Chapter 3 Stay True To Who She Really Was

After saying the word "divorce" out loud, Verena expected the weight of it to tear at her, yet nothing like that came. Instead, a strange calm settled over her, leaving her unaffected.

To her, this marriage, built on nothing but family interests, should have ended long ago.

Even if it wasn't what she wanted, she knew it was time to let go.

For a brief moment, Brayden's expression stiffened.

That reaction disappeared just as quickly, returning to his usual indifference.

"So this is your latest move?" he asked, taking his time as he continued getting dressed.

He didn't take her words seriously and had no intention of believing she would actually go through with a divorce.

Since the day they married, the Hughes and Jones families had grown more intertwined, and their relationship had long stopped being about just the two of them.

On top of that, everyone in Trauhsa knew how deeply she cared for him.

In his mind, it was Verena who had pushed Mila out of the country just to secure her place as his wife.

That thought erased the trace of warmth left from their earlier closeness.

There was no way he would allow anyone to harm Mila.

To him, Verena's greatest fault was targeting Mila.

Because of that, he had spent the past three years keeping Verena at a distance, making it clear that even as his wife, she meant nothing to him.

With these thoughts in mind, Brayden was certain Verena would never actually leave him.

In his eyes, her words were nothing more than a moment of anger spilling out.

"Verena, I'm running out of patience," he said, his voice turning colder. "I won't keep putting up with this kind of behavior. What happened with Stella affected the company, and I take responsibility for that. But it's already been dealt with. She won't-"

"Mila is back, right?" Verena cut in before he could finish as she pushed herself up on the bed.

Her gaze rested on him, steady and composed. Though her face had gone pale, the anger in her eyes was impossible to miss.

"You brought Mila back, had Stella show up at the company to make things difficult for me, and even pushed me toward divorce just so I'd step aside and make room for Mila, didn't you?" she said, a trace of mockery flickering in her eyes. "Stop pretending, Brayden."

For so long, she had fooled herself into believing that if she treated him well, he might one day respond.

To match his preferences, she changed the way she dressed. Knowing his stomach wasn't strong, she even learned to cook, preparing meals that were light and nourishing for him every single day.

Meanwhile, he spent his nights out with different women, and even stayed entangled with the woman he cherished the most. His other women even dared to come straight to her, some of them using pregnancy reports as leverage to push her out.

She had reached her limit.

There was no reason to keep lying to herself anymore.

Deep down, she finally accepted the truth. Brayden had never loved her, and he never would.

All at once, the feelings she had kept buried for years broke free, and her eyes turned red.

Everything she had endured, every bit of pain and frustration, came rushing over her.

"Brayden, let's end this. Let's get a divorce. After that, we won't owe each other anything," Verena said, forcing herself to stay composed as she lifted her head and repeated it.

The feelings she once had, the admiration from when she was younger, and every effort she made during these three years-she let all of it go in that moment.

For a brief second, the air felt heavy and hard to breathe.

A dark look settled over Brayden's face as he stared at her.

"So all of this is because of Mila?" he asked.

Hearing him say Mila's name so gently made something twist inside her, but the anger outweighed everything else.

"Brayden, why don't we just speak plainly?" she said, her voice rising. "Haven't you always wanted to be with Mila? You even went against your grandfather for her, and all this time, you've treated me like I don't exist. Now I'm asking for a divorce, and isn't that exactly what you've wanted?"

After shouting, she kept her eyes locked on him, refusing to back down.

For a moment, Brayden didn't respond. Just as he was about to speak, his phone rang. Glancing at the screen, he turned away without hesitation and picked up the call. "Hey, Mila."

Moving toward the door, Brayden left as his voice gradually faded out of the room.

A bitter smile appeared on Verena's lips as she picked up her phone and dialed Jon Barnes, the Jones family's chief lawyer. "Jon, it's me. I need you to prepare a divorce agreement."

After going over the details with him, she ended the call.

She had expected this step to feel heavy. Instead, a faint sense of ease settled in.

She had planned to talk everything through with Brayden once he returned.

Yet as the minutes passed, he never came back.

It didn't take much for her to figure out why. She slipped on a coat, stepped out of the room, and looked downstairs from the corridor.

Just as she thought, the living room was silent.

He was already gone.

She didn't need to guess where he went.

There was only one place he would go.

Right then, Verena felt like a fool. She had actually believed they could sit down and talk about the divorce calmly. To him, she had never mattered.

Taking a slow breath, Verena tried to steady herself, yet the ache in her chest wouldn't fade.

Even though she was used to being ignored by him, it still hurt.

Since he had made his stance clear, she no longer had any reason to consider him.

Turning back, Verena returned to the room.

Within half an hour, she gathered the few belongings that truly belonged to her.

Not a single piece from the wardrobe went with her. Truthfully, she had never liked those clothes. She had only bought them to suit Brayden's preferences.

Now that the divorce was happening, there was no reason to keep pleasing him or anyone else.

From this moment on, she would stay true to who she really was.

Pausing at the bedroom doorway, she looked over the now-empty space and felt an unexpected sense of relief before turning away.

"Mrs. Hughes, what should I prepare for dinner tonight? And where are you heading?" Jayde asked.

After seeing Brayden rush out earlier, Jayde couldn't help but feel uneasy when Verena also started to leave.

Even though Jayde worked for Brayden, Verena realized the housekeeper had spent more time by her side than Brayden did throughout their marriage.

Because of that, Verena couldn't treat her with cold indifference.

"Jayde, don't cook for me tonight. And from now on, you won't need to prepare anything for me again," Verena said.

She didn't stay any longer after that and simply got into the car before driving off.

As the car sped away, Jayde stood there, a look of realization settling in, mixed with quiet shock and resignation.