Unexpectedly, in Kimberly’s retelling, all those past events had been twisted into proof that she was forced to leave the country.
A hint of bitterness flashed in Kimberly’s eyes as she reached out to cover Andrew’s mouth.
“It’s all in the past, Drew,” she said softly. “We were simply not meant to be. Thank you for coming to pick me up, but you should go back. After all, Elise is your wife now.”
She lowered her gaze, her delicate face filled with sorrow.
Andrew grabbed both her hands, his voice urgent as he spoke, “Kim, you know that you’ve always been the only one in my heart. If it weren’t for her using the company’s troubles to threaten me, I never would have married her!”
“She even had the audacity to call me earlier, claiming she was dying in a car accident and begging me to see her one last time. What a compulsive liar!”
“She knew you were returning today but still tried to force me to leave you in front of everyone. How is she expecting you to hold your place in Los Angeles’s elite circles now?”
“I think she’s just jealous of you. Why did I ever marry such a bitter and petty woman?”
From an angle Andrew couldn’t see, Elise thought she caught a flicker of calculated malice in Kimberly’s eyes.
The sinister intent sent a chilling shiver down Elise’s spine. However, when she looked again, Kimberly’s face held nothing but guilt.
“Aren’t you afraid Elise will be upset if you don’t go home?” Kimberly asked, her tone soft and hesitant.
Andrew snorted coldly. “She won’t.”
“If she dares to complain, I’ll divorce her.”
“She even pretended to have a car accident. If she’s really dead, all the better—I’ve tolerated her long enough.”
Listening to the undisguised hatred and disdain in Andrew’s words, Elise’s heart shattered into a thousand pieces.
Suddenly, Andrew’s phone rang. His brows furrowed, and with a muttered “What a nuisance,” he got up and walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window to answer the call.
“Didn’t I already tell you?! I’ll be home before ten. Why are you pestering me...”
“Mr. Williams, the roses you ordered have arrived.”
Andrew froze for a moment, his lips parting but no words coming out. After a long pause, he finally said, “Send them up.”
When he returned to his seat, an awkward silence lingered between him and Kimberly.
Several times, Kimberly opened her mouth as if to ask something, but in the end, she merely stabbed her steak with force, her eyes filled with venom.
Elise stood silently beside the table, watching the two lovers who seemed destined to be together.
In the early days when their relationship began to crumble, Elise had tried several times to have serious conversations with Andrew.
But each time, the discussions ended badly—always because of Kimberly.
On her birthday, Andrew had flown abroad to congratulate Kimberly on winning an award.
When Elise fell ill, he accompanied Kimberly on a creative retreat along the Atlantic coast.
On their wedding anniversary, he took Kimberly to the island where he and Elise had once gotten married.
The moment Andrew reunited with Kimberly, the scales in his heart had already tipped toward her.
Every holiday, the gifts Elise received were leftovers chosen after Kimberly had her pick, sometimes nothing more than promotional freebies.
Elise often voiced her grievances, but Andrew would always look at her with disappointment and claim it was her debt to Kimberly.
Whenever she tried to ask more questions, he would refuse to elaborate, telling her she knew the answer in her heart.
Over time, her complaints drew accusations from him.
“Why are you so petty and mean-spirited? Why can’t you let it go?”
Three years had passed. Elise endured the pain of neglect and resentment, finally gathering enough despair to prepare to leave.
But the unexpected arrival of a child—and Andrew’s recent efforts to prepare a surprise—made her put the divorce papers back in the drawer.
