Chapter 4

I called a rideshare and prepared to head home. Wendy leaned over and glanced at the address I had entered. The second she saw it, her expression darkened.

"You're going there?" she snapped. "You and Jeff are divorced. That stopped being your home. You need to pack your things and get out. Now."

Standing beside her, Jeff smiled. "She's right. Why should an outsider stay at my place? Honey, you should move in instead."

He was kicking me out to make room for Wendy. No normal person could accept something like that. The old me certainly could not have.

However, I simply nodded. "Okay. I'll move out."

On the ride home, I booked a hotel room. The moment I got back, I began carefully packing my belongings. By this point, everything had spiraled beyond Jeff's control. For once, he softened his attitude.

Pretending that more of his memories were returning, he picked up one of our wedding photos and asked, "Elaine, when did we take this photo?"

Without even looking up, I continued stuffing clothes into my suitcase.

"It's fake," I said casually. "I edited it myself."

That answer completely set him off. Jeff snatched my suitcase away and started throwing my clothes out the front door one piece at a time.

"Get out!" he shouted. "Leave right now!"

The door slammed shut with a deafening bang.

I simply shook my head. Without saying a word, I bent down, picked up my clothes from the ground, brushed off the dust, and packed them back into my bag.

Inside the house, I heard Wendy's worried voice. "Jeff, this is all my fault. I shouldn't have insisted on becoming the vice president. Seeing you two get divorced makes me feel terrible. Maybe I should explain everything to Elaine."

Jeff had already calmed down. After comforting her for a moment, he said, "This has nothing to do with you. Elaine's just too petty. She's actually holding a grudge against someone who's sick.

"Forget about her. I'll spend these seven days with you, and then I'll deal with everything afterward. Elaine's easy. All I have to do is crook a finger, and she'll come running back."

By then, I was already stepping into the elevator with my luggage.

He was wrong. This time, it was really over. There was no reconciliation.

…

The next few days after leaving Jeff were surprisingly enjoyable. The only thing that annoyed me was my former coworkers constantly messaging me.

Today, they must have gotten desperate because one of them called me directly. "Ms. Yates, please come back. The project deadline is almost here."

I was about to refuse when I heard shouting and the sound of people fighting over the phone. A few seconds later, Wendy's angry voice came through the line. "Elaine, you've already been fired. Stop sticking your nose into company business."

One of my coworkers immediately fired back, "Wendy, what are you doing? Do you have any idea how much money the company will lose if this project fails?"

Wendy sounded completely unconcerned. "Why are you panicking? I'm almost finished with the designs. I'll have everything submitted in a few days."

A shocked voice exploded through the phone. "This is ridiculous! Nobody trusts your skill level. Besides, the client specifically requested Ms. Yates as the lead designer. You're deceiving them!

"Where's Mr. Cooper? I need to talk to Mr. Cooper right now!"

Wendy's threatening voice cut in, "Jeff is still recovering. If any of you go running your mouths to him, don't blame me when I fire every single one of you."

The call abruptly ended.

Still, I could already guess how things would play out.

After seeing what had happened to me, nobody at the company dared to challenge Wendy openly. They could only swallow their frustration and endure it.

I shook my head and pushed the matter from my mind. For the first time, I truly let go of the company. Before, I had spent every waking moment working. Now, I finally had time to reconnect with my friends.

Every day was filled with dinners, drinks, laughter, and freedom. Little by little, all my worries faded away.

On the seventh day, I changed into a formal gown and headed to a friend's wedding with a corsage in head. As I walked into the venue, I pulled out my phone and sent her a message: