I refuse to divorce

In the middle of the night, the villa area of Los Angeles, California, was brightly lit. The Christmas trees in front of each house made the villa area look much more welcoming. A little white snow fell slowly from the sky. The whole area was as beautiful as a painting, except for the Steel family's villa, which was out of place in this scene.

It was a little difficult to see Astrid's face clearly; she only saw the piece of paper in front of her, the words that said "DIVORCE AGREEMENT" stinging her beautiful green eyes.

In front of her was the firm body and handsome face, the man who still made her heart ache, the man who took over every cell in her body the moment they met.

It took her a while to gather the courage to speak.

"Why?" She forced a trembling voice to ask Joshua. She didn't even have the courage to look at him, so she just kept her head bowed in silence.

He pierced her with a cold stare. "It was my grandfather who forced me to marry you in the first place, and now that my grandfather has died, there is no need for you to stay with me."

Astrid's breath seemed to catch in her throat at that moment, and she looked at Joshua pleadingly. "Don't leave me."

When she saw Joshua's cold face, her nose hurt. Although Joshua was indifferent, he had never looked at her so coldly, as if he were looking at a toy he was tired of. She could even say she saw something like disgust in his beautiful eyes.

Astrid tried to hold back her tears.

Joshua had told her he hated it when she cried, but no matter how hard she resisted, her eyes remained red. She hugged Joshua's thin waist tightly, fearing that if she let go, she would lose him forever.

"Please don't leave me," Astrid looked at Joshua pleadingly, like an abandoned cat. How she wished this were a nightmare, that Joshua would rub her cheeks and say it was a joke and that he had lied to her.

For three years, Joshua Steel had never asked for her opinion. She had obediently listened to Joshua's every command, even if she didn't like something; as long as Joshua liked it, she would do it for him.

And this time, she didn't want to listen to Joshua's orders either. This was the first time she had tried to resist Joshua, even though he made a disgusted expression. She forcefully broke free from the arms around her waist. This sudden force was like trying to break Astrid's arms, so Joshua spoke in an extremely cold tone, "You have no right to refuse!" Ignoring Astrid's plea, he forced the pen into her hand.

A tear fell on the divorce agreement, and Astrid's tears finally flowed down her cheeks as she looked at Joshua's clear name on the divorce agreement, a name that made her heart ache so much she could barely breathe. The pen was smooth, and she almost signed her name without hesitation. Joshua, the man she had loved for three years, said he didn't want her.

No, she mustn't let this happen. Joshua was her life. She couldn't imagine a day without Joshua, even if he didn't like her.

Only this time, she couldn't listen to Joshua.

"I'm sorry!" As if it were her last fight, Astrid reached out and grabbed the divorce agreement, quickly crumpling it into a ball and putting it in her mouth. She really couldn't think of any other way to keep Joshua from leaving, could she?

Joshua was a man of his word, and as far as she knew, he would definitely force her to sign the divorce agreement tonight. Even if he had to tie her up, he would make her sign it.

The sharp edge of the paper ball cut Astrid's throat, and she swallowed it with pain, but it was nothing compared to the pain she felt in her heart.

The dim light prevented Joshua from reacting to Astrid's action. By the time he heard the sound of the crumpled paper ball, it was already too late. Astrid swallowed the paper ball one step faster than him. If this had been a normal action, he would have reacted in an instant to snatch the agreement in advance.

However, Astrid's behavior did not surprise Joshua. After all, for three years, no matter what he said, even if it was an unreasonable request, Astrid would always unconditionally obey his orders. "Damn it! Spit it out! Spit it out, do it for me!" He looked at Astrid's clear face, a face that resembled someone he hadn't seen in a long time but would never forget.

"I won't spit it out! I don't want to divorce you." Astrid gathered her courage to look at Joshua, her heart beating fast. This was her last chance, even if she could only look at Joshua in the future. Even if Joshua hated her in the future, she didn't want to divorce him. Anyway, Joshua didn't like her in the first place, so it wasn't that bad.

Looking into Astrid's tearful and stubborn eyes, Joshua slowly lowered his raised hand and sighed.

He looked deeply at Astrid and walked up the stairs without looking back.

Seeing his figure disappear, Astrid exhaled a sigh of relief.

The dim light suddenly reminded her of the day Joshua proposed to her, the day he told her she would stay with him for the rest of her life.

No, she would never agree to divorce him; she couldn't live without Joshua.

Astrid got up and quietly climbed the stairs, stopping at Joshua's door. She didn't dare knock; she was panicked, afraid to see Joshua's eyes filled with contempt again.

After a long time, she finally gathered her courage and reached for the doorknob. Just then, the door suddenly opened.

In a second, her own body lost its weight, and the next, she was immobilized by Joshua. "Are you still so eager to throw yourself into my arms even though you're getting divorced?" Then Joshua snorted coldly, "Since you want it so badly, then I'll satisfy you!" Joshua didn't give her time to react. In an instant, pain and pleasure coursed through her entire body. The raw flesh hurt so much that she couldn't move. She could only grab the sheet tightly and take it all in. She liked it even though it hurt her.

"I didn't expect it to be so bad for you," Joshua's frivolous tone sounded from behind Astrid. Astrid wanted to say that it wasn't like that, but Joshua's next thrust only made her clench her teeth. She didn't want to moan and make Joshua feel disgusted. She was afraid, afraid that if she made a noise at that moment, Joshua would leave her behind without a second thought.

"Lin..." Joshua suddenly said softly a name unfamiliar to Astrid. Astrid just listened quietly, not daring to ask who it was. She was afraid of crying again. If she did at this moment, Joshua would definitely never do anything like this with her again in the future.

After Joshua calmed down, she tried to hug him from behind, but he got up and, in a still cold tone, said, "Go back to your room to sleep." With that, he went into the bathroom.

It wasn't until she heard the sound of water that Astrid knew it was time to go back. It didn't matter if he left her like this; as long as she didn't divorce him, she could endure anything.

Back in her room, she wrapped her arms around herself silently, unable to stop the tears from flowing again. Only in this room could she cry uncontrollably, because Joshua never came here, never even looked at this room.

In fact, over the past three years, she could feel Joshua's growing indifference towards her, but she stubbornly thought that as long as she stayed by his side, one day it would be as good as it had been in the beginning. But the divorce agreement that night seemed to have broken her last line of defense.

She was truly on the verge of not being able to take it anymore.

Astrid sat quietly through the night until a ray of sunlight crept into the house early in the morning. The sunlight during winter was still blinding, and Astrid realized that her breath seemed a little warm, but now she couldn't care less. She hurriedly glanced at the clock; it was already 6:30 a.m. In ten minutes, Joshua would be getting up. If she didn't hurry up and make breakfast, Joshua would get angry.

She got up reluctantly, her head feeling a little dizzy. Astrid didn't bother about this; she would go and get some rest after cooking.

The moment she pushed open the door, she felt her body go light, and the next moment, it was darkness.

In her dream, Joshua left without looking back. Astrid desperately tried to catch up with him, but it was as if Joshua didn't see her. Walking further and further away, she shouted Joshua's name repeatedly, but in the distance, it was as if he couldn't hear her.

"Joshua!" Astrid struggled to open her eyes, gasping slightly, her heart beating nonstop.

And suddenly Joshua's familiar, pleasant voice rang in her ears. "Since you're awake, I should go to work." After saying that, he was ready to leave, but suddenly, his arm was grabbed by a soft hand.

When she looked at Joshua again, Astrid almost screamed again. That's good, it was really great. Joshua was still there. It's good. It's so good. She could still feel Joshua's warmth in her small hand. The dream she had just had made her think that Joshua had disappeared from her world forever, and seeing Joshua again made Astrid's happiness overflow.

"Please don't go, stay with me for a while, okay?" Astrid's two clear eyes looked expectantly at Joshua, still a little sleepy from the fact that she had just woken up, she looked like a little kitten.

In fact, Astrid didn't have much hope of getting an affirmation, but if Joshua promised her, she would feel more at ease.

Seeing Astrid ask for things in such a way, Joshua felt a certain tolerance toward her. Perhaps because he had despised her for so long, he felt a certain guilt in his heart.

He sighed and said, "When you finish drinking the medicine, I'll leave."

Astrid's heart was thrilled, but it didn't last long.

Joshua's phone rang. It was a message, and as he read it, Joshua's beautiful eyebrows furrowed slightly.

Looking at Joshua, Astrid had a bad feeling. "Joshua?" she called out.

As if he hadn't heard her, Joshua walked to the door to leave Astrid's room, his voice turning cold again. "Something has happened at the company. I won't be accompanying you. The medicine is next to you. Remember to take it. You should get some more sleep."

"Joshua?" Astrid called out quickly. He stopped before leaving the room, but did not turn to look at her, only waiting silently. The room was dark, and Astrid could only see his silhouette. This scene was so similar to her nightmares. "You'll come back, right?" Like a plea, Astrid clutched the corner of the blanket tightly, forcing herself to contain the tremors and fears in her body as she asked Joshua.

She felt the air around her gradually heating up so much that she could faint, but this was not the time. Astrid was waiting for Joshua's answer before she could do so; otherwise, she would not even be able to think clearly.

"Of course," came the answer without hesitation. With a click followed by soft footsteps, the door closed, leaving only the sound of the clock in the room.

After Joshua's answer, Astrid let out a sigh of relief, her body gradually relaxing as well. The temperature around her slowly dropped; there was neither cold nor heat in the air.

Was there any chance that Joshua cared about her a little? If nothing had happened at the company, would he have stayed with her a little longer? Normally, when she begged him, he would just give her a cold look and then turn away, but today he hadn't left as usual.

Perhaps, if he held out a little longer, he would gradually fall in love with her. The time would come when he would notice her. Astrid got up slowly and with great difficulty. Joshua had told her to take her medicine. He was looking after her, so she had to be obedient and drink the medicine so that when Joshua returned, she would be healthy.

The medicine touched her lips and tongue, slowly sliding down her throat. It was extremely bitter, so bitter that her eyes turned red. She had hated taking medicine since she was a child, especially medicine that was so bitter.

In the past, it was her mother who coaxed her into taking the medicine, waiting patiently for her to finish before putting a piece of candy in her mouth and gently stroking her back as she cried.

Since she married Joshua, she had never cried again while taking medicine because Joshua had said that an adult should not be bothered by the bitterness of medicine and should drink it easily.

So whenever she got sick, she pretended that nothing was wrong and drank the bitter medicine, hoping that Joshua would notice and approve.

But Joshua never said a word. He never even took the initiative to give her the medicine, nor did he ever see her drink it. So she kept all the bitterness of these three long years to herself.

After drinking the medicine, Astrid wiped her mouth. She had endured it well and wondered if her mother would be happy to see her so strong now.

Speaking of her mother, Astrid thought again about intensive care. How long had it been since she visited her? When she recovers this time, she must take Joshua with her. The last time she told her mother that next time she would take him with her to visit.

Three years had passed, and she never woke up, only the sound of dripping instruments showing that she was still alive. If it weren't for that accident, wouldn't that be the case? But... if it weren't for that accident, wouldn't she and Joshua have met?

Thinking about that made Astrid's heart ache. She didn't want this, she didn't want that, but she also didn't want her mother to become like this.

If her mother could wake up, she would have no more wishes. Even if Joshua never fell in love with her in this life, if she could remain quietly by his side, that would be fine, she would be satisfied.

The medicine began to take effect, the morning sunlight gently sprinkling Astrid's clear, clean skin. Anyone who saw her would say she looked like an angel... The angel was slowly drawn into the world of dreams-Joshua-she whispered the name of her beloved.

At Los Angeles airport, people came and went, drawn by the hustle and bustle. When they turned their eyes to the source of the noise, they saw a tall man standing in the middle of the crowd.

He was approximately 1.90 meters tall. This allowed him to be the center of attention among the crowd. The man looked around, as if he were looking for someone. The moment the man turned his face, his high nose, firm jaw, and sensual vermilion lips made the women around him sigh, as if they had been robbed of their breath.

His face was so beautiful that it could never be forgotten after just one glance, and it would surely take root like a tree with strong and firm roots.

But the only thing that was sad about that face was the coldness that made it difficult to want to approach him. The people around him limited themselves to talking among themselves, with no one having the courage to approach him to speak.

He frowned slightly, and someone in the crowd said, "It looks like the president of Steel Technology! Joshua Steel."

Suddenly, the people around him seemed to have come to their senses, and his surroundings reminded him of a pot of boiling water as they desperately and sloppily searched for their cell phones to take pictures.

The sound of the shutter distracted him. If this were normal, Joshua would not let this kind of thing happen at all. In normal times, even if something like this happened, Joshua would immediately take care of the situation, but not today. He did not want that person to see that side of him.

Suddenly, a voice rang out from the crowd, a voice that Joshua recognized and found very familiar, a voice he had thought about countless days and nights.

"I'm sorry, I'm going to have to disappoint you all, but he's not a president." It was a soft, charming voice, almost hypnotic to Joshua.

Joshua turned his head. It was really her. She was back!

Seeing her walk slowly toward him, his heart raced for no apparent reason. He was ecstatic just to see the face of the person he had longed for so long. He hadn't seen her in over three years.

"Right?" Marilyn approached Joshua and touched his shoulder, an action that brought Joshua's thoughts back.

Joshua looked with immense tenderness at Marilyn Dean, the person who stood quietly beside him. "I'm sorry to disappoint everyone; I'm not Joshua Steel. President Steel should be in a meeting right now." Even as they spoke, his eyes never left Marilyn's face.

In fact, he wasn't lying. Joshua did have an important meeting today, but to see Marilyn on her first day back home, Joshua had canceled the meeting on the spur of the moment. She was more important than the meeting.

However, Joshua didn't know that the person at home, like a fool, had given up everything she had for him, even her own dignity and aspirations, discarded by and for Joshua. Joshua took the initiative to take the luggage from Marilyn's hand. Marilyn looked at the unfamiliar surroundings. Three years had passed, and everything that was once familiar was now unfamiliar. Even he had changed.

"Are you hungry?" Joshua looked at Marilyn, who was dazed, and spoke softly, "I know a traditional European restaurant that will blow your mind. It's a place that just opened; it's very good; you'll like it."

"European food?"

Marilyn thought that if she were the same person she had been three years ago, she would have begged Joshua to take her there, but unfortunately, after spending so much time outside the United States, she was tired of eating European dishes. Even her meal before boarding the plane had been cassoulet.

"No, really, I don't want to eat European food. Let's go to that Chinese restaurant we always went to when we were students." Joshua froze at that moment, his heart inexplicably panicking. Suddenly, he couldn't remember which restaurant Marilyn was referring to.

"Hua Yuan Restaurant," Marilyn replied when she saw Joshua's face. For Marilyn, that reaction made her heart flutter, and she had a feeling of loss. "Have you forgotten?" she added with a smile. "It's a few blocks away, very close to Chinatown. You mentioned that it tasted like authentic Asian food."

Only then did Joshua react. She was referring to that place. He hadn't been there in over two years. That's right, since he took Astrid there once, he hadn't been back. Astrid... Astrid White... He wondered what that cheeky woman was doing at that moment. How annoying.

"How silly," he patted his forehead playfully, "how could I forget something so important?" He opened the car door affectionately for Marilyn. The Porsche drove smoothly along the highway. "In these few years, I see everything so differently, everything has changed so much," said Marilyn as she looked thoughtfully at the streets. "Yes, many things have changed, everything is different." Joshua looked at Marilyn as if he had guessed what she was thinking.

"Silly, what are you thinking? Even if all this has changed, we'll still be together." Hearing that statement, Marilyn turned her head to look at Joshua. His eyes were soft, as if he were openly declaring that she was Joshua's world. Before Marilyn even had time to respond, Joshua continued, "We're here already."

Marilyn didn't notice the sweat Joshua had left on the steering wheel due to his nervousness. Joshua was scared. He really feared being rejected once again, so this time he decided to be more cautious. Joshua didn't know that this path would change his whole life. He opened the car door for Marilyn and arrived at the restaurant they used to go to a long time ago. The restaurant owner was a heavyset man who approached Joshua when he saw him arrive.

"Mr. Steel, it's been a long time since I've seen you around here. The last time I saw you was two years ago." Joshua nodded in agreement. "The usual."

Only then did he notice the person standing next to Joshua. "How is Mrs. Astrid these days?" Joshua was perplexed. He did not expect that after two years, the restaurant owner would remember Astrid, whom he had only seen once. He remembered that when he brought Astrid here for the first and last time, the owner had asked why the person who had come with him before had not come. Looking at Marilyn's confused face, Joshua replied coldly, "Sir, she's not Astrid." The owner knew he had said something wrong, quickly apologized, and said nothing more. Joshua, in a state of panic, opened his mouth to explain, "Marilyn, listen to my explanation.

Mrs. Astrid is a customer. Her name is Astrid White..." I brought her here two years ago and haven't brought anyone else since. Then a customer, thinking about this, Joshua laughed coldly, "How could that waste of space be a customer? Bringing her here last time was a hassle. For that person, it was better to just give her instant soup to live on. Marilyn slowly raised her head and looked at Joshua. The tension was clearly visible on her face, but she let out a sigh of relief.

"You, this place is our secret. How could you bring someone else here?" After hearing Joshua's explanation, her heart felt relieved, and she didn't care too much. However, this meal felt different from the past, as if something was missing.