Chapter 2 I'll Pick You Up Tonight

The marriage registration took less than ten minutes, yet it marked the end of her previous twenty-four years of life.

Valerie clutched the marriage certificate in her hand, her heart pounding so hard she could barely breathe.

She had definitely acted on impulse.

"Here's my number, honey."

Howard handed her a slip of paper with a number on it, emphasizing the last word with a playful glint in his eyes.

When their eyes met, Valerie's heart skipped a beat. After exchanging contact information, she tried to appear calm as she left first.

Joseph, standing nearby, hesitated before speaking, "Mr. Carter, what about Mrs. Nora Carter? How are you going to explain this to her?"

Howard shot him a cold glance and spoke slowly, "Grandma only insisted on marriage. Did she specifically say it had to be Ava Davis?"

"Since she doesn't want to, there are plenty of other women who do!"

Joseph was too scared to say anything else, but he couldn't help thinking that the Davis family was in for a rough time.

When Valerie got home, Wayne finally sent her a message.

[Valerie, I can't marry you. She's back.]

Valerie stared at the belated text, tears welling up in her eyes. She picked up her phone and typed out a response, but in the end, all she could manage was: [It's okay.]

Valerie packed up all her belongings. One suitcase was enough to hold everything from the past few years. She took one last look at what had been her "home" and then left without looking back.

Outside, the city was bustling with traffic, but Valerie had only one thought.

"Wayne, from now on, our paths will never cross again."

That night, Valerie had a restless sleep in a hotel. When she woke up, her phone showed eighteen missed calls and over 99 messages from her father, Daniel Brown.

[What happened with you and Wayne? Why did he call off the engagement?]

[I've raised you all these years, and for what? You're useless, just like your dead mother.]

[His family came last night and took back all the money they had given us. Where am I supposed to get the money to pay them back?]

[Do you know I still owe two hundred thousand dollars?]

[Valerie, damn it, you're nothing but a burden!]

Each message was enough to make her feel suffocated.

No one cared if she was hurt or struggling. Not even her own younger brother, William Brown, who was furious that she had lost their "meal ticket." They only ever cared about themselves. Valerie knew there was no place for her in that family anymore.

Feeling relieved that she had already moved out, Valerie composed herself and headed to work.

Aurelia Holdings was one of the top three companies in Emerald City, already listed among the Fortune 500.

With her impressive resume and tenacious personality, she had managed to carve out a place for herself in this competitive environment.

Just as Valerie entered the company building and hadn't even had a chance to get into the elevator, she was suddenly grabbed tightly from behind by a man.

Before she could react, a slap landed squarely on her face.

"Fuck, you think ignoring my messages and not coming home means I can't find you?"

"Are you cheating on Wayne? Seducing some other guy? Why else would the Smith family call off the engagement? Weren't you supposed to marry because Mrs. Smith wanted it before she died?"

"If you weren't such a slut, why would they cancel the wedding?"

Daniel's words were harsh, completely disregarding Valerie's dignity.

Her hair was disheveled, her clothes were torn, and her once delicate face now bore the imprint of five red fingers.

"This is my workplace. If you have something to say, wait until I'm off the clock."

Valerie took a deep breath, the pain making her gasp, but she didn't shed a tear.

The so-called fatherly love had long been eroded by years of gambling debts. She was merely a pawn for Daniel to exchange for gambling money.

"You're putting on airs now? If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have grown up, gone to school, or gotten this good job."

"Now that you're capable, you think I'm a burden? You think you can just ignore me?"

Valerie took another deep breath, seeing more and more people gathering around. She had no choice but to fight back. "Daniel, I was able to go to school because my mom worked herself to the bone to earn my tuition."

"She worked herself to death to support my education."

"No matter what I studied or what job I have, it has nothing to do with you."

"If you cared so much about being a father, where were you all these years?"

Valerie finished speaking and called for security, "Get this lunatic out of here."

"Valerie, I'm your father. No matter how useless I am, we share the same blood. You'll never get rid of me!"

His curses continued, but Valerie's heart was calm.

The year her mother died, she had cried at the cemetery for three days and nights. Later, her father forced her to drop out of school and work in a bar.

If it hadn't been for Wayne protecting her, she would have ended up as a bar girl.

Thinking of Wayne still made Valerie's heart ache. It wasn't until she reached her desk that she could finally catch her breath.

This job was her only and last safety net.

She had to work harder to secure her position as the project manager.

"Ms. Brown, are you okay? The client representative is already here, in Conference Room A."

Her assistant kindly reminded her, handing her a compact to touch up her makeup.

"Thank you."

Valerie quickly tidied her clothes and refreshed her makeup.

Aurelia Holdings had been negotiating with the Carter Group for three months. They had finally agreed to send someone over to discuss the proposal in detail. She had to seize this opportunity.

Outside the conference room, Valerie knocked lightly on the door and walked in with a smile.

But when she saw the man in front of her, her smile froze.

Howard was dressed in a tailored suit, his cold demeanor even more imposing than the day before. When he saw Valerie, a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes, and he glanced at his watch.

"Ms. Brown, you're three minutes late."

Valerie's heart leaped into her throat. She hadn't expected the man she married yesterday to be the Carter Group's representative. She suddenly felt very nervous.

"Hello, I'm Valerie, the project manager from Aurelia Holdings, nice to meet you."

"I'm Howard, the Carter Group's business representative."

He smiled, his eyes crinkling like a fox.

Valerie's face turned bright red.

What was supposed to be a half-hour presentation stretched into an hour due to her nerves. To her surprise, Howard agreed to sign the contract on the spot.

"Mr. Carter, don't you want to review it first?"

This deal had taken the company three months to negotiate without success. The higher-ups had given it to Valerie as a challenge.

And he just signed it?

"I trust my own people."

Howard looked up, their eyes meeting. His deep gaze was like a vast ocean, making it hard for her to breathe.

Especially the phrase "my own people," which made Valerie feel both embarrassed and flustered.

Before leaving, Howard stared at her flushed face with a meaningful look.

"I'll pick you up tonight. I'll text you the license plate number later."