Chapter 4 Her Decision

Chris's satisfaction deepened, a faint curve tugging at his lips as his eyes lingered on Hailey with quiet amusement. "Calm down. Someone with such pitiful judgment-someone who can't even tell a pebble from a pearl-is hardly qualified to be my rival, let alone worth my effort to scheme against."

Hailey was caught completely off guard, leaving her momentarily stunned.

A pebble and a pearl? His disdain for Kieran seemed to run deep.

Rising from his seat, Chris let his shadow stretch across the room, the warm light outlining his broad frame.

Hailey found herself standing inside that shadow, compelled to tilt her chin upward to meet his composed gaze.

"Ms. Bennett," he said, his voice low and measured. "Go home and think about it. By tomorrow, I'm confident you'll give me an answer that satisfies us both."

She could only nod, the words settling heavily in her chest.

Even after returning home, Hailey's thoughts refused to settle. Chris's proposal felt like a puzzle she couldn't piece together, its edges sharp with hidden implications.

She couldn't let desperation over her mother's treatment push her into a decision she might regret.

Determined to quiet her mind, she turned her focus to packing, folding clothes with slow, deliberate movements as the echo of his voice lingered in her ears.

After three years in this house, her life fit neatly into a single twenty-inch suitcase-a depressing reminder of how little she truly possessed.

Her decision about the divorce was final. If Kieran refused to sign, she would take him to court without a second thought.

The phone beside her buzzed repeatedly, screen lighting up with new notifications.

Curious, she reached for it, only to see the trending feed flash with updates.

Before she could read further, the door burst open with a violent crack. Kieran strode in, his expression thunderous, fury shadowing his sharp features.

"What the hell is going on between you and Chris?" he demanded, his voice tight with accusation.

Hailey's brows drew together. "Why does that concern you?"

A cruel smirk tugged at Kieran's lips as his gaze swept over her with open contempt. "So that's it, huh? Now I understand your sudden rush for a divorce-you've found yourself another man. Hailey, you're still the same gullible fool. Do you really believe you can handle a man like Chris?"

In Grosford, Chris had a reputation carved in stone: cold-blooded, calculating, and impossible to outmaneuver.

Once he locked onto something, it was only a matter of time before it was his.

Kieran had always prided himself on his strength, yet every clash with Chris had ended in humiliation.

Hailey's expression turned cold, her voice laced with malice. "If you're hallucinating, get professional help. Stop projecting your twisted fantasies onto me."

He actually thought she was cheating? The accusation hit her like a slap. Even after years of marriage, he still didn't trust her.

That fight at the hospital had been her breaking point. From then on, she'd stopped clinging to any illusion of love between them. Yet hearing his accusations now made her ache with bitter clarity-how could she have ever fallen for a man like this?

Kieran's eyes turned dangerous, the shadows in them deepening as he stared her down.

"Hailey, I never realized just how deceitful you were." He yanked out his phone, the screen glowing with headlines that made her pulse jump.

"Malinda Fletcher Involved in Plagiarism, Stripped of Championship Title."

"True Winner of Photography Contest Revealed: Hailey Bennett."

A faint spark of disbelief flickered through Hailey's eyes. So this was the "gift" Chris had mentioned earlier. The satisfaction that came with it was sharp, almost vindicating.

Grinding his teeth, Kieran forced out, "If you really have nothing to do with him, why would he help you? Hailey, I'm giving you ten minutes to explain. Malinda's just starting her career-she can't afford to have it destroyed over this."

A bitter laugh escaped her lips before she could stop it.

Straightening, Hailey met his gaze head-on, her tone icy and precise. "What exactly do you expect me to explain? That the work I created was stolen from me and credited to someone else? And now that the truth's out, the thief gets to play the victim while I'm told to protect her reputation?"

He regarded her with a cold, indifferent stare. "You've got the talent Malinda only dreams of. No matter what she puts out, your work will always outshine hers. You can always produce better work, but she can't. So why are you still holding on to this?"

The level of nonsense in his words had Hailey on the edge of laughing in his face. "Let her fall-she earned it. Stealing someone else's work comes with consequences."

She reached for her suitcase. "Expect me at the courthouse by nine tomorrow morning. I want the divorce finalized before the day is out."

Never in a million days had she imagined the man she once loved could turn so repulsive. Staying another second felt impossible.

But when she stepped forward, a sudden, crushing hand clamped around her wrist.

The coldness in his gaze matched the iron grip as he held her fast. "Enough of this bullshit. Admit to the public that you are the real thief, or you'll fucking regret it."

With a sharp twist she freed her arm as though shrugging off a leash. "Who do you think you are? Back when I loved you, you felt like treasure; now you're nothing but garbage."

The finality in her voice left her gaze icy and impenetrable.

A sharp ache twisted through Kieran's chest before his phone started to ring. He answered without hesitation.

"Kieran..." Malinda's broken voice trembled through the line. "I'm completely terrified. Everywhere I look online, there's hate-people calling me names, even wishing me dead. I can't look at it anymore. Maybe... maybe it'd be easier if I just disappeared. Forgive me, Kieran, I just can't do this by your side any longer..."

His blood ran cold. Gripping the phone tightly, he strode toward the door, tension tightening every muscle in his body.

"Tell me where you are," he ordered, voice low but urgent. "I'll come get you right now. I won't let this get any worse."

Hailey stood motionless, a storm of emotions flickering behind her eyes.

Kieran had always been distant, almost mechanical in his restraint. In three years of marriage, she had never seen him show real emotion.

Yet now, worry bled openly across his face, his eyes clouded with panic, his hurried steps betraying a turmoil she'd never thought him capable of.

As the rumble of his car faded down the driveway, the lingering noise echoed in her ears. With her lashes trembling, she let her eyes slide shut.

For a long time, she had clung to the belief that if she kept pouring her heart into him, even a heart made of ice would eventually melt.

Only now did the truth finally settle in. The problem wasn't Kieran's aloofness; the cruel reality was that he had never harbored any love for her at all.

When it came to choosing between her and Malinda, his devotion and his disregard drew a painfully clear line.

Biting back the ache in her chest, she curved her lips into a bitter smile and walked out, the wheels of her suitcase rattling softly behind her.

Even though the Bennett family had collapsed into bankruptcy, she still owned a modest apartment she had bought before the marriage.

That night, exhaustion finally dragged her under, and she slept more peacefully than she had in years.

At first light the next morning, she woke up, reached for her phone, and dialed Chris's number. "Do you have time now, Mr. Fuller? I'd like to meet and talk about the studio."

On the other end of the line, Chris sounded almost buoyant. "Come straight to my office."

"Okay, I'll head over now."