By the time she got back to the manor, the video of the boutique incident was viral. But Jed had edited it. He had cut out his aggression, his slurs. He had only kept the part where Elsie splashed him and threatened him.
The headlines were brutal.
GOLD DIGGER GOES WILD: ELSIE WATKINS ASSAULTS EX.
HUNTER BRIDE: VIOLENT AND UNSTABLE?
Elsie sat in her room, scrolling through the comments.
She's crazy.
She did it for the money.
Poor Jed.
Her phone rang. It was Hardin. He was in the house, probably down the hall, but he was calling her.
"Come to the library," he said. Click.
Elsie walked to the library. Her head was held high, but inside, she was crumbling.
Hardin was waiting. He threw a tablet onto the desk.
"Explain," he demanded.
"He attacked Debbi," Elsie said. "I defended her."
"You made a scene," Hardin said coldly. "The Hunter name does not do 'scenes' in mid-town boutiques. My mother is having palpitations."
"I didn't ask for him to be there!"
"You attracted him," Hardin said. "Drama follows you, Elsie. And I don't have the energy for drama. My lawyers are drafting a separation agreement."
Elsie felt the blood drain from her face. "You can't. The contract-"
"The contract has a morality clause," Hardin lied. "Public embarrassment is grounds for termination."
"I need the money," Elsie said, her voice cracking. "My mother's house..."
"Not my problem."
Elsie looked at him. He was sitting in that damn wheelchair again, looking bored. Looking cruel.
She realized something. He was bullying her. He was pushing her to see if she would break.
She thought about the mother-in-law clause. Clause 22: All marital dissolutions must be arbitrated by Constance Hunter.
Elsie took a deep breath. She pulled out her phone.
"What are you doing?" Hardin asked.
"Calling your mother," Elsie said.
Hardin's eyes widened. "You wouldn't dare."
"Watch me." She put the phone to her ear. "Hello, Constance? It's Elsie. Yes, I'm crying... oh, it's terrible. Hardin is being so cruel... yes, Jed attacked me and Hardin wants to divorce me for it... I just feel so unsafe..."
Hardin lunged forward in his chair. "Hang up the phone!"
Elsie turned away, sobbing fake tears into the receiver. "He's yelling at me now, Constance! He's so stressed... I'm worried about his heart..."
She could hear Constance's voice screeching on the other end.
"Okay... okay, thank you, Constance."
Elsie hung up. She turned to Hardin. Her face was dry. Her expression was smug.
"Your mother says you are absolutely not allowed to divorce me," Elsie said sweetly. "And she's coming over. Tomorrow."
Hardin looked like he wanted to strangle her. His jaw worked furiously.
"You play dirty," he said.
"I learned from the best," Elsie replied.
Hardin stared at her for a long, tense moment. Then, slowly, the anger faded into something else. Respect?
He reached into his desk drawer. He pulled out a box.
He slid it across the desk.
"What is this?" Elsie asked.
"A new phone," Hardin said. "New number. Encrypted. Jed can't find this one. The press can't find this one."
Elsie opened the box. It was the latest iPhone, sleek and black.
"Why?" she asked.
"Because if you're going to be my wife," Hardin said, turning his wheelchair away, "you need to be unreachable by trash like Jed Reeves. I've already transferred your contacts, but I've blocked everyone except your friend Debbi and the family office."
Elsie picked up the phone. It was already set up.
She looked at him. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me," Hardin grumbled. "Just get out of my sight before I change my mind."
Elsie walked to the door. She paused.
"Hardin?"
"What?"
"You're not as mean as you pretend to be."
"I'm worse," he said. "Goodnight, Elsie."
---
