Chapter 3
Sylvia studied the screen for a few moments, her brows knitting together. “Vulture Group? That’s part of the Gordon family’s holdings.”
Cora’s smile turned sly and amused.
“What’s wrong? Does it feel dirty to earn their money? Or are you hoping Ronan will hand you a few billion when you finally divorce him?”
Sylvia was used to her biting tone by now.
But her words sparked a thought she couldn’t ignore.
Ronan was a senior pilot, Lacey was a senior engineer, and with Zephyr Heavy Industries Group funding Gordon Airlines, they would be wealthy. But she, just a flight attendant, would never be able to repay her family debt.
But…
“Let me think about it. I’m exhausted. I’ll give you an answer when I’ve had some sleep.”
She hadn’t really slept all night. Her head was throbbing behind her eyes.
Without another word, she walked to the guest room and collapsed onto the bed.
Cora might not have been the best listener, but her blunt words had calmed Sylvia’s mind more than she wanted to admit.
And with her exhaustion finally catching up, sleep came surprisingly quickly.
But even in her dreams, she couldn’t escape the memories, her father’s funeral dissolving into a bitter spectacle, her mother in the kitchen, slicing her wrist over and over in a silent, vacant rage.
Eighty boxed lunches and the endless drone of “The number you have dialed is busy” dragged Ronan back to Lotus Manor, his villa.
He walked into the living room with a cold fury that made the air seem to drop.
“Where is she?”
The housekeeper’s legs nearly gave out.”Mr. Gordon, Mrs. Gordon took her suitcase and left. She left this.”
With trembling hands, she held out the envelope. Under the chandelier’s harsh white glare, the words DIVORCE AGREEMENT were blinding.
The silence turned so heavy it felt like the room itself was suffocating.
After a beat, Ronan’s long fingers flipped the envelope open. His gaze fell to the stated grounds for divorce:
Ronan is impotent, miserly and refuses compensation. With no passion and no money, the marriage was irreparably broken.
Ronan nearly choked on his own rage.
That damned woman.
He pulled out his phone and punched in a number. Ten minutes later, an address lit up on his screen.
Apartment 1601, Building 16, Crestview Gardens.
That afternoon, Sylvia was woken by a pounding on the door so violent it rattled the frame.
For a second, she thought Cora had forgotten her keys again.
Yawning, she shuffled to the door in a black slip dress and swung it open, only to freeze in place.
She blinked against the harsh light, her eyes sweeping over the tall man whose expression was dark enough to curdle her blood. Instantly, sleep
abandoned her.
“Can I help you?” she said, her voice cool and crisp.
Ronan’s teeth ground together. His eyes burned with a cold, pitiless fire as he stepped into the apartment, shutting the door with a crash that shook the walls.
The displaced air carried his scent-pine and something floral that didn’t belong to her.
She forced herself to swallow the ache that rose in her throat. She hadn’t even turned fully before his voice came, low and seething.
“Who gave you the nerve to go near Zephyr Heavy Industries Group?”
So that was why he was here.
A bitter laugh threatened to rise. Even the divorce papers, her last show of defiance, were nothing but a pathetic spectacle to him.
She should have known. He would never care.
Sylvia drew in a slow breath, meeting his gaze without flinching.
“Ronan, I’m still your legal wife. Zephyr Heavy Industries Group is just as much mine as yours. Why shouldn’t I touch it? If you don’t like it, sign the papers.”
Before she could step back, his hand clamped around her waist, iron hard.
“You think this is about splitting assets? That’s why you’re so eager for a divorce?” His voice was low, lethal.”Sylvia, as long as I refuse to sign, the only thing you’ll be left with is that piece of paper. Understand?”
Of course she understood.
Ronan’s heartlessness always hid behind closed doors.
He’d hated the infighting in the Gordon family, but after he broke away, he’d crushed every relative who’d ever tried to humiliate him.
Even now, though he’d cut ties with them, every Gordon knew there would never be another man in charge.
She wasn’t so foolish as to think she could win in a fight over the assets.
But she was done cowering. Done pretending she didn’t feel anything.
If she couldn’t have peace, she’d make damn sure no one else did either.
Sylvia exhaled, her hand sliding down his chest to rest over his belt buckle.”And what if I want more than a piece of paper? If I asked for a child too, then I’d have some real leverage…”
Her hand didn’t get far. He caught her wrist in a brutal grip and tore it away. His face was a mask of fury.
“You want a child? You think you deserve one?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
She didn’t try to pull free. Her damp eyes shimmered with something deep and unspoken, dark as the ocean.
“Don’t push me any further.”
His voice was hoarse, ragged with impatience.
Sylvia let out a laugh. Her lashes glittered with tears.
“You’re right. I don’t deserve anything. Only Lacey does, isn’t that it? Well, fine. I have no interest in a man who can’t satisfy a woman anyway. I’ve signed the papers. Please-do as you like.”
She folded her arms and wrenched the door open. The cool night air rushed in, sweeping away the tension.
When he didn’t move, she turned to look and found him reclining in the living room, legs crossed, perfectly composed. A predator in an expensive suit.
“Tomorrow morning’s company briefing. We’ll be reviewing the incident from yesterday. Lacey will be there. Try not to embarrass yourself with your tantrums.”
As always-controlling, imperious, leaving no room for dissent.
He hadn’t come because he cared, but because of Zephyr Heavy Industries Group. He was here to protect Lacey’s position.
Sylvia stared at the eyes that once held all her dreams. Her heart clenched so painfully she almost couldn’t speak.
“And if I want to make a scene?”
He looked at her like she’d just told a joke. His lips curved in a mocking, devastating smile, though his eyes were glacial.
“The Apricot Manor is in my name.”
“Before we married, Caleb promised it would be returned to me,” she said, her voice shaking. Her nails dug into her palms.
–09:59
3.92
That property was all she had left of her mother. He would really take even that?
“It’s worth 16 million. Tell me, Sylvia, are you worth it?”
That was all it took to shatter everything she had left-her anger, her pride, her grief.
She’d forgotten again. In Ronan’s eyes, she’d always been the woman who conned an old man and climbed into his bed for money.
What did it matter to him if she bled, if she broke, if she loved him?
Sylvia let out a brittle laugh. The sheen of tears cleared from her gaze. She uncurled her fists, her arms hanging loose at her sides.
“Ronan, whether I’m worth it or not, you’ll never have the right to decide again.”
He let out a cold snort.”You have one day.”
And then he was gone, the door slamming hard behind him.
Sylvia pressed a hand to her belly, the nausea rising so fast she nearly doubled over.
She’d never imagined that the third anniversary of their marriage would come with a gift so cruelly unforgettable.
