Chapter 2
915 Words
We'd kicked up such a huge fuss before that our sudden willingness to back down looked like nothing but a cheap ploy to swindle more money out of the divorce settlement.
I froze for a second, just about to explain myself, but Logan had already answered his call and stepped out.
Declan didn't buy our act either.
He rubbed the space between his brows and said, "I'm on a tight schedule. Spit out whatever you want, and I'll see what I can do."
His chauffeur-driven van was idling right outside the door. The racing circuit wasn't over yet. He'd rushed back after working out a time adjustment with the event organizers.
Amelia's shoulders slumped like all the air had gone out of her.
She hung her head and mumbled, "I don't want a divorce anymore."
Declan's thin lips pressed into a tight, unimpressed line. He snapped, "You better mean it," and left.
Watching their retreating backs, I was equal parts relieved and cold-sweat terrified.
I rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly and said, "Great, now what? Our reputation with those two is totally shot."
I'd tagged along with Amelia since we were kids. I was her little sidekick, and she was the rock I relied on.
At times like this, whatever she thought was good enough for me.
She sniffled, then lifted her head again, her eyes sharp and determined.
"Saving these marriages is probably a lost cause. We need to figure out another way out of this mess."
There was no way in hell we were going back to that cramped, miserable little rental apartment we used to squeeze into.
Working dead-end minimum wage side jobs, choking down expired rice balls from the convenience store…
We could barely even hold onto our basic dignity back then.
How could we ever give up the cushy, easy life we have now?
Amelia turned to me and asked, "Your ex-hubby, wait, no, your husband, how much allowance does he give you a month?"
"30 grand? 50? I don't even remember anymore."
"No way! That means you must have at least 2 to 3 million saved up by now, right?"
"Uh… I spent it all on bags and high heels…"
Amelia glared at me like I was the most disappointing i***t on the planet.
"You absolute spendthrift! You didn't save a single penny?"
I glared right back at her. "Hey, that top you're wearing right now? I bought that for you with my allowance. It cost 5 grand, for your information."
Logan gave me more than enough money, but I had nothing better to do with my days, so I blew it all on shopping sprees.
Amelia sighed heavily. "Well, that's just perfect. I don't have any savings left either. I dumped every last cent into bailing my parents out of their financial holes."
Her family had been pretty well-off once, but their business had gone downhill these past few years, and she was the only one keeping them afloat.
If we got divorced now, her family would be flat broke for good.
The two of us sighed back and forth, one after the other.
Finally, Amelia smacked her thigh hard and blurted out, "Screw it. Even if we got a huge divorce settlement, we'd just blow through it in no time anyway. I've got it figured out. Instead of relying on handouts from them, we need to learn how to make our own money.
"We'll just string those two brothers along for now. We'll hold off on the divorce until we can pull in our own cash!"
We were actually both graduates from top universities, but we both married into the Rowan family right after graduation.
That insane, out-of-nowhere windfall went straight to our heads, and we never even worked a single real job.
We were so out of touch with the real world that we couldn't even support ourselves if we tried.
We talked it over and hashed out a plan.
She would take some time off to prep for grad school and boost her credentials.
I would leverage the Rowan family's huge influence to get a job and build up work experience.
Hey, free resources are there for the taking, right? No point letting them go to waste.
All I had to do was write, "Wife of Logan Rowan" in the family background section of my resume, and every door under the sun flew wide open for me.
I landed an offer at a mid-sized company without breaking a sweat.
I showed up for my first day in a custom Chanel suit, grinning from ear to ear as the boss bowed and scraped to greet me.
But there was a catch, of course.
Everyone was way too nice to me. Forget gaining experience, I'd just park myself at my desk twiddling my thumbs all day, and not a single person dared ask me to do anything.
Just when I was getting ready to look for other options, I finally got assigned a task.
My boss told me to bring some documents to a meeting.
I pushed open the conference room door, which let out a soft creak, and the first person I saw was Logan, crisp in a tailored suit, sitting in the head seat.
I'd been actively avoiding him ever since that whole divorce mess blew up, and I hadn't seen him in a good two and a half weeks.
He looked up, and our eyes locked.
His perfectly sculpted brows immediately furrowed.
- Writer
