Chapter 6 Is That What You Really Tell Your Mistress About Me

Once picking up Hannah and taking her to her place, Rena arranged things with quiet efficiency. She made sure Hannah had everything she could possibly need.

Years of friendship since their college days meant Rena knew the whole story-from Hannah's first date with Vincent to the unraveling of their marriage.

Once the fresh linens were in place, Rena glanced over her shoulder and handed Hannah a pillow. "You're really done with Vincent this time, aren't you? No going back?"

Without missing a beat, Hannah took the pillow and nodded. "Yes. Even the idea of going back makes my skin crawl."

Instant approval flashed in Rena's eyes. "You deserve better, you know that. I never saw what you did in him."

There was no hesitation in Rena's voice-she'd always been against Vincent. Watching Hannah leave him felt like watching someone finally wake up from a bad dream. Anyone who met Hannah couldn't miss her striking looks-tall, elegant, skin like porcelain, and hair that caught the light in soft amber waves. She had the kind of presence that turned heads, so why spend another second on a man who never valued her?

Rena broke the brief silence. "Alright, what's your next move?"

Determination flared in Hannah's eyes. "It's simple. I'm bringing Nova Tech back. That's my only focus now." She paused and then looked hopeful. "Actually, Rena, do you have a way to help me connect with Miles Whitaker-the CEO of VitraMind?" If there was ever a person to open doors in the elite's world, it was Rena. Her connections seemed endless, though even she sometimes hit a wall.

Hearing that name, Rena had frowned for the first time all night. "Miles isn't easy to reach. Best I can do is find out where he'll be and when."

Hannah smiled, grateful. "That's more than enough."

Night stretched on as the two friends talked about everything and nothing, until Rena finally drifted off to sleep.

Alone in the quiet, Hannah nursed a beer, her thoughts involuntarily spiraling back to Vincent. How did things between them end up like this? All these years together, he'd never really opened his heart to her. He hadn't even offered a single explanation for treating her as a stand-in. Nobody could call this anything but a farce. Deep down, she understood. She'd never truly mattered to him. Love had never been part of the equation.

Tears stung her eyes, but she brushed them away with a shaky hand. Right then, she made herself a promise: this would be the last time she'd cried over Vincent.

Morning sunlight found Danica hunching over a chessboard with Brinley as her opponent.

Out of nowhere, Danica's phone buzzed. Hannah's name lit up the screen.

Pausing the game, Danica flashed the caller ID toward Brinley before answering. "What's up?"

"Are the property transfer procedures done?" Hannah's voice sounded rough, as if she hadn't slept at all.

A quick exchange of looks passed between Danica and Brinley. "Of course not. Only three went through," Danica responded, her words crisp.

"Hand those over first," Hannah replied.

"Alright, just swing by when you get a chance." Leaning back, Danica remarked, deliberately sounding casual, "By the way, I heard you moved out."

The memory of Vincent's late-night phone call about whether Hannah had come to her place and his anxious tone flashed through Danica's mind.

"Yeah," Hannah answered and then ended the call without a moment's pause.

Danica frowned at the blank screen. "How rude," she muttered to herself.

But the moment Danica looked at Brinley, her lips curled into a smile. "Anyway, their divorce is done. Hannah's moving out just suits you. Things get a whole lot easier for you to grow close to Vincent."

Brinley dropped her gaze with mock shyness and played with a strand of hair, but her tone betrayed her smugness. "You know, Mrs. Jones, there's still plenty of road ahead for me."

Grinning wide, Danica could barely contain her excitement. "Won't be long now. I can already picture you as part of the family." A dramatic sigh escaped her lips. "The real tragedy is having to sign away so many properties to Hannah."

An eager glimmer flashed in Brinley's eyes. "I might be able to help you keep what's yours."

Curiosity sparked immediately across Danica's face. "Really? How?" Choosing Brinley as her future daughter-in-law suddenly felt like the best decision she'd ever made.

Later that day, Hannah stopped by Danica's place to collect the property paperwork. Expecting Danica, she ran into Brinley instead.

"Well, look who it is," Brinley remarked, her voice as sweet as honey but her smile sharp as a knife.

Without a word, Hannah kept moving, clutching her phone and heading straight for the stairs.

Brinley wasn't finished. "At Gilded Restaurant the other day, you heard me and Vincent make out in the private room, didn't you?"

Unfazed, Hannah shot her a glare. "So? Wrecking someone else's marriage-does that really make you proud of yourself?"

A flicker of discomfort crossed Brinley's face before she smoothed it over with a fresh smile. "If I hadn't walked away back then, you'd never have had your shot with him." Drawing closer, she lowered her voice. "You want to know what Vincent told me during our encounters? He said you just lie there, stiff as a board, making him do all the work and stripping him of any pleasure from having sex with you."

Without warning, Hannah raised her phone, the screen lit up to show an active call. Her expression turned ice-cold. "Vincent, is that what you really tell your mistress about me?"