Chapter 3
I remained silent, hung up the phone, and stared into his eyes.
He glared back, trying to stare me down, but eventually collapsed onto the sofa in defeat.
“I did what you asked… what more do you want?”
“Did I tell you to humiliate yourself in public? Don’t you have anything to explain to me?”
Ethan opened his mouth but said nothing.
“I know what you want to say. You want to tell me there’s nothing between you, that everything is innocent.”
“But let me ask you, why did you fire your previous assistant just for leaning against you?”
“You give her a million–dollar bracelet. What do you think that represents?”
“Ethan, you’re not someone who doesn’t understand the weight of
your actions.”
“Your constant indulgence of her is why she dares to challenge me.“”
Ethan’s expression grew increasingly strained as I pressed on.
“I’ve seen her resume. She has no experience in appraisal.,How did she get a job at the auction house?”
“You’re using her to remember your lost love. You’ve found emotional solace in her. You’re reminiscing about your time with Emma through her. Am I right, Ethan?”
Ethan finally lost control of his emotions and buried his face in his hands.
“Victoria, stop… please stop…”
I moved his hands away and cupped his tear–streaked face.
“Ethan, I love you. That’s why these things hurt and anger me. Do you love me?”
12:54
A Million Dollar Betrayal: The Tycoon’s Wife Strikes Back.
19%
Chapter 3
He whispered softly: “Yes.”
Satisfied with his answer, I took the diary from a nearby drawer and gently placed it in Ethan’s arms.
“I love you, so I would never damage what you cherish most. But similarly, Ethan, my love has limits. Don’t disappoint me again.”
Ethan pulled me into a tight embrace, then suddenly pressed me down onto the bed.
A tremor ran up my spine, making me shiver involuntarily. My reaction seemed to excite him. My expensive silk nightgown tore under his hands, and as our bare skin touched, I tasted blood on my lips.
“Remember…” I gripped the back of his neck, my knuckles white, whispering in his ear between breaths, “you only get one chance.”
His response was almost violent, a hoarse promise rumbling from his throat:
“There won’t be a next time.”
The news that Sophia Morgan had been slapped by Ethan in front of clients spread like
wildfire.
Her standing at the auction house plummeted.
No one would say a word to her face, but her increasingly marginalized work assignments and the subtle looks from colleagues made it clear to Sophia that her days of favor were
over.
The auction business is all about reading the room. After Ethan unhesitatingly signed her disciplinary report when it reached his office, the ostracism became even more obvious.
Sophia was demoted from appraiser to appraiser’s assistant, and along with her position, her salary and benefits dropped too.
Her performance deteriorated day by day, with errors both large and small mounting up, until she finally reached the standard for termination.
Ethan’s assistant Jackson took the initiative to send Sophia a termination agreement.
12:54 C
A Million Dollar Betrayal. The Tycoon’s Wife Strikes Back
2.2%
Chapter 3
But I never expected she could still pull something off.
Light filtered through the floor–to–ceiling windows, casting a cold white glow across Ethan’s
office.
Sophia stood in Ethan’s office wearing a white linen dress that clashed with the modern
style of the entire office.
The hand–embroidered daisies at the hem were coming loose.
She had spent three nights meticulously recreating this dress, referencing photos of Emma
from when she was alive.
“Mr. Pierce…”
Her voice trembled: “I really don’t understand what I did wrong…”
Ethan stood by the window, his back rigid.
Outside, rain fell at an angle, tracing winding tear tracks on the glass. On the desk lay the
termination notice just delivered by HR, its bright red seal like an unhealed wound.
“They said… said I don’t meet the position requirements…”
Sophia suddenly looked up, tears washing away her deliberately imitated light makeup.
“But just last week you praised I was very professional…”
“You know my mother is still in the hospital…”
Sophia seized the opportunity to grab his sleeve, her nails almost digging into the fabric. “If
I lose my job, her chemotherapy… I’m only coming to you because I have no other options.
Please give me a chance to stay.“/
Lightning flashed outside the window.
Looking at this face that bore a slight resemblance to Emma, Ethan momentarily found himself back in that warehouse that held his painful memories.
He stormed into Jackson’s office, his face ashen: “Who gave you the authority to interfere
with HR matters?!”
12:54
A Million Dollar Betrayal: The Tycoon’s Wife Strikes Back
2.4%
Chapter 3
“I pay your salary, and you dare use the power I gave you against my people? Have you lost
your mind?”
The assistant responded calmly: “Mr. Pierce, who exactly are ‘your people‘?”
Ethan’s face darkened further as he growled, “You’re fired. Get out now!”
That day, Ethan unleashed his fury on me for the first time.
“Victoria!” he raised his voice abruptly. “Do you have to be so ruthless?”
My gemstone appraisal cabinet was overturned completely.
A prized Burmese pigeon–blood ruby rolled across the Persian carpet, and a cutting tool
stabbed into the leather sofa.
Ethan approached me, treading through the chaos: “You think you can control me by
smashing a few watches and wrecking a few cars?”
“Let me tell you! Sophia will not be leaving! From today, she’s my personal assistant!”
“Don’t think that just because we’re married, you can do whatever you want!”
With that, he slammed the door as he left.
I watched him go with a blank expression, then crouched down to pick up a sharp piece of glass.
Blood dripped from my palm onto the shattered diamonds, blooming like a flower.
Ethan, since you’ve chosen to fight me, don’t blame me for being merciless.
12:54
