Chapter 1 Explosive Remark

Inside the CEO's office at TrueLight Group, Stella Williams-an award-winning actress-flung a pregnancy test report onto the desk before Verena Jones, her chin lifted with unmistakable triumph.

"I'm carrying Mr. Hughes' child," she said, her tone edged with smug certainty.

Without so much as lifting her gaze, Verena remained seated, her posture composed as she responded in an even, almost indifferent voice, "You're number forty-two."

Shock flickered across Stella's face, her confidence faltering as confusion overtook her expression. "What... what did you just say?"

Only then did Verena slowly raise her eyes, her calm gaze settling on Stella as she idly tapped the pen against her fingertips.

"You were the forty-second woman to show up in front of me with the same tired act. You want into the Hughes family? Then at least come up with something less childish." Verena's gaze dropped to the report on the desk, and a mocking smile touched her lips. "I had watched this little drama play out more times than I could count. Honestly, your act wasn't even convincing."

Stella had won Best Actress twice, and hearing Verena dismiss her performance so casually felt like a slap to the face.

Looking at Verena with open scorn, she snapped, "The child I'm carrying is Brayden Hughes'. I'm not like those other women. Sooner or later, I'll take your place."

Tension coiled through Stella as her fingers curled into tight fists, her knuckles paling with suppressed fury. Across from her, Verena remained effortlessly composed, that calm indifference only sharpening Stella's irritation.

Sinking into her office chair, Verena rested back with casual ease, as if scenes like this were nothing new to her.

Over the course of three years as Brayden's wife, she had dealt with one scandal after another, facing down countless women until managing them became something she could do with practiced ease.

Whether it was some old lover or just a passing temptation, Verena intended to keep every one of them far away from him.

After three years as Brayden's wife, she had no intention of letting anyone take her place.

"Finished yet? Miss Williams, you came straight to TrueLight Group to confront me in broad daylight. Aren't you worried about landing yourself in tomorrow's headlines?" Unshaken, Verena lifted her eyes to Stella, her expression utterly calm.

Speechless for a moment, Stella couldn't find a comeback. She was a public figure, a two-time best actress with a polished image to protect. If Brayden hadn't given her permission to come here and needle Verena, she never would have gambled her future on something like this.

After sweeping her gaze around the office and confirming there were no cameras in sight, Stella grew bolder. Brayden's earlier words echoed in her mind, feeding her confidence.

With a scornful lift of her chin, she sneered, "If I get to become Brayden's wife, why would I care about some best actress reputation? You've been married to him for three years and still haven't given him a child. Maybe you should start asking yourself why that is. I've only been with Brayden for a month, and I'm already pregnant. If you know what's good for you, you'll divorce him now. That'll save you a lot of pain later."

Keeping her eyes locked on Verena, Stella waited for the reaction she was sure would come. She refused to believe any woman could hear words like that and stay calm.

By all accounts, Verena was supposed to have fallen apart by now.

But Verena stayed composed from beginning to end, and Stella couldn't spot a single crack she could use.

With things turning out like this, she had no idea how she was supposed to explain it to Brayden.

A quiet laugh slipped from Verena's lips. Lifting one brow, she said, "Miss Williams, if you're so determined to keep that child, then go ahead and have it. The Hughes family can certainly afford to support an illegitimate child."

Her tone remained mild and even, but the phrase "illegitimate child" still landed like a slap.

Stunned by those words, Stella stood there speechless for a long moment.

Rising from her chair, Verena stepped out from behind the desk and calmly reached for the coat hanging nearby, shrugging it on with unhurried grace. "I know exactly what kind of man Brayden is. He's caused me more than enough trouble over the years. But if he expects me to bring up divorce, he'll need to come up with a better trick next time. You can see yourself out. Or would you like me to have my secretary escort you downstairs?"

With that, Verena tipped up her chin, a quiet, unmistakable signal for Stella to see herself out.

Faced with Verena's unnerving composure, Stella forgot every cutting line and dramatic reaction she had rehearsed on the way over.

Confusion washed through her, and she could not understand why Verena was not angry in the slightest.

Everyone knew Verena and Brayden had never gotten along, that they lived separate lives under the same roof and maintained nothing more than a marriage in name.

Even so, Stella still found it almost impossible to believe Verena could stay so unmoved at the sight of her husband's mistress standing right in front of her.

She could not tell whether Verena had truly gone numb to it all simply because too many women had come before her.

For the first time, Stella looked at Verena not as a rival, but as a woman, and an unexpected flicker of pity rose in her chest.

She fixed Verena with a sharp stare and demanded, "Can you really live in a loveless marriage? Or would you put up with anything for money? Are you honestly willing to raise your husband's illegitimate child as your own?"

Without the slightest ripple of emotion, Verena crossed to the sofa, lowered herself onto it, and poured a cup of coffee with steady hands. "When a man is determined to stray, no woman can stop him. That's why you never marry a man for love. You marry him for the advantages he can give you, because those are the only things you can truly hold in your own hands."

Lifting her gaze, she added in the same calm tone, "Miss Williams, you've survived in the entertainment industry for years. Don't tell me you haven't figured that out by now."

Those words hit Stella so hard she froze where she stood, momentarily too stunned to speak. After a long beat, fury twisted across her face. She snatched the pregnancy test report off the desk, glared at Verena with blazing eyes, and spat, "I'll make sure Brayden leaves you."

With that threat hanging in the air, Stella spun on her heel, shoved the door open, and strode out without another glance back.

For a long moment, Verena's eyes lingered on the direction Stella had gone. Her fingers tightened around the cup until her knuckles blanched, the faint heat seeping into her skin unnoticed. Only when a sting rose behind her eyes did she finally look away.

Gone was that effortless composure Verena had worn so well moments ago. A faint, bitter curve touched her lips, something almost mocking flickering in her gaze.

Her mind kept circling Stella's words, replaying them with quiet cruelty. Could she really accept raising another woman's child for Brayden... and feel nothing about it?

The answer surfaced quickly, sharp and undeniable. Of course she couldn't.

Yet reality pressed in just as fast-heavy, inescapable. She didn't have a choice.

Childhood memories drifted up unbidden. Growing up at his side, she had fallen for Brayden long before she understood what that feeling meant. For more than ten years, she had trailed behind him, chasing his shadow, hoping that one day he might finally notice her. To stand beside him, she had forced herself into a path she was never suited for, choosing public relations despite struggling with it at every turn. Then, she had willingly married into the Hughes family, accepting a calculated alliance just for the chance to be with him.

She had poured herself into the Hughes family business, working late nights and early mornings, all for the faint hope that Brayden might finally reciprocate her feelings.

Through three hollow years of marriage, however, all she received in return were endless scandals and a steady stream of brazen provocations from the women circling him.

Rarely did she even see him; and whenever their paths crossed, his attitude toward her remained icy, distant, almost cruel. Even the moments they shared in bed felt mechanical and devoid of warmth. He had made it clear he wanted no children, so she quietly kept up with the birth control pills without complaint.

Across those three years, she had been nothing more than a convenient instrument-someone he used to manage the Hughes family and to fulfill his physical needs.

Disappointment had long since taken root in her heart, yet the quiet, stubborn love she had carried for him since her youth refused to let go, keeping her tethered to a marriage she couldn't bring herself to abandon.

Drawing in a slow breath, Verena pressed down the bitter tide rising in her chest, forcing her expression back into composure. Once she steadied herself, she headed downstairs.

No sooner had she stepped out of the company building than a swarm of reporters surged forward, flashing lights bursting in her face.

Voices erupted all around her. "She's here!"

The reporters surged forward in a chaotic wave, nearly jamming their microphones into Verena's face. Camera flashes burst nonstop, sharp and blinding, as question after question came at her like blows.

"Mrs. Hughes, were you aware of the recent scandal involving Mr. Hughes and the famous actress Stella Williams?"

"There are rumors that Stella is pregnant with Mr. Hughes' child and plans to marry into the Hughes family with the child. What do you think about that?"

"Are you going to put up with this for the sake of the family's interests, or are you planning to divorce Mr. Hughes?"

"You and Mr. Hughes have been married for three years and still don't have a child. Some people are saying you're infertile. Is that true?"

"Can you tell us whether you and Mr. Hughes have actually been having problems in your marriage?"

"Mrs. Hughes, could you please respond to our questions?"

Relentless voices pressed in from every direction, each question cutting sharper than the last, like salt ground mercilessly into Verena's open wound.

A flicker of irritation surfaced beneath Verena's composed exterior, her patience thinning as the noise closed in around her.

During those three years, she had long since lost count of how many scandals she'd cleaned up for Brayden, each one more humiliating than the last.

Yet he never once showed any intention of stopping-if anything, it felt deliberate, as though he were using these public embarrassments to corner her into filing for divorce.

Her thoughts drifted back to the post she had stumbled across that morning, shared by a mutual friend she and Brayden both knew. From that single update, she learned that Mila Dawson-Brayden's most cherished woman-had quietly returned.

Understanding dawned with a bitter edge. That had to be why he was suddenly so desperate to push her into a divorce.

Suspicion tightened in her chest as another realization followed-he had to be the one who tipped off the reporters about Stella showing up at the company.

After all, without Brayden's explicit approval, no reporter would have dared to stir up trouble so brazenly at TrueLight Group.

Even so, Verena refused to swallow this quietly.

As his lawful wife, she wasn't meant to be the one standing there, enduring public humiliation-nor was she meant to be cornered and pressured by everyone into divorcing him.

Her fingers curled tightly into her palms, nails biting into her skin as the fragile restraint she'd clung to finally snapped. All the resentment and quiet suffering she had buried deep inside surged upward in a choking wave, Stella's cruel words pressing down on her chest until it felt impossible to breathe.

Abruptly, Verena lifted her gaze. A sharp, almost dazzling smile spread across her face as her eyes landed on the nearest reporter. "Brayden has a low sperm count, and he barely lasts five minutes in bed. Instead of worrying about him cheating, maybe I should be worried about other women cheating him-and I might even feel sorry for him should that happen."

If he had chosen to fan the flames and turn her life into a spectacle, then she would make sure he burned in it too.

A sudden hush swept over the reporters.

Stunned disbelief flickered across their faces, leaving them momentarily speechless.

Not one of them had expected Verena to say something so brutal in public.

Once the silence broke, cameras clicked in a frantic storm as they snapped photo after photo of her getting into her car and driving away from the TrueLight Group building. Before long, her explosive remark had been turned into an article and posted online. Within minutes, the post shot up the trending charts and spread across the internet like wildfire.