Bye, My Bossy Husband

The thud of paper landing on a hard surface echoed in the room.

A divorce agreement was thrown in front of Tessa Lopez.

"Your cousin has woken up, and I've promised her that she'll be my only wife for as long as she lives. Sign it, Tessa, so that we can finally end this marriage."

Tessa's expression did not show the slightest sign of surprise. She already knew this would happen the moment she heard that her cousin had woken up.

She looked at the man and asked bitterly, "You still don't believe me, do you?"

Samuel Pearson sneered. "Why should I believe in a greedy and vain woman like you? Anyway, don't make me repeat myself. Sign it, and this villa will be yours. That should be enough for you, right? I'm being generous already."

Tessa smiled mockingly.

He genuinely believed that he was being generous to her just because he was giving her a house.

She picked up the document and read it. His signature was already on it.

Tessa felt a lump in her throat and a strong desire to cry.

However, she forced herself to calm down.

She turned her gaze back to Samuel and questioned, "Did Grandma agree to this?"

"You can't always rely on Grandma whenever the odds are stacked against you. She won't help you every time." In a cold tone, Samuel added, "You know damn well why I married you. Now, stop being greedy, or I'll hate you even more."

Tessa rolled her eyes. "You already despise me. What difference will it make if you hate me even more?"

"Tessa!" Samuel called impatiently.

"Okay, I'll sign it," Tessa said as she grabbed the pen.

Following her cousin's awakening, she received a deluge of intimate photos of her and Samuel. They were obviously in love, so there was no point in Tessa staying married to him.

With that in mind, she crossed off the name of the villa on the divorce agreement before finally signing it.

Just like that, their marriage of three years had come to an end.

She was free at last.

Tessa gave Samuel the divorce papers and said, "Give me an hour. I'll be on my way as soon as I finish packing."

Samuel furrowed his brows. He gave her a hard look and replied, "This villa is yours. You don't have to leave."

"I don't need it. For me, every place you've been to..." After a chuckle, she continued, "They're all filthy."

"Tessa!"

Ignoring Samuel's outburst of rage, she pushed him out of the room, no longer as submissive as she used to be.

An hour later, Tessa discovered that Samuel was gone when she went downstairs. She looked down at the Casio men's watch in her hand.

It was a gift she had prepared for his upcoming birthday. But now it was useless since she had cut off any expectation of him. In fact, just looking at it stung like hell.

Without hesitation, she dumped the million-dollar watch in the bin.

She sighed deeply, lamenting that the past three years had been for naught.

It was all over now, though. From now on, she would live for herself.

Tessa rode in a taxi to get to her own private residence.

She had purchased her villa years ago, but she never returned to it because she had moved to live with Samuel instead.

The servants were all shocked to see her. A moment later, they were standing in a row, their voices raised in a reverent chorus: "Welcome home, Mrs. Pearson!"

Setting her luggage down, Tessa flopped onto the sofa and massaged the skin above her brows. She corrected, "I'm not Mrs. Pearson anymore. Call me Miss Lopez from now on."

She once took pride in being known as Mrs. Pearson, but now, she found the title ironic.

Despite their curiosity, the servants left without asking any questions.

Once she was in her room, Tessa called her assistant, Monica Herbert. "Hey, how are you doing?"

"You called me first. This is new," Monica remarked, with surprise evident in her tone. "Did something happen?"

"As of today, I'm officially single again. From now on, I'm going to do nothing other than focus on my career."

"What? Really?" Monica exclaimed in disbelief.

"Oh my god! Did I hear it wrong? You've been so devoted to your husband over the past three years that you even quit your job to become a full-time housewife. Why did you two split up? You're not kidding me, are you?"

Monica was her assistant. She was one of the few people who knew that Tessa had another identity.

Unbeknownst to others, Tessa was a top-notch lawyer who went by the name Iris.

And she was not just an ordinary lawyer. In fact, the mere mention of her name was enough to strike fear into the hearts of many lawyers.

"Has anyone asked for me recently?" Tessa asked Monica, who had yet to recover from the shock. "Are there any interesting cases?"

Monica recalled a recent event and sighed. "Yes, there is, and the client is offering an extremely high reward to anyone who can help them win the case. However, no one is brave enough to accept it. Also, you absolutely can't accept it."

"Tell me more about it." Tessa was intrigued now.

Inside a café, Monica and Tessa sat across from each other.

"You said that I can't accept this case. Why is that?" When Monica gave a regretful nod, Tessa raised a brow and said, "Tell me what kind of case it is."

"It's like this..."

With that, Monica filled her in on the details of the case. Tapping her fingers on her left leg in a steady rhythm, Tessa remarked, "It's a little interesting. Who are the two parties?"

"I... I don't think it's necessary for you to know that."

Monica's hesitation just caused Tessa to be even more curious. In the end, Monica answered her.

"They are two of the most influential people in the corporate world, and everyone is aware of their rivalry. Well, I guess it's fair to say that there's a lot riding on the outcome of this case. The one who wants your help is Bryan Morris, and his opponent is..."

Monica sighed before continuing, "His opponent is your husband."

Tessa's breath hitched slightly.

Once again, Monica sighed in regret. "It's a shame because the reward is a large sum of money, but we really can't accept this case."

Tessa remained silent as she fiddled with her phone. It was hard to tell what she was thinking.

Monica, assuming she was upset, tried to console her. "Don't worry. With your fame, you can easily earn money as soon as you start working again. By the way, Iris, did you two really divorce?"

Tessa nodded and declared, "With him out of the picture, my life is my own again."

Relief washed over Monica when she saw how serious Tessa was. "It's about time you realize that he doesn't deserve you. You've done so much for that jerk, but all he did in return was treat you poorly. It's good that you finally left him."

As they talked, Tessa noticed two people who seemed familiar walking into the cafe. Her expression turned grim immediately.

One of them was a man. He was wearing a black suit with silver cufflinks that gleamed whenever light hit them.

The one beside him was a woman in a white dress. As she walked, her black hair swayed with each stride she took. The woman was none other than Betty Lopez, Tessa's cousin.

The corners of Tessa's mouth curled into a scowl. Soon after Samuel asked her for a divorce, he did not waste any time taking her cousin out for a date. Worse, she even encountered them. What a small world they were in.

Frowning in confusion, Monica followed Tessa's gaze. Then, her face darkened. "What are they doing here?"

Her voice was loud enough for Samuel to hear. When he turned around and saw the two women, his countenance went from calm to hostile in a heartbeat.

Last night, Tessa had signed her name on the divorce papers without showing any sign of reluctance in her demeanour. Additionally, she did not accept the villa. Samuel thought they would never cross paths again, but here she was. Was she playing hard to get with him?

Tessa met his eyes but quickly averted her gaze. She turned to Monica and asked her to go with her.

However, a sweet voice suddenly called her name. "Tessa, you're also here!"

Betty approached them with a gentle smile on her face. Her eyes were wide with innocence as she looked at them.

Tessa fought the urge to roll her eyes. Betty presented herself as a meek and submissive girl, but she was anything but that. In fact, she had sent Tessa countless photos recently as she couldn't wait to show off her intimate relationship with Samuel.

Smiling slightly, Tessa said, "My dear cousin, I see that you've been discharged from the hospital. It's amazing how you can walk so soon after being bedridden for three years. I guess this is what they call a medical miracle, huh?"

Suddenly, the people around them cast interested glances their way.

Betty was flustered for a while, but she quickly composed herself. She turned to Samuel and flashed him a warm smile. "My doctor said that I made a speedy recovery because Samuel took great care of me for the past three years."

Tessa's gaze drifted to Samuel. "Oh, I had no idea that my ex-husband was capable of performing a medical miracle. You should've pursued a career in medicine. You would've been great at it."

Upon hearing her words, the onlookers began whispering among each other.

"Ex-husband? Does it mean that the woman in the white dress is actually a mistress? And it turns out she's also the ex-wife's cousin."

"Oh, my goodness! The mistress even had the gall to show off in front of the ex-wife. Isn't she ashamed?"

A shadow of anger flitted across Samuel's features. "Tessa, you've been pestering me for so many years, and now, you're playing hard to get with me? I'm warning you. Don't show yourself in front of me again, or else you're going to regret it."

Suppressing her rage, Tessa chuckled. "Really? How are you going to make me regret it?"

Betty's eyes gleamed with tears as she turned to Samuel. "Calm down, Samuel. Please don't fight because of me. I think there's some kind of misunderstanding here."

Tessa cast a scornful glare in her direction, feeling utterly disgusted. She never knew that her cousin was such a good actress.

Without waiting for Samuel's response, Tessa said, "She has always wanted to be your wife. Why don't you just marry her so that she won't send me disgusting messages anymore?"

Betty's face twisted into a grimace. "How many times do I have to tell you that I wasn't trying to ruin your relationship? Nothing happened between me and Samuel. He just feels obligated to thank me because I saved his life."

With distaste in his eyes, Samuel regarded Tessa before turning to Betty. "You don't have to explain so much to her. Let's go."

He and Betty were about to leave when Tessa spoke up again. "Let's get a divorce certificate now and end this relationship once and for all."

Upon hearing that, Betty clenched her hands into fists.

Samuel told her that he and Tessa had divorced, but it turned out they did not have the legal document to prove it yet.

After a while, she said, "Look, Tessa. I'll stop talking to him if that's what you want, okay?"

Looking like she was on the verge of tears, Betty turned around. "I'm sorry, Samuel. Because of me, you two are fighting. I'll go now. You should stay here and make up with Tessa."

With that, she walked out of the café.

"I'm not free now. We'll get the divorce certificate at another time. My assistant will get in touch with you, so be ready," Samuel stated while glaring at Tessa.

Afterward, he chased after Betty.

Monica stared at his retreating figure as if she could not believe what she had just witnessed. Then, she hissed, "Tessa! You made the right choice in deciding to divorce him. That kind of man doesn't deserve you at all."

She could not believe that the renowned Iris had been disrespected in front of her.

It was not Monica's place to meddle with Tessa's personal life, but she could not help but want to beat Betty black and blue.

That bitch was so good at pretending not to do anything wrong, which was quite annoying.

"Monica, you said that if Samuel loses the case, he will lose ten billion dollars. Is that right?"

Monica turned to Tessa in confusion. "That's right. Why are you asking?"

Tessa, who was looking out the window with a calm expression, instructed, "Call Bryan and get ready to work."

Monica covered her mouth in shock. "Oh, my God. Are you planning to get back on Samuel?"

With a small smile, Tessa replied, "It's nothing like that. I just find this case interesting."

Indeed, she had always liked challenging cases.

And since they were no longer together, she had no obligation to be merciful to Samuel.

Monica still could not believe it. "I don't understand. Why do you want to help Bryan, then? You love Samuel. You did so much for him..."

Tessa interrupted her before she could finish what she was about to say. "That's all in the past now. Soon, we'll be legally separated."

"You really intend to divorce him?"

"Yes. Well, I already did. We just have to finalize it. Anyway, now that I've accepted the case, rest assured that I'll devote my full attention to it," Tessa stated firmly.

Monica had no doubt she would do that, so she nodded. Then, she remembered something. "It's impossible for you to take part in the trial remotely as Bryan insisted that he must meet Iris in person. But if he finds out that Samuel is your husband, he might not trust you..."

"Don't worry. I'll deal with it."

Monica nodded in satisfaction. "All right. Then, I'll take care of the rest. By the way, you've met Bryan's company's legal department head before, so I assume you won't have a hard time talking to him. It's Denis Garcia, your senior."

Monica was happy that Tessa had finally come to her senses. She smiled and linked arms with her in delight.

"Tessa, come to my place. I'll cook for you. Now that you've left that jerk, we have to celebrate."

The two women were all smiles as they walked out of the café. Not far from the establishment, inside a car, Samuel watched them with a cold glint in his eyes.

He could not help but wonder what Tessa was planning.

Tessa stayed at Monica's home for dinner. Then, they spent the evening discussing the case before Tessa headed back home.

Once she returned to the villa, she was greeted by a servant. "Welcome back, Miss Lopez. I just checked the surveillance cameras. It seems like someone has followed you here."