Chapter 2

"You have no money of your own, Alex," Brittany declared loudly, ensuring everyone heard.

"You're a nobody. A freeloader. How dare you bid against Chad, against me?"

Her voice dripped with disdain.

Chad smirked, puffing his chest out. "Yeah, Hawthorne. Know your place."

The crowd murmured in agreement, their faces alight with amusement.

Alex felt a familiar coldness settle in his chest.

He had endured this for years. For Robert. For a promise.

But the constant, public humiliation, the open disrespect, it wore him down.

He looked at Brittany, her face twisted in a sneer.

He looked at Chad, preening by her side.

"Whatever Ms. Miller bids for Mr. Peterson," Alex said, his voice calm and clear, cutting through the noise. "I'll bid one dollar more."

A stunned silence fell for a moment.

Then, the room erupted in laughter. Louder this time, more derisive.

"One dollar more?" Chad howled, clutching his stomach. "Is that all your pride is worth, pretty boy?"

Brittany's eyes narrowed. "Are you trying to make a fool of me, Alex?"

"I am your husband, Brittany," Alex stated, his voice still even. "I expect a certain level of respect."

"Respect?" she shrieked. "You earn respect! You don't do anything. You don't have anything!"

"I have never touched your family's money," Alex said quietly.

It was the truth. His own fortune was so immense, the Miller wealth was pocket change.

He had come into this marriage hoping to find something real, away from the pressures of his true life.

He had wanted to test Brittany's character.

She had failed, spectacularly, every single day.

"Liar!" Brittany snapped. "Everyone knows you're broke!"

The auctioneer, flustered, tried to regain control. "The bid is one hundred sixty thousand from Mr. Hawthorne. Do I hear one seventy?"

Brittany, incensed, grabbed her own paddle.

"Two hundred thousand!" she yelled, glaring at Alex. "For Chad!"

The crowd cheered.

Alex raised his hand slightly. "Two hundred thousand and one dollar."

His quiet words were like a thunderclap in the ensuing silence.

Brittany's face went from red to purple.

"He's mocking me!" she cried to the guests. "He's deliberately trying to humiliate me!"

Chad put a comforting arm around her. "Don't worry, B. He can't keep this up. He's got nothing."

Alex's internal resolve hardened. He had given her chances. So many chances.

Tonight, something had to break.