Chapter 3A Decade of Standing In: The True Heiress Becomes His Unreplaceable

Adrian didn’t come home that night. I wasn’t surprised.

My head throbbed all night as I drafted a divorce agreement I was finally satisfied with.

The wrong baby, taken home, abandoned, then forced to marry… I never had a choice in any of it. But this, at least, could be my decision.

At 9 AM, Adrian called.

“Last night…”

“Adrian, come have breakfast! I made you sunny-side up eggs, just the way you like them!”

Livia’s voice chirped in the background as he spoke, and a wave of irritation washed over me.

“I’m not interested,” I said, my voice cold.

I had already imagined a hundred different scenarios for their night together. I didn’t want to hear a single one of them confirmed.

“Amy, do you have to be so cold?”

I waited in silence for him to continue, but Livia’s voice drew closer.

“Adrian, don’t fight with my sister. If she really can’t stand having me around, I can just leave again for another ten years.”

“That won’t happen,” Adrian soothed her, his voice gentle. Then, back to me: “There’s a family dinner at the Ashwoods’ later. I expect you to be there.”

“You have to come, sister!” Livia called out playfully.

The line went dead. I gripped my phone, my knuckles white.

Go? Of course I would go. My parents, my husband… what was there to be afraid of?

Two hours later, I arrived at the Ashwood villa, dressed to kill in a couture gown.

Livia, however, was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, barefoot, excitedly showing the three of them a thick stack of photos from her travels. She was in her pajamas, her hair loose and tousled.

When she saw me, she froze for a second, then burst out laughing, covering her mouth. “Sister, it’s just a family dinner. What’s with the battle armor?”

“Don’t tell me you’re trying to compete with me over a meal?”

I faltered, my hands clenching into fists. But I forced a small, disdainful smile to my lips.

“Oh, please. That ‘no-makeup’ look on your face must have taken some effort.”

“Unlike you, I have an image to maintain. If a reporter snaps a photo of Mrs. Thorne looking sloppy, it reflects poorly on the family.”

“You!” Livia shot up from the sofa, her eyes turning red, tears welling up perfectly. “You’re nothing but a thief who stole my life while I was gone! What right do you have to flaunt it in my face?”

Coming from her, the girl who had lived my life, the irony was almost comical.

I glanced at my flustered parents and threw my head back, laughing. “Hahaha! Between the two of us, who is the real thief?”

“When you were happy, you were Miss Ashwood, heiress to the family fortune. When you were unhappy, you were just Livia, a free spirit who had to live her own life.”

“You got to just walk away from it all, so why was I the one left to clean up this mess and go through with this goddamn marriage?”

“Amy Ashwood!”

Adrian, who had been silent until now, roared my name.

“Do you have to make your regret so painfully obvious?”

His eyes were bloodshot. He stormed toward me, his right hand raised high.

I lifted my chin, meeting his glare without flinching. Let the slap come. It would be the perfect way to wake me from the ten-year dream of being Mrs. Thorne.

“Adrian, don’t!” Livia cried, throwing her arms around him from behind, her voice choked with emotion. “We made our feelings clear last night. That’s enough for me.”

“I couldn’t bear it if you fought with my sister because of me.”

Made our feelings clear? Why wasn’t he pushing her away?

My mind was a chaotic mess. The words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop them. “You’re only brave enough to act tough in front of me, Adrian Thorne. In front of her, you’re nothing but a well-behaved dog!”

SLAP!

The blow finally landed.

From behind Adrian’s back, Livia peeked out, a triumphant smirk on her face.

“Amy,” my mother whispered, rushing over, her trembling hands reaching for my face.

“Get away from me!” I screamed, stumbling back, putting distance between us.

Then I fixed my eyes on Adrian, my voice low and steady. “Mr. Thorne, I want a divorce. And for ten years of my life, two billion dollars seems fair.”

Adrian’s pupils contracted. He stood frozen, his gaze burning into me.