Chapter 5
When I returned home, the large house was completely dark. Every corner held memories of our lives together. We couldn’t bear to part with the old furniture we brought up from the basement; they weren’t valuable, but they were meaningful to us.
Aside from my clothes, I packed nothing else. I was stuffing items into two boxes when I heard the electric lock click open.
Grady Lopez staggered in, obviously drunk. Yet, even in this state, he remembered to call Catherine to check if she was home safely.
“Hey, Catherine, are you home yet?”
“Yeah, I’m home. Just as long as you’re safe…”
He walked in, phone in hand. Once he hung up, his gaze landed coldly on me, and the smell of alcohol lingered in the air.
“What’s all this? Planning on running away?”
“You think it’s about not celebrating your birthday? I can make it up to you.”
He didn’t get it. My disillusionment wasn’t just about a missed birthday. It was about the child we lost. It was about everything.
I was squatting by the suitcase when his words forced me to stand. My legs had gone numb, making it hard to straighten up.
“If you have feelings for someone else, Grady, just say it. I won’t hold on to you.”
His gaze turned threatening. He stepped forward, grabbing my wrist.
“What are you implying-accusing me of cheating?”
“I haven’t blamed you for losing our child, yet you try to put the blame on me.”
Grady laughed quietly, but I felt his anger rising.
“Leaving me? Where do you think you’ll go?”
“A divorced woman who’s had a miscarriage-who would want you besides me?”
His grip tightened, and I cried out.
“It’s none of your business. Let me go.”
His face darkened, and he flung my arm away, a spark of anger in his eyes.
“Who cares about you.”
“Grady, let’s get a divorce.”
I was exhausted, not wanting us to keep hurting each other.
His eyes were shadowed, his retreating steps heavy.
“In your dreams.”
The door slammed as Grady left the house. I didn’t know where he would go-perhaps back to the office or to his secretary, Catherine Elliott. I didn’t care.
The next morning. I went to the company to find Grady. Holding my resignation letter tightly, I took one last look at the company we
built together, memories rushing in. But things had changed. I sighed, stepped off the elevator, and approached Grady’s office door.
I was about to knock when Skyla, his assistant, blocked me.
“Ma’am… Ma’am, the CEO instructed me not to let anyone in without his permission.”
I turned, frowning, “Not even his wife?”
Skyla looked uneasy, but her job was to enforce Grady’s orders.
“It’s okay. I’ll deal with the consequences.”
I pushed open the office door and found Catherine leaning on Grady’s shoulder, the two laughing together. She sprang up quickly when she saw me, guilt in her eyes.
“Matilda, it’s not what it looks like…”
I ignored her, slamming my resignation letter on Grady’s desk.
“Grady, I’m here to resign.”
He picked up the letter without reading it.
“It’s my fault. Matilda must dislike me, which is why she’s quitting.”
Catherine’s voice shook a bit.
“Matilda, if you hate me so much, I’ll leave on my own. Please don’t put Grady in a tough spot.”
I sneered, “Grady… how cozy.”
Grady signed the resignation letter without comment.
“As you wish, but don’t come back regretful.”
He thought I was bluffing with the resignation letter. Grady played along, always challenging me.
He never realized I truly intended to leave him.
“Sign this too.”
When Grady saw the divorce agreement, he looked up at me, shocked, his voice icy.
“What’s this supposed to mean?”
“Exactly what it says. Let’s get a divorce.”
