Chapter 7

Elena

Another flash of lightning split the sky. Terror seized my brain, and I curled up into a ball like a frightened quail.

The next second, William scooped me up in his arms.

I couldn't remember the last time we'd been this close. But right now, in this moment, I grabbed onto his coat without thinking.

The villa door opened and shut behind us, cutting off the sound of thunder and rain.

My panic slowly faded. I climbed down from his arms, keeping my face blank.

"You initiated that. I didn't cross any lines."

Except for those mandatory monthly dinners, he'd always been repulsed by my touch. The few times I'd worked up the courage to approach him, all I got was a cold "have some self-respect."

Now that the divorce papers were sitting in his office, I wasn't about to let him paint me as some desperate woman throwing herself at him.

William's expression went dark instantly.

He grabbed my chin, trapping me between his arms.

"Cross lines? Elena, when you were climbing into my bed wearing basically nothing, you didn't seem too worried about boundaries."

It was like someone had slapped me across the face twice. My cheeks burned hot.

I stared at him in shock and fury, my lips trembling.

"William, we were married then. I thought I was fulfilling my duties as a wife. You don't need to make it sound so disgusting!"

I tried so hard to hold it together, but tears spilled down my face anyway.

I'd been an orphan my whole life. Mary had been kind, but life at St. Mary's Group Home had been hard.

When I married William, I really thought my suffering was finally over. That good things were coming.

I had no idea that behind one hell was just another, deeper one.

Before, I'd just been poor. Just struggling. Just tired.

After marriage, I'd lost my dignity and pride too, piece by piece.

William laughed, but there was no humor in it.

"We were married then, but not now? What exactly are you playing at?"

What he really wanted to ask was whether Jax getting out of prison meant I was ready to run straight back to him without a second thought.

But William's pride wouldn't let him say it out loud.

Jax Miller. An illegitimate son nobody wanted. An ex-con. A bottom-feeder. Did he really deserve to be considered William Holloway's rival?

I closed my eyes.

Fighting with him wasn't going to help anything.

When I opened them again, I'd regained control.

"Mr. Holloway, that's all in the past. Let's talk about business. I came here to propose a deal."

William had been burning with rage over Jax's existence, but my words seemed to cool him down.

He let me go and sat down at the tea table, starting to prepare tea with deliberate, unhurried movements.

My eyes followed his long fingers as they worked.

William was skilled at tea ceremony. It was one of his hobbies when he had nothing better to do.

Very few people in this world had the privilege of drinking tea he'd prepared himself.

I understood. He wanted to hear my proposal. So I sat down across from him.

I knew I was out of my league trying to negotiate with William. There was no point in beating around the bush, so I got straight to it.

"I'll defend Chloe. I'll clear her name and prove she wasn't a mistress. In exchange, you have to promise you'll never touch St. Mary's Group Home. And you have to leave me alone."

William's hand paused, the teacup halfway to his lips.

"And?"

He didn't agree. He didn't refuse. He just asked this confusing question.

I thought it over.

Maybe what I was offering wasn't enough?

Fine. I could fix that.

"I'll agree to divorce you and give up any claim to property."

The Holloway fortune was enough to make anyone jealous, but I knew I had no right to it.

Once I was free of William, I could make my own money with my own skills. I could still have a decent life.

The teacup shattered in William's hand.

Brown tea mixed with bright red blood, dripping down his fingers.

I jumped, startled. Almost on instinct, I pulled out the clean handkerchief I always carried and reached for his hand to clean the wound.

My fingers brushed against his cool skin. Reality hit me, and I jerked my hand back.

"You should have the staff look at that."

I kept my head down, missing the flash of disappointment in his eyes.

"The staff? Elena, we're not divorced yet. You're still my wife."

His condescending tone made my earlier sincerity feel like a complete joke.

"William, I'm not playing games here. The divorce—"

I wanted to tell him the papers were already at his office, but suddenly he exploded with rage. He swept everything off the tea table. Cups and pots crashed to the floor.

I clamped my mouth shut, terrified.

"Is this little game fun for you? Playing hard to get? Let me guess the next move. You'll run crying to Grandma so she'll force me to apologize and beg you to stay? Elena, stop it. I'm tired of this."

He stared at me with cold indifference, judge and jury wrapped into one.

I never expected this reaction from him.

I'd thought he'd jump at the chance to divorce me. After all, it was something he'd wanted to do for a long time but couldn't because of various complications.

While I stood there frozen, William had already reached the door.

"Handle Chloe's case. Come back to work in Holloway Group's legal department. Drop these pathetic schemes, and I'll pretend none of this happened."

He threw those words at me and strode out.

I stood there stunned, a bitter smile forming on my lips.

Pretend none of this happened?

Could he pretend my late-stage breast cancer never happened too?

The thought made my chest ache again, that familiar stabbing pain.

I steadied myself against the tea table and slowly stood up, taking one step at a time toward the door.

Martha, one of the housekeepers, came rushing back just then. The look she gave me was full of contempt.

"Mrs. Holloway, if you can't live without Mr. Holloway, then at least do your job as a housewife and take care of the home! What kind of respectable married woman stays out all night for days? If you can't be a proper Mrs. Holloway, then step aside and let someone else have a turn!"

I'd been hearing this kind of mockery for three years.

Before, I never fought back. William didn't like me anyway, and the staff worked for the Holloway family. Speaking up would only humiliate me more.

But now?

"Let someone else have a turn? Like who? Your daughter who just graduated high school? Keep dreaming."

I coldly exposed Martha's pathetic fantasy, and her face turned bright red.

"How dare you slander my daughter! She just turned eighteen. She's still a child. How can you be so cruel?"

Martha started shouting, getting more and more worked up.

She was used to treating me like the pushover Mrs. Holloway I used to be. She thought if she yelled loud enough, I'd back down.

But I just waited patiently for her to tire herself out. When she finally stopped, I spoke again.

"I have evidence. Someone recorded the conversation between you and your daughter, where you two plotted how she could seduce William and get into his bed. They sent it to me."

Martha turned into a strangled chicken right before my eyes. Her eyes bulged out, but no sound came from her throat.

I checked the time. It was already past eleven at night, but I still wasn't planning to stay.

I'd had enough of living as Mrs. Holloway. I didn't want to die with that title attached to my name.