Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Jessica closed her eyes for a moment. She hadn’t planned to lay it all out so soon. “Brian, you want to know who he is, right? Fine, I’ll tell you. He’s the divorce attorney I hired.”
Brian’s cold expression faltered slightly, as if he doubted what he had just heard. He pondered, ‘She really wants to divorce me? Is this some kind of joke?‘
“The printed divorce papers will be delivered soon. All you have to do is sign them, Brian,” Jessica said, then turned and walked straight toward the door. Before leaving, she gave a cold glance at Madeline, whose eyes were flickering with poorly hidden excitement.
After Jessica left, Brian’s expression shifted completely. He thought, ‘Jessica actually told me she wants a divorce? This is ridiculous!
Brian had thought about a lot of things, but he had never considered the possibility that Jessica would want a divorce.
Even when those photos of her with another man were placed right in front of him, even when he saw how close they looked and felt sick with jealousy, divorce had never crossed his mind.
“Mr. Atkinson, are you alright?” Madeline tried to suppress the joy bubbling inside her.
She mused, ‘All my planning these past few days wasn’t for nothing. I finally pushed Jessica to ask for a divorce on her own. I used to think she was shameless enough to cling to Brian no matter what. Turns out, I was wrong!
Madeline put on a concerned look. “Why would Jessi suddenly want a divorce? Mr. Atkinson, you’re such a great man.”
As she spoke, she seemed to realize she’d said something inappropriate and blushed shyly. Watching Brian’s expression carefully, she asked in a soft voice, “Mr. Atkinson, now that Jessi wants a divorce, what are you going to do?”
“Divorce? Not a chance.” Brian paused. “She’s just saying that out of anger.”
Clearly, he didn’t take Jessica’s words seriously.
Madeline felt her heart sink a little as she realized the one who didn’t want a divorce wasn’t Jessica–it was Brian.
“By the way, why are you here during work hours?” Brian asked.
“Oh, I…” Madeline’s expression shifted slightly.
In her arms, Jacob clung to her neck and mumbled with a pout, “None of you came to see me. I asked Maddie to come.”
Brian’s eyes darkened slightly, but he didn’t say anything more.
At night, in Jessica’s bedroom, her best friend Gabriela’s voice came through the phone with a playful whine. “Jessi, can’t you just book a flight for tomorrow and come back?
“Why do you have to wait for more than ten days? It feels like forever. I miss you so much, you jerk.”
Jessica’s eyes turned slightly red. She knew she had neglected her true friends over the past few years. She immediately promised to make it up to Gabriela when she got back and apologize properly for not being there all this time.
The conversation started with some heartfelt sharing, then naturally shifted to work.
“No matter what, Jessica, welcome back. Your comeback is going to shake up the international illustration world for sure.” Gabriela sounded genuinely excited on the other end of the call. She knew how talented Jessica was in this field.
Jessica had risen to fame with a single painting when she was just a teenager, winning the 24th International Illustration Championship in one go.
After that, each of her works had drawn more attention than the last. Unfortunately, she had suddenly disappeared from the scene seven years ago.
Jessica’s lips twitched. “Gabi, I’m afraid with this comeback, I’ll have to stay behind the scenes for a while.”
She ran her hand over her belly. The words about the pregnancy reached her lips but didn’t come out. She wanted to tell Gabriela in person when they met. This baby would belong to Jessica alone.
“No way. Staying behind the scenes would be such a waste of your talent.” Gabriela didn’t understand. In her eyes, Jessica was meant to be a rising
star.
The bedroom door violently burst open with a loud bang. Brian stormed in like a gust of cold wind.
His face was grim as he threw the divorce papers in front of Jessica. “Jessica, what is this supposed to mean? A divorce agreement that says you’re not taking a single cent, just walking away with nothing?”
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5:58 AM
Chapter 12
Brian gave a cold laugh and spoke icily, “You’re not even taking Jacob?”
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