead.Ethan overheard and frowned. "It's a set menu. Don't make things difficult for the kitchen at the last minute."He'd barely finished speaking when Chloe took a bite of her steak and frowned. "This is a little overdone."Ethan called the manager over. "Have them make another one. Her stomach is sensitive. Make sure the steak is tender."The manager apologized repeatedly before whisking the plate away.I looked down at the untouched silverware in front of me and almost wanted to laugh.I'd spent an entire day going through prenatal tests and couldn't

Chapter 4

At 8:30 am the next morning, I sat alone in the hospital hallway.Ethan still hadn't shown up.At 7:00 am, he'd texted me. "Chloe had too much to drink last night. I need to take her home first. I'll be there right after."At 8:40 am, another message came through. "Stuck in traffic."By 8:55 am, the nurse was calling my name.I looked toward the elevator one last time. Nothing.Still, I called Ethan. One final time.When he picked up, Chloe's voice was the first thing I heard. "Ethan, the signing ceremony is about to start. Everyone's waiting for you."Then, Ethan lowered his voice. "What is it now?""The nurse is calling me in. You promised you would be here."There was a brief silence on the other end. When he spoke again, impatience had already crept into his voice. "It's just a routine prenatal appointment. Do you really need me there? This is Chloe's first day leading the project. I can't leave her on her own today."I stared at the closed doors ahead of me. "Okay.

Chapter 5

Grace Kane didn't find out until much later that when Ethan saw the medical report, regret wasn't what hit him first.His first instinct was to refuse to believe it.He stared at the page, reading it again and again as if he could somehow prove it was fake if he looked closely enough.However, everything was right there in black and white.The hospital information. The date. Grace's signature.Then, Ethan realized when it had happened.It was the exact day he'd promised to go with Grace to her appointment and left her waiting alone because he'd chosen to attend Chloe's contract signing instead.He immediately grabbed his phone and called her.Once. Twice. Again and again.Every call met the same cold response.Only then did it dawn on him that Grace had blocked every way he had of reaching her.Ethan hurried into the bedroom and tore open the closet doors.Most of her clothes were gone.The pregnancy guide that used to sit beside the bed was missing. So were her toothbrush

Chapter 6

By the time Ethan returned to the house, dawn had already broken.He sat at the dining table without sleeping for a minute.The necklace was clenched in his fist, its delicate chain digging into his palm.Later that morning, their mutual friend, Daniel Reed, came looking for him.Daniel had gone to college with both Ethan and Grace. He was also one of Mercer Group's earliest investors.The moment he saw Grace's medical report on the table, he went silent. Then, without warning, he punched Ethan across the face. "What gave you the right to tell Grace no one would even look at her proposal without you? Do you have any idea why Mercer Group got its first investment?"Ethan's head snapped up. "What are you talking about?"Daniel's eyes were red as he pulled out an old folder he'd kept all these years and threw it onto the table in front of him.Six years earlier, after Chloe disappeared with every cent Ethan had saved, his fledgling company had been pushed to the brink of collaps

Chapter 7

Third-Person POVBack home, the renewable energy project began falling apart almost immediately.Chloe had made a catastrophic mistake.She decided the approval process Grace had put in place was too slow, so she bypassed the legal department and signed directly with a new supplier.The moment the company transferred the 80,000,000 dollars in advance, the supplier's CEO disappeared.The entire project ground to a halt.An emergency board meeting was called that same night.By the time Ethan arrived at the office, Chloe was still arguing with everyone in the room."How was I supposed to know they were going to disappear? Legal reviewed the contract. Why is everyone acting like this is all my fault?"The general counsel slammed a stack of documents onto the table. "We never saw this contract. And the risk assessment submitted under the project team's name was fabricated."The color drained from Chloe's face. Instinctively, she turned to Ethan. "Ethan, you believe me, don't you?

Chapter 8

Grace's POVAfter the crisis at Mercer Group was finally under control, Ethan held a press conference.In front of the cameras, he publicly acknowledged that I had created the core strategy behind the renewable energy project.My name was restored to every project document, and the profits generated by the domestic operation were recalculated to reflect my role as its original lead.I accepted the money I'd earned but sent the additional 3,000,000 dollars Ethan transferred to me straight back.Not long after, he signed the divorce papers.When the finalized documents arrived overseas, there was a handwritten note tucked inside that read, "I owe you more than I can ever repay. This is the only place I know how to start."I read it once, then put it away with the return receipt for the 99-dollar necklace I'd mailed back to him.Three months after our divorce became official, Ethan came to find me.I'd just finished presenting a project update that day.He was sitting in the las

Chapter 9

Ethan didn't leave right away.On my birthday, he made another dinner reservation.There was a bouquet of double tulips on the table, and this time, the cake had only one name written across it.Mine.He waited from early evening until the restaurant closed.I never showed up.The next day, a server delivered a card from me. It read, "I've already waited for you three times. That was enough."Then, Ethan sent me an expensive diamond necklace.The day it arrived at my office, I refused the delivery without even opening the package.Later, he waited outside my building for two hours.When I finally left work, he didn't come over or try to stop me.He stayed where he was, separated from me by the crowd passing between us, and asked only one question."What do you want, Grace?"I stopped walking.Six years ago, all I'd wanted was for him to make it through the worst years of his life.When I was pregnant, all I'd wanted was for him to show up for one appointment.After I le

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