Christine returned to the Green Lake apartment, where her mother and younger brother lived.
Elizabeth, with a face mask on, heard the door open and looked up.
"Christine? Why are you back?"
"Yeah. I won't be going back for the next few days."
Elizabeth noticed her daughter's troubled expression and sat up abruptly. "What's wrong? Did you have a fight with Neil?"
Seeing Christine didn't respond, she frowned disapprovingly. "Neil is busy enough as it is. Don't be so stubborn and throw little tantrums."
After all, they were living in his house now, and they still relied on him to help cover her son's tuition. They couldn't afford to offend him.
Christine knew her mother would say this, but some things needed to be cut off decisively.
"Mom, I'm planning to divorce Neil."
"Divorce?" Elizabeth's eyes widened. "Did he initiate it?"
Christine shook her head. "I did."
"Christine Woods, have you lost your mind?"
"Divorce? And then what? Should I sleep on the street with your brother?"
After the Woods family went bankrupt and Karl passed away, Elizabeth couldn't accept her daughter stepping out of the circle of wealthy wives. Fortunately, her daughter still had one foot in that world.
The Caffrey family's background couldn't compare to the Woods'. Christine had essentially married below her station, and after the marriage, the Caffrey family had reaped considerable benefits from her.
Thus, both in reason and sentiment, Elizabeth felt it perfectly justified to live off her son-in-law and rely on his support.
Now, all her hopes rested on her son. But the annual tuition for his international school was exorbitant-far beyond what their family could afford.
As for whether her daughter was happy in her marriage, that was a concern she couldn't spare a thought for at the moment.
"Did you get divorced because you found someone else?"
Christine fell silent. She knew her mother had always been biased like this, so such harsh words came as no surprise.
"Mom, Neil cheated on me. I had no choice but to divorce him."
Elizabeth glared at her disappointing daughter, her face twisted with fury.
"He cheated? So you kicked him out? He cheated, and you had to divorce him? You stubborn fool! Do you think having money means you can control whether a man cheats? You're so stupid-absolutely stupid!"
Christine felt a deep sorrow welling up inside her. "Mom, is money really that important to you?"
Elizabeth answered without hesitation. "Of course it is. Why wouldn't it be?"
"When your father was alive, I bought as many handbags as I wanted every year. I attended auctions whenever I pleased. Now? I have to suck up to Neil just to get him to pay your brother's tuition fees. Why? Because we're broke! Christine, you've been living too comfortably. You're just stirring up trouble!"
Christine took a deep breath. "Mom, I'll go back to work. From now on, I'll cover James's tuition."
Elizabeth was brutally pragmatic. Her cold eyes mocked her.
"Go be a financial reporter? Without your father's protection, who do you think you'll interview? Christine, face reality. No matter how hard you try, you won't earn a tenth of what Neil has in his pocket."
Back then, this daughter of hers had insisted she didn't want to join the company and wanted to be a financial reporter instead. Her father, doting on her, had agreed. She had nothing to say.
Now that her father was gone, she remained just as unrealistic. Elizabeth would never allow her son to live a life of hardship and ridicule.
The tension between them reached its peak just as James returned.
"Mom, Sis-you're here too."
He set down his backpack, noticed the uneasy tension between them, and cautiously moved closer to his sister.
"Sis, did you two have a fight?"
James was very close to his sister. He knew their mother favored him, so he usually sided with her.
"James, you're back just in time. Your sister has lost her mind and wants to divorce Neil. Go talk some sense into her yourself."
"Divorce?" James immediately grew alert. "Did Neil mistreat you?"
Christine didn't want to beat around the bush. She stated calmly, "He cheated on me."
"What? How could he do that!" James said angrily. "Sis, don't worry. I'll stand by you and support you."
Though their mother always praised Neil, James felt he wasn't as good to his sister as she imagined.
A man who cheats is no good.
"You silly boy! If your sister really divorces him, who's going to pay your tuition?"
James winced in pain as his mother pinched him hard.
"Fine, I won't go to that international school. I'll just go to a regular high school."
Elizabeth's temples throbbed with frustration.
Oh dear. Look at the two stubborn mules I gave birth to-just like their late father!
Christine's deep, dark eyes held an unreadable expression. The stock grant agreement from Ocean Corporation was still in her hands. Covering James's future overseas expenses would be no problem at all.
Money was important-but only when it truly belonged to her could she live comfortably.
She had had enough of living her life seeking others' approval.
*****
The door to the presidential suite's bathroom swung open. Through the mist, Edward emerged, his lean, muscular torso bare, a towel loosely draped around his waist.
His short, tousled hair was only half-dried. He picked up the phone from the table. It had been two hours since he changed his profile picture, yet the chat window remained eerily silent, unchanged.
Truthfully, Christine had long forgotten she'd casually added a big shot to her contacts today.
Her mind was consumed with plans to confront Neil tomorrow about honoring the stock grant agreement. She also needed to prepare to move out soon-staying there was no longer an option.
"Buzz-"
Christine reached for her phone and unlocked it, only to see a video call pop up from a profile picture of a cute, fluffy cat.
Her almond-shaped eyes widened.
Was this Edward. calling her?
