Chloe watched the CEO enter the hall, her mind suddenly turning completely empty, and even breathing the air became difficult and heavy.
Did he hear it all?
Did he hear clearly that she wanted to file for divorce?
How would he react?
Wait?
His expression was as cold as stone, completely unchanged?
Was it because he wasn’t surprised or everything was already within his calculations and expectations?
This divorce move of hers must surely fit the script he desired, right?
Is he even secretly celebrating because she knew her place and retreated voluntarily, sparing him the trouble of hiring a legal team to handle the paperwork?
In that terrible moment, countless complex, humiliating emotions intertwined, almost tearing apart the calm, haughty mask she was trying so hard to maintain.
“Anyway, I will definitely push forward with the divorce!” Chloe grabbed her Birkin handbag from the sofa, tossed out a final conclusion, and dashed out to the porch.
As soon as she turned away and walked off, the resilient expression she forced herself to suppress completely collapsed.
She really wanted to cry…
Her heart suddenly felt unspeakably bitter.
Just thinking of the two years of youth sacrificed for a marriage that held not the slightest weight in Julian’s icy heart made her feel deeply aggrieved and wronged.
“Ungrateful bastard!” Father Arthur didn’t know whether he was truly angry or just putting on a show for his son-in-law Julian.
He spat out a terrible curse, his face red with high blood pressure, noisily demanding that the housekeeper drag Chloe back and slap her a few times to wake her up.
Victoria managed with great difficulty to use soothing words to calm Arthur down, who looked as if he were having a violent fit of rage.
She turned to look at her billionaire son-in-law: “Julian, what on earth is the conflict?” “What other drama could it be.” Wesley leaned casually against his young wife Lily’s shoulder like a boneless jellyfish, dropping teasing remarks with a nonchalant look: “Definitely this CEO messed up on something wrong; otherwise, with Chloe’s perfect personality, how could she make a fuss and demand a divorce from him!” Even though on the business front he was a partner and comrade, his own biological sister still had to be prioritized for protection, Wesley thought in his mind.
Julian coldly cast a deadly gaze at his best friend, and Wesley wisely shut up.
Only then did Julian calmly and regally speak: “It must be that work schedules have been too tight lately, I’ve paid too little attention to Chloe, so she felt abandoned and angry—that’s a natural reaction, but these past few days I’ve also been seriously reflecting, hoping Chloe can give me a chance to make amends.” Victoria and Arthur’s complexions softened significantly, and Victoria nodded slightly in satisfaction: “Just a small conflict, it’s good that there’s nothing serious.” Julian nodded in greeting: “Father, Mother, then I’ll take Chloe back first.” Turning on his heels to step toward the door of the common living room, he glanced back and added a sharp sentence: “My wife and I will absolutely never get a divorce.” The tone was extremely gentle and polite yet exuded the power of absolute certainty, like a legal commitment to his parents-in-law, and also like an arrogant assertion to himself.
Outside the driveway, Chloe was already seated comfortably in the car, using the back of her hand to wipe away the hot tear that had just rolled down her cheek.
She quietly curled up in the back seat waiting for Julian to come out.
Although she desperately wanted to order the driver to step on the gas and drive straight away immediately, mature thinking also told her that avoidance was not the way to solve crises.
Matters had reached this point, how could two adults not sit down and talk things out clearly?
Not waiting for long, Julian opened the door and climbed into the car.
Radiating around his tall figure was a cold, oppressive aura, and Chloe instinctively shrank slightly closer to the car door.
She glanced stealthily through the window toward the villa gate, and seeing no one chasing out, she finally let out a sigh of relief.
She was so afraid that Father Arthur would pick up a golf club and chase after her to give her a proper beating.
Julian, sitting beside her, took in all of Chloe’s stealthy, timid gestures and frightened little expressions into his sharp field of vision.
Deep within his ash-gray eyes flashed a trace of mocking amusement, which immediately restored to a gloomy, dark look.
Do you know the fearful consequences now?
Daring to brazenly open your mouth and demand a divorce, I think your recklessness is way out of hand.
“Julian…” Chloe took a breath to gather her courage and spoke up, intending to say something in defense.
Unexpectedly, Julian didn’t care about Chloe’s existence at all, ordering the driver in a commanding voice: “Drive.” Then he arrogantly turned his head to look out the window without bothering to say another word, but his body language very clearly revealed a threatening signal: I am extremely pissed off right now, if you open your mouth to utter another word you’ll face very terrible consequences.
“…” Chloe stubbornly followed suit, sneering and turning her head sharply to one side to look at the street.
I am the injured one and I haven’t even bothered to throw a tantrum or sulk yet, what the hell are you playing the victim and sulking for!
The smooth car returned to the expensive penthouse, and Julian coldly stepped out first, unintentionally slamming the car door shut, and walking straight ahead into the building lobby.
Completely abandoning his usual gentlemanly demeanor, he wouldn’t gracefully and politely walk around to open the car door for Chloe or extend a hand to shield her as she stepped out.
Chloe widened her blue eyes in astonishment, gritting her teeth as she pushed the car door open herself, hurriedly and clatteringly following behind Julian’s back.
By the time she entered the private elevator, Julian had already gone straight up to the second-floor work area.
Chloe hadn’t even had time to change into her indoor slippers, clicking along in her Christian Louboutin high heels as she tailed after him.
Seeing him aggressively preparing to enter his office and intending to slam the door shut to isolate her, she rushed forward, extending her slender arm to grab tightly onto the oak door frame.
Julian’s hand, which was using force to slam the door shut, froze mid-air, right after which his eyebrows knitted tightly into a straight line.
Is this girl crazy and tired of living?
What if my reflexes didn’t retract my hand in time, wouldn’t that carefully cared-for, delicate white hand be crushed terribly.
He used to be obsessed with the feeling of these soft, small hands caressing his sturdy body.
Now she dared to recklessly use this jade-like hand as an obstacle to block the door?
Julian’s face darkened with a few more shades of murderous intent.
“Julian…
wait…” Because she ran too fast in high heels and lost her breath, Chloe let out an exhausted gasp before continuing: “We…
we need to talk seriously!” “You need to calm down!” Julian rudely pulled Chloe’s hand off the door frame, flicking it away mercilessly.
Dropping a cold, stiff command and slamming the office door shut with a loud “bang,” locking it from the inside.
The shockwave of slamming the door was so strong that Chloe started in fright, closing her eyes tightly in fear.
It took her a few seconds to snap back to reality and react, feeling that something logic-wise was not right here.
Opening her eyes wide, glaring with anger, losing all poise, she used the toe of her high heel to kick the expensive door heavily with a resounding thud: “You are truly a bastard!” Calm down my ass!
She had used reason to calmly face things all these few days, and if she coldly ignored him any longer, this relationship would be frozen permanently!
Irritated and frustrated, she turned on her heels and walked down the glass staircase, and housekeeper Martha, coming out from the kitchen area, happened to see Chloe’s furious back as she grabbed her coat, intending to go out.
She unconsciously asked: “Miss Chloe, where are you planning to go at this hour?
Didn’t the two of you just come back together from your parents’ home?” “I have plans to grab a drink with a friend.” Chloe answered concisely.
“Then will you be having dinner at home tonight?” “Don’t bother leaving any for me.” Saying that, Chloe grabbed her bag and pushed the door open to step out of the penthouse.
Housekeeper Martha’s kind and gentle face was filled with confusion.
The arguing noise on the second floor just now was so loud, how could she not have heard it.
This was the first time in her life she heard this powerful couple argue loudly throughout their two years of living together…
and also the first time she saw the elegant Miss Chloe lose her composure and curse like that…
She must know the service staff always whispered among themselves that the female owner’s personality was too perfect, always maintaining an industrial smile, never seeing her lose her temper or scold anyone.
But Martha silently thought, having these joys, angers, loves, and hates was good, making her feel like a living person with emotions, right?
Otherwise, everyone had the feeling that she was a walking Barbie doll, beautifully perfect yet soullessly cold.
Inside the office.
Julian sat quietly, swallowed up behind the massive walnut desk.
In his hand was a Rock crystal glass filled with neat Bourbon whiskey without ice.
He tilted his head back, gulping down a large swallow of the liquid burning his throat, then slammed the glass hard onto the desk surface, his sword-like brows knitting tightly without any sign of relaxing.
This stifling feeling was incredibly uncomfortable.
It had been a long time since the company’s founding that he had felt so panicked and out of control.
Just thinking about Chloe planning to escape his control, wanting to tear up the contract and flee from this marriage, the primitive tyrannical emotions in the heart of an Alpha man wanted to break through his chest and burst out to destroy everything.
At this moment, a piercing iPhone ringtone echoed out.
Julian snapped out of his gloomy thoughts, pulling his phone from his dress pants pocket.
Glancing at the caller ID displayed on the screen, his thin lips pressed tightly into a line, he swiped the screen and brought the phone to his ear: “I’m listening.” “What the hell man!” Wesley’s noisy, complaining voice boomed loudly from the other end: “Bro, business is business, when your wife Chloe gets emotional and goes on strike demanding a divorce, you can’t groundlessly drag me in to be a scapegoat.
What did that insinuation you dropped earlier mean?
How could I have set you up and tricked you into signing papers?
Are you delusional?” Replying to that long speech was a dead, prolonged silence.
“Hey!” Wesley asked impatiently: “Are you mute, are you still breathing and listening?” “You once instigated me.” Julian suddenly spoke in a deep, hoarse voice: “Back then, before Chloe and I got engaged, at a bar, you said it.” “What the hell did I accidentally say?” Wesley was completely bewildered.
He was a smooth-talking playboy who blabbered and chatted endlessly, having zero memory of promises made while drunk.
Julian’s expression right now could be described as black as a cooking pot.
Back then, when he was cornered into agreeing to the merger alliance between the Quinn family and Chloe’s maternal family.
One weekend night, Wesley invited him out to a Club to drink and vent.
At the VIP table overflowing with alcohol, Julian had feigned casualness to probe Wesley: “What kind of man does your haughty little sister actually like?” Wesley at that time was reeking of Tequila, looking at him with teasing, jocular eyes, patting his back and putting on the wise expression of an experienced person giving advice: “My sister Chloe’s taste is very special and hard to please; that girl, she’s extremely allergic to impulsive guys; she only falls for mature, gentle, polite, harmless, and humble men like an English gentleman.” “Damn it!
What the hell did I give bad advice about?!!” Wesley broke down a bit, clutching his head; he was truly memory-wiped by alcohol and didn’t remember what he had said.
Julian coldly removed the phone from his ear, and the next second, without hesitation, threw it hard against the wall.
The expensive, functioning phone thus shattered completely, falling to the wooden floor with a severely broken screen in a miserable state.
His ash-gray eyes narrowed dangerously.
Bullshit the humble, polite tag!