CHAPTER 43: CHAPTER 43: FINALLY SIGNED THE DIVORCE AGREEMENT

Timothy Xavier wasn’t in the mood to chat, and neither was I.

He shot me a cold glance, making perfunctory small talk with Mr. Ellison about Veridia’s recent business scene.

And for some reason, though I was brimming with confidence before, suddenly I was anxious, all because I hadn’t seen my brother or Serena in person yet.

Just then, the maid’s voice floated over: "Young master’s back!"

My eyes lit up; Timothy’s gaze also darted to the foyer.

Though my foot wasn’t fully healed, I was so nervous I stood up anyway.

But when my brother appeared before us all alone, my heart skipped a beat.

I could practically feel Timothy’s icy stare behind me, needle-sharp at my back.

Mrs. Ellison came out of the kitchen, voicing the question I’d been holding in: "Where’s Serena? Why are you alone?"

Mr. Ellison was still craning his neck toward the garden: "Didn’t you say you were bringing your girlfriend home for us to finally meet today?"

"Serena who?"

My brother suddenly laughed, telling us, "Oh come on, I was just messing with you. You really believed me?"

My heart crashed clear down to rock bottom.

I never saw this coming. Not in a million years.

Mrs. Ellison was so furious she pinched my brother hard several times: "Didn’t you swear your girlfriend was Serena Sawyer? Were you lying to us the whole time?"

My brother just laughed louder: "Of course! She’s a huge celebrity, how could I ever get a shot? You lot are always nagging me about settling down, so I just made something up. And you actually bought it!"

Mr. and Mrs. Ellison were beside themselves, both yelling at my brother.

Instinctively, I glanced Timothy’s way.

His handsome features looked frozen, as if coated in frost.

I grabbed his arm in a panic and tried to sputter out an explanation: "I’m sorry, I... I didn’t think—"

I hadn’t finished before he shook me off violently.

"You stay here. Don’t bother coming back!"

He spat out those words and strode straight out, not sparing a shred of face for anyone there.

And with my injured foot, I was left sprawled on the floor, taking a hard tumble.

The three members of the Ellison Family went quiet all at once.

Mrs. Ellison quickly helped me up, saying, "What’s going on? Why did Timothy suddenly blow up like that?"

"Exactly! Wasn’t he fine just now?"

My brother, after speaking, also helped Mrs. Ellison support me.

But right then, I caught a whiff of faint perfume on my brother.

I’d smelled the same scent on Serena before.

I shoved down a thousand questions and, not wanting to worry my parents, explained: "Timothy had things at work today, but I dragged him over anyway. He just wanted to meet my brother’s girlfriend and got stood up—that’s why he’s mad."

As I said it, my brother looked at me with a loaded expression, deliberately avoiding my eyes and keeping his head down at dinner.

Call it the sixth sense women have—I was sure my brother had something with Serena, and that he hadn’t been joking when he claimed she was his girlfriend.

I just didn’t understand why my brother didn’t bring Serena home today—and why he had to lie about it all?

Mrs. Ellison was beyond disappointed, grumbling, "Declan, you little troublemaker, got us all excited for nothing! Forget it, let’s eat!"

...

At the table, everyone’s mood was shot.

Mr. and Mrs. Ellison were so let down, they barely touched their food before heading off to catch the midday news.

That left just me and my brother at the dining table.

He asked, "What’s going on with you and Timothy Xavier?"

I shot back, "Didn’t Serena tell you?"

"What are you talking about? I have no idea what you mean."

My brother avoided my gaze, continuing to shovel food into his mouth.

I probed: "Serena knows about us, so she can only be with you secretly, right? That’s why she won’t come to the Ellison Family home. Did you know she’s already had a daughter with Timothy Xavier?"

Finally, my brother set down his chopsticks.

His face showed no shock or surprise. Instead, he said, "If you put all the effort you spend fighting Serena into your relationship with Timothy, maybe he wouldn’t have cheated. Sometimes you need to look at your own issues, not just blame others."

I stared at him in disbelief.

Was this really the brother who’d always doted on me, protected me since we were kids?

He knew about Timothy and Serena—yet he was blaming me?

I felt tears prick at my eyes, asking, "So you really think Timothy cheating with Serena is normal? Then tell me, what are you and Serena to each other?"

My brother’s eyebrows creased with impatience. "We’re adults. We need boundaries. Don’t ask things you shouldn’t."

This was the first time he’d ever spoken to me like this.

He and Timothy both seemed like different people.

Just then, outside, my mom’s voice rose eight decibels: "Zoe, get over here! What is this?"

Baffled, I made my way to the living room.

Turns out, photos of Timothy and Serena entering a club together, looking unmistakably intimate, had been leaked.

On TV, each photo stung the eyes.

They weren’t as explosive as that anonymous email I’d received, and Doris didn’t appear in any of them.

But in each shot, Timothy had his arm around Serena’s waist; Serena was tipping up on her toes to kiss Timothy’s jaw. Anyone could see something was off.

"Zoe, Timothy cheated on you?"

Mrs. Ellison was floored: "How could this happen? Just last time I visited, you two seemed fine. I thought Timothy treated you so well."

I didn’t want to talk about this garbage anymore, so I answered wearily, voice rough, "Mom, can I crash at home for a few days?"

Mrs. Ellison and Mr. Ellison exchanged a look, finally just nodded without a word.

Back in my room, my phone rang: Jenna was calling.

"Did you see the news?" Jenna asked, puzzled, "Didn’t Timothy and Serena keep things airtight? Three years without being caught. How’d it get leaked all of a sudden?"

I laughed bitterly. Three years as an entertainment reporter—no one knows these tricks better than me.

I said, "My guess? Serena leaked it herself. If it was the paparazzi, why bother hiding Doris’s existence? Exposing her love child too would make for even crazier headlines."

Jenna suddenly got it, "That bitch wants to force Timothy to divorce you and marry her!"

"Isn’t that good for me?"

I took a long breath, slumping onto the bed. "Finally, I can be free."

Jenna caught the crack in my voice, asking, "Did Timothy come home yesterday to ask about the paternity test? What did you tell him?"

"He asked. Thought I was only doing the test to bring down Serena."

I gave a self-mocking smirk.

The more I thought about it, the more it hurt—twenty years’ worth of feelings for Timothy Xavier, so pitiful.

We’ve been together so long, and he still sees me as low, petty, shallow.

Jenna tried to comfort me, "He’s the one who should be crying now! Serena’s got so many male fans, who knows how many people are dragging Timothy online. Serena really doesn’t care who she wrecks, so long as it gets her into the Xavier Family!"

My head throbbed; I just wanted to sleep, maybe wake up and find this was all a nightmare.

But even asleep, my dreams returned again and again to a past I’ll never get back.

He once nibbled my earlobe with passion, whispering, "Zoe, give me..."

How did we get here? When did everything go wrong?

Later, a knock at my door jolted me awake.

I opened the door—it was my brother.

"You leaked the photos, didn’t you?"

He barked, "Zoe Ellison, have you even considered? This kind of negative news will tank Xavier Group’s stock, and it’ll drag down the Ellison Family too. Where’s your damn brain?"

I immediately denied it: "I didn’t leak those photos. I wouldn’t waste energy on scum like them. Not worth it!"

But my brother didn’t buy it at all, sneering, "Who else could it be but you? You’ve loved Timothy Xavier since you were a kid, loved him to your bones! It was whatever for you to fight with Serena—but dragging the Ellison Family down with you, that’s just selfish! Look at our Ellison Group’s stock—it’s crashed just as hard as Xavier’s!"

I stared into his blazing eyes and asked, "Are you really more worried about the Ellison Group’s stock, or about Serena getting torn apart online?"

I’d already checked X—there was plenty of support for Serena, but just as many people attacking her.

They called her a gold digger, said she was sleeping her way to the top, bagging rich patrons for premium resources, the whole nine yards.

Sure enough, my words hit a nerve. He flew into a rage, pointing at me: "From now on, stay out of my business! Know your place: you’re just the adopted daughter of the Ellison Family!"

I froze on the spot.

That was the first time my brother had ever stabbed me with words like that.

When I first came to the Ellison Family, everything was strange. My brother and Timothy Xavier kept me company, filling my head with stories.

My brother told me there were no girls in the Ellison Family—I was their little princess.

But now, he reminded me to know my place.

I gave a bitter, crooked smile. "Yeah, I’ll keep that in mind. Whatever happens, the Ellison Family’s been good to me. I don’t want to see you dragged down by Serena. Just... watch your back."

Maybe he saw the hurt in my eyes, because his tone softened, "I didn’t mean anything by what I just said. My own business is my own problem. Sis, I know you’re just looking out for me."

With that, he left my room.

I always knew my brother was impulsive, says things without thinking sometimes.

Maybe he didn’t mean it—but the words still cut deep.

Because to me, I’d already taken him and Mr. and Mrs. Ellison as my real family.

But what he said, without hesitation, called me nothing more than the ’adopted daughter.’

...

After Timothy and Serena’s photos leaked, Xavier Group’s stock dropped over ten percent in just one afternoon.

That night, Xavier Group scrambled to hold an emergency press conference.

The event was aired on every TV channel.

I sat quietly with my parents in front of the TV, watching the man on the screen with his iron-grey suit.

His right hand tightly gripped Buddha Beads, left fingers tapping the mic stand, the flashbulbs hit him like a tidal wave, making his gaze shine sharper than ever.

Reporters threw out question after question about his relationship with Serena Sawyer.

Timothy Xavier spoke calmly and slowly:

"There is no sugar baby, gold-digger, or mistress dynamic between Miss Sawyer and me. We’re simply in a normal romantic relationship. Sorry for taking up public attention—hope people will give us enough privacy."

...

His answer was measured, unrushed.

He’d given Serena an open, straight-up, publicly accepted status.

We’d been married four years, and he’d never admitted he was married publicly, never said a word about me.

Yet here he was, announcing Serena without blinking.

X was plastered with photos and clips from Timothy’s press conference.

Not only that, but all the comments trashing Serena and Timothy as ’greedy and horny’ had already been replaced with new ones:

"Oh my God, that’s so romantic! He just came right out and said it! Weren’t actresses supposed to have a hard time marrying into rich families? How come this one’s got so much backbone!"

"President Xavier is such a real man! Not only did he keep Serena from taking any of the hits herself, he took the whole weight on himself."

"Right? Check the Buddha Beads on his hand—I heard he’s actually a Buddhist! Serena really is a homebodies’ goddess, got such a man to break his vows! If that’s not true love, what is?"

"So jealous—someone please send me a man like President Xavier. I’d happily be his side chick, third, fourth, or fifth, whatever!"

"..."

Every word felt like an invisible blade, slicing me up inside.

So this is what true love looks like.

Timothy Xavier’s love is sure worth showing off.

Now, the tide online had completely turned.

Right then, Mr. and Mrs. Ellison were looking at me, worried.

"Zoe, Timothy’s just got his head turned—it’ll pass. Don’t give up on yourself!"

Mrs. Ellison coaxed, "Twenty years with him—no outsider can compare to that."

Mr. Ellison nodded, agreeing: "Timothy’s always been mature and steady since he was a kid, never the irresponsible type. Who knows what this is about. Maybe there’s something he can’t talk about?"

I kept my head down in silence, unwilling to discuss him at all.

No matter what Timothy’s thinking, the moment he betrayed our marriage, we were doomed to suffer.

Back in my room, I took out the signed divorce agreement I tricked Timothy into signing last month.

The space for the woman’s signature was still empty.

But now, I knew—it was time to finish this.

I picked up my pen and signed my name without hesitation.

Just then, my stomach suddenly felt like it was twisting itself inside out.

I dropped the pen and rushed to the bathroom.

I retched for ages, but nothing came up.

The feeling was so familiar; I remembered the morning sickness when I was pregnant the first time.

This month, my period’s already two days late. Could it be...

No way!

I tried to slow my racing heart, telling myself over and over it’s impossible!

After all, Timothy and I only sleep together once a month, and he always uses protection.

Back when I wanted another baby with him, I asked a doctor, and the senior expert was clear: in this situation, my chances of getting pregnant are virtually zero.