Vanessa felt like the luckiest woman in the whole world when she finally got married to the man she had been in love with secretly for seven years. If only she knew that she had just set herself up for drags and suffering... The elites barraged her with criticism at every chance they got. It was said that a country girl like her didn't deserve to be with such a distinguished man. Despite everything, Vanessa shut her ears and kept her eyes on Killian. All that mattered was that he was finally hers even though he didn't love her back. Vanessa was a firm believer that love can grow over time. She thought that if she treated Killian right, he would one day fall in love with her. But she received the greatest shocker when Killian continued to ignore her. It was as if she was pouring water into a basket. It wasn't until one day Vanessa realized that she was wasting her precious time. Even before she married Killian, she had it all. Money wasn't a problem for her. She had a pretty face, a killer body, and the charm boys died for. Why then should she continue to waste her youthful years on an emotionless robot? Vanessa filed for divorce and decided that they go their separate ways. It was a welcomed development for Killian until he saw her in the news after the divorce. His docile ex-wife was a whole new person. One moment she was dining with a tech mogul. And the next moment, she was rumored to be dating a fast-rising star. Jealousy engulfed Killian in a trice. He threw his phone to the wall and barked, "Fuck! That's my woman!" When they met again, Killian tried to move to her. But Vanessa just smiled politely and said, "Sir, I don't believe we have met. May I know who you are?" Killian couldn't believe his ears!
"Vanessa, what are you up to? Are you trying to run away from home?"
Just as Vanessa James was about to go downstairs with her suitcase, she heard her sister-in-law, Ella Bates, talking to her.
Instead of giving any responses, Vanessa spared her an indifferent glance and continued to go down the steps. When Vanessa reached downstairs, she happened to bump into her mother-in-law, Julia Bates, who always looked down upon her.
"Where are you going with a suitcase at this hour?" Julia asked with disdain laced in her gaze.
After getting married into the Bates family for three years, Vanessa knew that Julia was about to make things difficult for her.
If it was in the past, she would apologize and coax Julia carefully. However, things were different now. Since she no longer wanted to be with her husband, Killian Bates, how could she possibly put up with this bad-tempered woman anymore?
"Wherever. Don't worry, Mrs. Bates. I won't come back here again." Her voice was cold, and she was no longer as humble as before.
When Julia saw the sudden change in her attitude, her face darkened at once. "Vanessa, is this how you treat the elders?"
Vanessa raised her eyebrows. "I'm just treating you the same way you treat me."
Hearing that, Julia was bent out of shape. "Do you even still see me as your mother-in-law?"
Looking at Julia with a smile, Vanessa replied, "Sorry, you won't be my mother-in-law soon."
As soon as she finished speaking, a car honked from outside the villa.
"I'm leaving now. You can do whatever you want with the things I left in the room. I don't want them anymore. All that I ask is for you not to contact me again from now on." Dragging her suitcase with her slowly, she added, "The Bates are so disgusting."
Julia had yet to understand what Vanessa meant by saying that she would no longer be her daughter-in-law soon when she heard her calling the Bates disgusting. She flew into a rage at once. "Vanessa, are you crazy? I'm going to tell Killian that you-"
"Mom, did you see Vanessa? She was carrying her suitcase just now. Could it be that she wanted me to make her stay by walking past me on purpose?" As Ella descended the stairs, she saw Julia standing still at the front door, so she sauntered over, tugged at her mother's sleeve and asked, "Mom, what's wrong?"
Julia had a complicated expression on her face. If it was in the past, Vanessa would always yield to her whenever she mentioned Killian. However, today, Vanessa left decisively without looking back.
The sports car outside sped away. Julia walked out and only caught sight of its taillights.
"She... She left?" Ella followed suit and quirked her lips. "Whatever. Louise is back now. Even if Vanessa doesn't leave now, Killian will still drive her out sooner or later!"
Julia felt that her words made sense. Now that Louise Keillor was back, it was smart of Vanessa to leave on her own.
Sitting in the Porsche, Vanessa flipped through the divorce agreement. After reading the terms, she dropped her signature without any hesitation.
At the sight of that, her friend, Nicole Clarke, clicked her tongue. "That's it?" she asked while driving.
Vanessa snapped the cap on her pen. "Or what?"
Killian's first love was back. There was nothing else Vanessa could do.
Three years were neither too long nor too short. Vanessa used to think that she could warm up Killian's heart no matter how cold it was.
However, she was wrong. Louise was the only one he loved.
Vanessa felt that she was indeed shameless. Back then, she had forced Killian to marry her by using repaying her favor as the reason. For three years, she had trapped herself in a loveless marriage. Now that Louise was back, Vanessa would naturally have to give up her position as Killian's wife.
After all, Killian had been keeping his virginity for the sake of Louise.
Yes, throughout the three years, Killian had never made love to Vanessa, not even once. No outsiders knew about this, or else she would end up as a laughingstock. Anyway, three years of hopeless marriage was enough to quell her seven years of infatuation.
Vanessa covered her eyes with her hand. She didn't want Nicole to see her tears.
No matter how free and easy one could be, anyone would still feel sad when their ten years of love didn't receive a good ending.
Soon, the red sports car pulled up outside the company building. Raising her sunglasses, Nicole said, "We are here. Vanessa, go ahead and do whatever you want. I've got your back!" Then, Nicole blew a kiss to her.
Vanessa smiled, "All right. I'm entering now."
It was going to be difficult to toss the divorce agreement at Killian in a way that was both domineering and graceful at the same time.
With the agreement in her hand, Vanessa pushed open the door and got out of the car. It wasn't her first time coming to his company, Grandwalk Company, nor was it the first time she was treated perfunctorily by the receptionist. "Miss James, you can't enter without an appointment. Mr. Bates is very busy. If everyone can meet him without an appointment, what's the point of me as a receptionist?"
Even a receptionist had the guts to be disrespectful to her. In the past three years, she had never been called Mrs. Bates in his company. Clear enough, Killian had never taken her seriously.
Vanessa looked down, letting out a soft chuckle. "The staff training here is pretty bad. Why do I have to make an appointment to see Killian when I am his wife? It seems like being his wife is pretty boring."
She cast a cold glance at the receptionist before walking to the elevator.
It was the first time the receptionist had seen Vanessa behaving like this. After being stunned for a moment, she let out a snort. Nevertheless, she was worried that something would happen, so she immediately called to inform Killian's secretary about it.
Hence, Killian was aware of Vanessa's arrival.
"I'm not seeing her," he frowned.
There was a meeting that he needed to attend in another five minutes.
His secretary, Gavin Harris, hummed in acknowledgment and left. As soon as Gavin walked out of the office, he saw Vanessa coming over.
She had dressed herself well today, which made her look gentle and dignified. Gavin felt that she was somewhat different today.
"Gavin," Vanessa greeted him. Before Gavin could say anything, she directly entered Killian's office and said, "Excuse me, Mr. Bates. I need you to sign an agreement." She strode toward the man at the desk and put the divorce agreement in front of him. "Sign it."
To the public, she was the CEO's executive secretary. Behind closed doors, she was the wife he never officially acknowledged. Jenessa was elated when she learned that she was pregnant. But that joy was replaced with dread as her husband, Ryan, showered his affections on his first love. With a heavy heart, she chose to set him free and leave. When they met again, Ryan's attention was caught by Jenessa's protruding belly. "Whose child are you carrying?!" he demanded. But she only scoffed. "It's none of your business, my dear ex-husband!"
She was a world-renowned divine doctor, the CEO of a publicly traded company, the most formidable female mercenary, and a top-tier tech genius. Marissa, a titan with a plethora of secret identities, had hidden her true stature to marry a seemingly impoverished young man. However, on the eve of their wedding, her fiance, who was actually the lost heir to a wealthy dynasty, called off the engagement and subjected her to degradation and mockery. Upon the revelation of her concealed identities, her ex-fiance was left stunned and desperately pleaded for her forgiveness. Standing protectively before Marissa, an incredibly influential and fearsome magnate declared, "This is my wife. Who would dare try to claim her?"
Rejected by her mate, who had been her long-time crush, Jasmine felt utterly humiliated. Seeking solace, she headed to a party to drown her sorrows. But things took a turn for the worse when her friends issued a cruel dare: kiss a stranger or beg her mate for forgiveness. With no other choice, Jasmine approached a stranger and kissed him, thinking that would be the end of it. However, the stranger unexpectedly wrapped his arms around her waist and whispered in her ear, "You're mine!" He growled, his words sending shivers down her spine. And then, he offered her a solution that would change everything...
There was only one man in Raegan's heart, and it was Mitchel. In the second year of her marriage to him, she got pregnant. Raegan's joy knew no bounds. But before she could break the news to her husband, he served her divorce papers because he wanted to marry his first love. After an accident, Raegan lay in the pool of her own blood and called out to Mitchel for help. Unfortunately, he left with his first love in his arms. Raegan escaped death by the whiskers. Afterward, she decided to get her life back on track. Her name was everywhere years later. Mitchel became very uncomfortable. For some reason, he began to miss her. His heart ached when he saw her all smiles with another man. He crashed her wedding and fell to his knees while she was at the altar. With bloodshot eyes, he queried, "I thought you said your love for me is unbreakable? How come you are getting married to someone else? Come back to me!"
When they were kids, Derek saved Norah's life. Years later, after Derek ended up in a vegetative state from a car crash, Norah married him without a second thought and even used her medical knowledge to heal him. For two years, Norah was devoted, seeking his affection and looking to settle her life-saving debt. But when Derek's first love returned, Norah, faced with divorce, didn't hesitate to sign. Despite being labeled as forsaken, few knew of her true talents. She was a race car driver, a famed designer, a genius hacker, and a renowned doctor. Regretting his decision, Derek begged for her forgiveness. Just then, a charming CEO intervened, embracing Norah and declaring, "Back off! She's my wife!" Taken aback, Norah blurted out, "What did you say?"
Life was perfect until she met her boyfriend's big brother. There was a forbidden law in the Night Shade Pack that if the head Alpha rejected his mate, he would be stripped of his position. Sophia's life would get connected with the law. She was an Omega who was dating the head Alpha's younger brother. Bryan Morrison, the head Alpha, was not only a cold-blooded man but also a charming business tycoon. His name was enough to cause other packs to tremble. He was known as a ruthless man. What if, by some twist of destiny, Sophia's path were to intertwine with his?