"I—I…" My confidence was decimated by that single sentence. First, there was no way I was pregnant. Carey and I hadn't been in the same bed since the honeymoon. Even when my mother was at his apartment, Carey had bought a foldable bed, and he slept there while I slept on his bed. Second, I wasn't here for some reward for getting knocked up by his son. "I have another matter to discuss," I muttered.
Nolan leaned forward. "Huh!"
I straightened my back and raised my head. I will not be intimidated by him. "I want a divorce."
He leaned back and threw his head back, laughing. "The balls on you. What's the matter? He's not giving you a big enough allowance? If you want more money, you know what you have to do." He pointed at my belly.
"No, the allowance is sufficient." It was more than sufficient. Every month Carey deposited ten times the amount of money I was earning from my job waitressing at a bar. It was so much money that it rendered work unnecessary. Although it allowed me to care for my mother, I felt restless and bored after her death.
"It's not about the money."
"Then what is the problem?" he boomed.
I twisted my hands in my lap. "Nothing exactly, but I don't think your son and I are compatible. There are other women, I feel would do a better job."
He snorted. "You women are fickle. It's only been a year and you're already demanding to leave. You know your mother is stilldepended on me. I can make my generosity disappear like that." He snapped his fingers.
"My mother died."
That seemed to stump him. He was silent for a moment. He didn't offer any condolences, nor was he ashamed that he wasn't aware that she had died. But he recovered quickly. "Is that why you think you can finally do whatever you want?"
"We do not get along! He found out about our deal and hates me now. Don't you get it? He doesn't want to sleep with me anymore. So your grandkids that you want so much, they will never happen."
Nolan scoffed. "A woman as beautiful as you can seduce a virile man like my son. It shouldn't be hard."
He had a thick skull. "What I mean is, sir, I am leaving him. I only came here to tell you out of curtesy.
He narrowed his eyes. "My god, you are serious." He opened his drawer and took out a pen and a checkbook, flipped it open and said, "How much?"
"Mr. Hawthorne," I fidgeted in my chair. "I don't want a check. I want a divorce."
He threw the pen onto the desk, then he folded his arms. "If you think you'll get more money leaving my son now than staying with him, then you didn't read the fine print of that prenup you so eagerly signed."
I felt like I was talking to a brick wall. What was it like? To only think in terms of money. How much you can give and how much you can take. "I will leave with nothing. I don't care."
He scoffed, his eyes assessing me like I was an alien specimen. His gaze was meant to intimidate. Meant to make me cower, but I stared right back it him. It was interesting to see the same features Carey had on a much older man. He was a handsome man once upon a time, but harsh lines had replaced that beauty. There was also a frailty that was inevitable for a man his age. Butwhere it mattered, he was nothing like his son. Carey was not this driven by money.
He smiled. It wasn't warm, but cold and creepy. "You're not in your right mind. Your mother just died and you aren't thinking clearly."
His condescending tone was irritating. "I assure you, this is the clearest my thoughts have ever been."
"You should go back to your husband's apartment and think on what life you'd be leaving if—"
"Mr. Hawthorne—"
He raised his hand cutting me off. "Think what a comfortable life you'd be leaving in exchange for a harsher life where you have no money, no ability to get a job, because you've been blacklisted, no ability to take a loan because again, you've been blacklisted and oh, a large bill for your mother's medical expenses put on you that you'd have to payback. "
My eyes widened. "You can't force people not to hire me."
"I don't have to, but I have friends in the justice department that can easily give you a criminal record if I ask nicely."
"You're insane. Fucking evil!"
"I am the devil himself, you're right, but if you play your cards right, I'll be your guardian angel." He snarled, "Now get out of my office."
Chapter 11
Thalia
