Chapter 6 Divorce Lawyer
1046 Words
"Mr. Wilson, let me introduce myself. I'm Vincent Duncan, Miss Thornhill's divorce lawyer." Vincent was young and quite handsome.
Wealthy women often sought him for divorce cases, and he had built up considerable experience and a solid reputation. That's why Claudia chose him.
They had originally planned to discuss the divorce in a more suitable location, but Queenie got drunk at the club, and the staff called the most recent number in her call history to have Claudia pick her up.
As a gentleman, he offered to escort Claudia over. Unexpectedly, this led to a misunderstanding.
He is a lawyer, not a club male model. Although his status wasn't as high as Leo's, he still had his pride. Rumors of an affair with a divorce client could harm his career.
Leo cast a cold glance at the coat on Claudia.
Vincent smiled and explained. "Miss Thornhill's dress got dirty. I couldn't just ignore it." After all, she was his client. His explanation was quite appropriate.
Leo’s gaze shifted to Claudia, who remained silent, and a sudden understanding flickered in his eyes. He let out a derisive laugh. "Is this your new trick?"
"What?" Claudia was confused.
A mocking glint appeared in Leo's eyes. Knowing he was coming to see her, she deliberately touched a male model's chest. Seeing no reaction, she agreed to the divorce and then flirted with the lawyer to make him jealous.
If the lawyer hadn't been afraid of trouble and explained proactively, he might have actually cared a bit. But jealousy wasn't the issue; it was more of an annoyance.
No one in Sterlingville could tarnish Leo's reputation.
"Drop the games, Claudia. I will never be jealous of you, not in this lifetime." Leo had expected her to make a scene, perhaps even beg with tears in her eyes to reconsider the divorce before the judge’s final ruling. He had overestimated her.
Claudia’s eyes blazed with anger as she realized his arrogance. Did he really think she would go to such lengths to provoke him? Was she that desperate, that trivial in his eyes?
She opened her mouth to retort, but Leo was already turning away, seemingly done with her and her schemes.
"Le..." Claudia didn't want to be at a disadvantage and wanted to stop him, but at that moment, the newly sober Queenie staggered out. She had to attend to her friend first, supporting her as Queenie clung to her, whining.
"Claudia... Claudia... Claudie... Claudie... my head hurts, my head hurts," Queenie mumbled, her joy over Claudia’s impending freedom having driven her to drink excessively. Her stomach was empty from vomiting, but the headache was relentless.
"Are you really that happy about my divorce? And drinking yourself into this state?" Claudia joked.
"Why wouldn’t I be?" Queenie babbled, "Leo... isn't worth it... he's not a good person... he's a jerk."
"I know." Claudia felt deeply touched.
Her love-struck mind had kept her revolving around Leo for years, causing many friendships to fade away, leaving her with almost no friends.
Over the years, only Queenie had stood by her side, standing up for her and trying every possible way to help her. Now, even though she was the one escaping the misery, Queenie was also happy for her.
"Let's go, I'll take you home." Claudia supported Queenie, and the coat draped over her shoulder kept slipping off, so she had to take it off.
"Mr. Duncan. I’ve also stained your jacket. I’ll return a new one to you tomorrow." Earlier, while taking care of Queenie, Claudia accidentally got vomit on herself, and even after washing it with water, there were still large stains.
It happened to be white, and when wet, it was somewhat see-through. A few men had passed by earlier, eyeing her with ill intentions.
Vincent had lent her the coat out of courtesy, but since it had vomit on it, she couldn't return it directly and had to replace it with a new one.
"It’s fine, it’s just a jacket, not a big deal." Vincent waved it off, unconcerned.
It's just a coat, insignificant compared to the legal fees Claudia was paying. Besides, this was a divorce case involving the famous Mr. Wilson. If he won this case, his resume would likely get a significant boost.
"Thank you." Claudia agreed verbally but still decided to replace it with a new one tomorrow. She disliked owing anyone anything, just as much as she disliked others owing her.
*****
Vincent dropped them off at home and then left. Claudia looked at the person sleeping soundly on the bed, gave a helpless smile, and went into the bathroom to take a shower.
In a daze, she heard the phone ringing. She didn't pay it much attention and enjoyed a nice shower. After drying her hair and applying a face mask, she leisurely went to pick up the phone from the sofa. It was her mother calling.
Claudia's expression grew more serious. Her mother was probably calling because she knew about the divorce.
When Claudia decided to get married, her mother was against it. But eventually, she gave in and agreed. In just three short years, Claudia had suffered a lot in this marriage. She felt she had let her mother down, both three years ago and now.
But some things couldn’t be avoided anymore.
Claudia took a deep breath and dialed her mother's number. "Mom, it's so late. Haven’t you gone to bed yet?"
"Not yet, I was just thinking about you. Can you come back tomorrow?" Her mother's voice was soft, as though she had been crying.
Claudia’s heart ached with the thought of her mother’s worry. "Okay, I'll come back tomorrow. You should rest early tonight." Her eyes reddened as she said, "Mom, I'm sorry for always making you worry."
"It's okay because you're my precious. I just miss you, there’s nothing else. It’s getting late, you should rest now." The voice on the other side of the phone was as soft as ever.
"Okay, goodnight."
After hanging up, Claudia felt a weight settle heavily on her spirit. She knew she needed to appear more relaxed tomorrow, just to reassure her mom that she would soon be divorced, and the hardship would soon be over.
'Very soon...' She believed.
- Writer
