He Cheated, I Married His Fearsome Boss

Chapter 1

"Have you lost your mind?" Adrian shot to his feet. "Is this because I didn't eat the dinner you made tonight? Are you throwing a tantrum?"

The sight of his arrogant face nearly made me laugh.

"A tantrum? Don't flatter yourself, Adrian. I hit you because you were asking for it."

His expression turned pitch-black.

"Evelyn, this is your last chance. Take those slippers out of the trash and put them on me. I'll pretend tonight never happened."

I glanced down at the slippers in the trash can, then kicked them over.

Garbage spilled across the floor and rolled to a stop beside his polished shoes.

"Then I'll give you one last chance too." I raised my eyes to his. "Get out of my room. Now."

Adrian looked as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world.

"Your room? Get one thing straight, Evelyn. This is my house. You eat my food, wear clothes I paid for, and I even covered your mother's hospital bills. What gives you the right to throw me out?"

As I looked at him, the last pathetic scrap of hope inside me finally vanished.

This was the man I had waited on hand and foot for 3 years.

In the novel, he used those same words to tear me down again and again until I truly believed I couldn't survive without him.

"You paid?" I pulled up my bank records and held my phone in front of his face. "Look closely. The 45,000 dollars for my mother's surgery came from savings I had before we married."

I pointed to the hideous dresses in my closet, all altered to hang at my ankles. "And as for the food and clothes you supposedly provide—do you really think I want any of this garbage?"

Adrian glanced at the screen, his brow tightening slightly.

But the condescending look returned almost at once.

"So? What are you trying to say? That the Shaw family has mistreated you?"

He stepped forward and reached for my chin.

"Evelyn, stop playing hard to get. Everyone in Ravenport knows you can't live without me."

I turned my head away. His fingers closed on empty air and froze halfway between us.

"Adrian Shaw, meet me at the clerk's office tomorrow at 9 a.m."

His pupils contracted.

"What did you say?"

"I said I want a divorce."

"You wouldn't dare!" His voice rose sharply. "Do you think I won't lay a hand on you?"

He lunged for my wrist.

I grabbed the crystal ashtray from the table and hurled it at his feet. It shattered with a sharp c***k. Shards flew everywhere, one slicing the cuff of his pants.

"Touch me again and see what happens," I said coldly.

Adrian actually stopped.

He stared at me, shocked and uncertain, as if he were seeing the woman who had shared his bed for 3 years for the first time.

"Fine. Very good." He nodded through gritted teeth. "You've grown a spine, Evelyn. Let's see how you and that half-dead mother of yours survive in Ravenport without me."

He turned and strode out. At the doorway, he stopped without looking back.

"When you can't take it anymore, don't expect me to let you come back—even if you kneel outside and beg."

The door slammed shut.

I stared at it and slowly let out a breath.

Beg him?

'In his dreams.'

I went to the closet, yanked down every one of those long dresses, and stuffed them into garbage bags. Then I pulled out a suitcase and packed the things that were actually mine.

In the original novel, tomorrow was the day the new secretary, Chloe Lane, started work.

She would captivate Adrian completely.

And I had no intention of staying behind to serve as a stepping-stone for their romance.

By the time I finished packing, dawn had broken.

I dragged my suitcase downstairs. Adrian sat on the living-room sofa with a cup of black coffee in his hand.

The instant he saw my luggage, panic flashed through his eyes. He hid it quickly behind a mocking smile.

"What is this? Going all in on your little performance? You even packed a suitcase?" He took a sip of coffee, sounding completely certain. "I bet you won't make it out the front door."

I ignored him and walked straight toward it.

"Evelyn!" He finally lost his composure and stood. "If you walk through that door today, don't ever think about coming back!"

I opened the door. The cold morning wind struck my face, clearing my head completely.

I turned and gave him a brilliant smile.

"Adrian Shaw, I hope you go bankrupt soon."

Silence followed for several seconds.

Then came the sound of a coffee cup shattering behind me.