The air in the study instantly froze.]]
I slowly turned around, my gaze bypassing Emilia’s smug face to land directly on Blake.[]
“Is this what you want?“]
He stood there, his expression constantly shifting. His eyelashes trembled, and his eyes began to wander. Finally, he avoided my gaze.]
That moment of silence spoke louder than any words]
Mr. Rothwell suddenly slammed the desk and stood up: “Nonsense! Riley has been with the Rothwell family for twenty years. Even if she’s not the daughter in law, she’s still practically family!“[]
“Dad!” Blake finally spoke, “Emilia is right. Since we’ve made a decision, we should make a clean break.“[]
I looked at him and suddenly smiled.[]
That calm smile made Blake visibly startled.]
Mr. Rothwell, since this is Blake’s decision, I respect it.“[]
1 scanned everyone in the study, finally resting my gaze on Blake.[]
He instinctively turned away, fingers nervously fidgeting with his sleeve.[]
“Mr. Rothwell, since we’ve come to this point, some accounts need to be settled.“]
My voice was soft, yet it made the entire study suddenly silent.]
“I’ve been handling the family’s jewelry business since I was eighteen–exactly five years now.”
v.“O
Emilia let out a scoff, but Blake silenced her with a look.
“The first year, my jewelry designs won a national award, with sales of $300 million and a net profit of $40 million.“[]
“The second year, won an international award, with sales of $800 million and a net profit of $120
“The third year, I brought Rothwell jewelry into the European market…“[]
million.”
I listed each achievement one by one. With each figure I reported, Mr. Rothwell’s face grew more
“All told, over five years. I’ve created a net profit of over $2 billion for the Rothwell family“]
Blake bit his lip lightly. He certainly knew what these numbers meant.[]
solemn.]
In my previous life, the Rothwell family’s rise to become one of Westcliff’s top elite families was built on the foundation of these projects.[]
“The Rothwell family raised me for twenty years, and I earned them $2 billion,” my tone remained calm. “Today, we’re even.“[]
“The Rothwell family doesn’t owe me, and I don’t owe the Rothwell family.“]
“I’ll leave with nothing, and we’ll have no further connection.“]
Emilia suddenly laughed coldly: “That sounds nice, but is this really leaving with nothing?“[]
She stepped forward, roughly tagging at my dress.]
“This haute couture dress must be worth over $15,000, right?“[]
She grabbed my sleeve, exposing my Richard Mille watch.]
“Tsk, tak, this women’s watch costs at least $100,000
Then she pulled out my car keys from my purse.
“And this limited edition supercar, worth over a million.“]
“All of these–which one wasn’t bought with Rothwell money?“]
I allowed her to pull and humiliate me, my gaze locked on Blake []
this nails were digging into his palm, but he maintained his silence.
25.0%
Blake,” I asked softly, “are all these years of our relationship truly worth nothing?“]
His eyelashes trembled slightly as he opened his mouth. But in the end, he said nothing.
I thought that in this new life, I had let go.[]
Yet at this moment, my heart felt like it had been carved out, leaving me almost unable to breathe from the pain.
Fighting to control my emotions, I began to undo my watch strap.
The metal clasp made a crisp “click” sound, especially jarring in the dead silence of the study.[]
Riley!” Mr. Rothwell stood up abruptly. “You don’t have to do this!”
“Mr. Rothwell,” I interrupted him, continuing to remove my watch.
“Rules are rules.”
Purse, watch, high heels… I removed each item, neatly stacking them on the floor.[]
Finally, even my stockings came off, leaving me barefoot on the cold marble floor.
Emilia’s face was filled with triumphant satisfaction, while Blake’s face had gone pale.]]
As I began to unbutton my dress, he finally turned away.
“Enough!”
Mr. Rothwell could no longer contain himself.]
“Riley, stop this!”
I just calmly folded my dress and placed it on top of my
“From now on, I am just myself.“[]
“My name is Riley North. no longer the Rothwell family’s betrothed!”
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37
