Chapter 3 One–Way Trip
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19 min left
As Caroline left the kindergarten and got into the car waiting outside, her phone rang.
It was a call from Caleb.
The urgent ringing felt like a death knell, so annoying and unsettling.
She silenced her phone, flooring the gas as she drove straight to the Martin Group.
Caleb was eager for a new wife, and Dominic wanted a new mother. Meanwhile, Caroline was more than ready to leave the selfish father and son.
Today would be the day to cut ties.
A while later, she parked outside the Martin Group and headed directly to the secretary’s office, handing her resignation letter to Edwin Hanson.
Edwin was stunned for a moment as he peered at the
resignation. “Ms. Warren, are you really resigning? You know Mr. Martin has to sign off on this, right?”
As the senior secretary of the Martin Group, Edwin was among the handful of people who grasped the complicated relationship. between Caroline and Caleb.
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Chapter 3 One–Way Trip
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Four years ago, after giving birth to Dominic, Caroline joined the company despite Caleb’s strong opposition. Thanks to Walter’s support, she landed one of the two senior secretary positions.
Noticing the doubt in Edwin’s eyes, Caroline gave a little smirk. “Caleb will sign it. After all, he’s been waiting for this for four years.”
Edwin’s mouth opened slightly. The resignation letter in his hands felt as heavy as a boulder.
He’d never thought he’d live to see the day Caroline would leave.
At first, Edwin doubted Caroline’s abilities. He thought she was just a pretty face with no real substance. But she kept proving him wrong time and again.
Apart from work–related interactions, she’d never deliberately tried to get close to Caleb.
Also, Caroline handled important projects with impressive skills and squashed the rumors.
Even though Caroline was Caleb’s wife, she never used that status for personal gain. Instead, she chose to work hard and shoulder her responsibilities.
Over the past four years, Edwin had witnessed her efforts and sacrifices up close. He could tell that she truly loved Caleb.
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Chapter 3 One–Way Trip
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With her talent, she could easily land a better–paying job. Yet, she stuck around at the Martin Group and put up with Caleb’s cold shoulder.
Now, it was clear that something had gone horribly wrong between them.
Edwin stared at the resignation letter for a while and then finally called Caleb.
He spoke up, “Mr. Martin, Ms. Warren wants to resign.
Caleb sneered, his voice oozing contempt, “Resign? She’s just a small fry. Handle her resignation like anyone else’s. No special treatment! Is she trying to get at me with this? What a dirty trick!”
“Mr. Martin, I don’t think Ms. Warren is joking this time…”
“You really think she’d give up so easily?” Caleb cut Edwin off sharply.
After ending the call, Caleb checked the Instagram post Caroline had just posted. His face darkened as he narrowed his
eyes.
“What’s wrong, Caleb?” Michelle asked softly, looking pale after the earlier ruckus.
With her eyes glistening with unshed tears, she bit her lip.
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Chapter 3 One–Way Trip
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“Caroline still won’t forgive me, will she? Maybe I should go to the company and apologize to her in person tomorrow. I don’t want to ruin anything between you two because of me.”
She was sitting on the hospital bed, her voice barely a whisper.
Caleb slipped his phone into his pocket and shook his head. “Michelle, don’t be such a softie. You’ve done nothing wrong, and you don’t owe her an apology.”
In his eyes, Caroline’s resignation was just a ploy to box him in and gain the upper hand.
A scheming woman like her would never give up something that precious.
He fancied himself the only one who truly grasped Caroline’s boundless ambition and greed.
Michelle bit her lip and pecked at her phone. “Caleb, I want to take a little nap.”
“Sure thing. I’ll have a video conference and be right here when you wake up. Then I’ll take you home,” he said.
Caleb pulled the covers up snugly around her, then plopped down on the nearby sofa with his laptop.
With her back to him, Michelle quickly tapped out a message on
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Chapter 3 One–Way Trip
her phone and hit send: [Plan changed. Do it now.]
***
19 min left
Caroline spent the whole afternoon working on handover tasks.
When she was finally off the clock, she fished out her phone and posted on Instagram: [Resigned and in the middle of the handover.]
After serving as Caleb’s senior secretary for four years, Caroline had established a rock–solid network. Her phone was chock–full of contacts of top brass from various companies.
That Instagram post she’d just shared wasn’t just for her colleagues. It was also a heads–up to the entire business circle, telling everyone else not to reach out to her from now on.
Not long after she hit “post,” a bunch of familiar faces started sliding into her DMs with questions. Caroline shot back a few off–the–cuff replies.
But before she could even settle into her car, her phone started buzzing again.
Glancing at the number on the screen, she couldn’t help but bite her lip.
Never had she thought it was a call from Anthony Garcia, Caleb’s nemesis.
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Chapter 3 One–Way Trip
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In the past, she’d snatched some clients from his company, and he’d never missed a chance to take a dig at her whenever they ran into each other.
She believed he was just calling to rub it in.
The phone kept ringing.
Caroline pressed her lips together, but eventually, she caved and hit the answer button.
“Mr. Garcia, if you’re calling to gloat, cut it out!”
“Hey, chill out a bit. I’m here to recruit you! Ms. Warren, I’ll offer you triple your current salary if you join the Garcia Group!”
Anthony’s voice came across as sincere.
To make sure Caroline bought it, he continued, “Look, you’ve nabbed a few deals from me, and yeah, I wasn’t always the nicest. But that’s just how things work. I really admire your skills. Since Caleb no longer appreciates your talent, I’d be thrilled to step in.”
At his words, Caroline felt tears pricking at her eyes.
After her wild night with Caleb, Walter kept it under wraps, saying the skeletons should be kept in the closet for good. So, he
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Chapter 3 One–Way Trip
forced Caleb to marry her.
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Despite her amazing talents and all the big–time projects she’d landed for him, Caleb still brushed her off. To him, all her hard work was just her way of currying his favor.
He hated Walter’s meddling, and that hostility spilled over onto her, the woman he’d been forced to tie the knot with.
Caroline responded, her voice a bit hoarse, thick with emotion, “Mr. Garcia, I’ve been working like a machine in the past four years. Right now, I seriously need a break.”
“No sweat! Rest as long as you want. I’m a patient guy,” Anthony assured her.
After hanging up the phone, Caroline let out a deep breath and glanced back at her Instagram page. Anthony’s comment was like a neon sign among the rest.
He said: [Ms. Warren, the Garcia Group’s doors are always open for you! Name your price. I can foot the bill!]
She let out a soft chuckle and hit the gas, heading home.
Once she reached the villa, Caroline made a beeline for her room and started wiping out every trace of her life there.
Before she left, she grabbed Caleb’s bank card, figuring it was
pay for six years of slaving away for him.
her
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She handed a file with the divorce papers to the maid, Amanda Clader, and said, “This is an important document. Make sure Mr. Marlin gets it.”
Amanda didn’t notice that Caroline had switched to the cold and distant form of address, “Mr. Marlin.”
Instead, she asked with a puzzled tone, “Mrs. Martin, are you going on a business trip?”
Caroline shot a look at her small suitcase and gave a sarcastic smile. “Yeah, just a business trip.”
It was a one–way trip, and she would never come back.
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