Divorcing My CEO Husband for My Billionaire Best Friend

At the company's year-end banquet, right in front of three hundred employees, my husband slapped his new assistant on the backside. I walked out of the banquet hall, called my OB-GYN, and booked an abortion. Then I called my lawyer to have divorce papers drawn up. Mason received the papers and sent me a furious message, his anger practically bleeding through the screen. "What is this? You're doing all this just because my hand accidentally brushed Chloe’s butt?" I held up my phone and played an audio clip of a woman's seductive moans. "And how about the three-hour sex tape of you and your little assistant in the office? Do you want me to play that for everyone to see?" The lively year-end gala continued. The host was busy praising the teams that delivered strong performances this year. My team always came in first place every year, and this year was no exception. Just as I finished texting Mason, I saw him take the microphone from the host. He picked up right where the host left off. "This year, we recruited quite a few new faces from top universities. Some of them have worked hard and achieved great results, and I’ve seen it all." "Taking advantage of today's opportunity, I announce that I am transferring 10% of the stock fund from my personal shares to Chloe, as a reward for her hard work this year. Additionally, because Nora stole Chloe's performance metrics, her bonus for this year is completely forfeited, and the 0.2% company stock I rewarded her with last year is hereby revoked." "Rewards and punishments—I see everything. I hope everyone will keep up the good work!" As his words fell, a sharp gasp echoed through the room. After a long moment, a few scattered, awkward claps broke the silence of the hundreds of attendees on the floor. Chloe looked slightly embarrassed on stage, but tears of gratitude welled up in her eyes as she looked at Mason. Mason smiled gently and helped her step down. With just that single gesture, I knew Mason—the man I had kept in the very center of my heart since I was a teenager—belonged to me no longer. With a single sentence, he had erased my ten years of sweat and toil at the company, wiping out the achievements my team had poured their hearts into all year long. Since he was showing such blatant favoritism right out in the open, I no longer had any baggage holding me back regarding whatever I chose to do next. I pulled out my phone and immediately booked the abortion procedure. Then, I dialed a number I hadn't called in a long time. "Draw up divorce papers for me. I'm coming over to pick them up right now." The person on the other end agreed instantly, a hint of hidden joy in his voice. "Well, well. What made Nora finally see the light and decide to get a divorce? I've thought that jerk was bad news from day one." "Just get the papers ready and stop asking unnecessary questions. After all these years, you still haven't fixed that motor mouth of yours!" "Nora, I swear I must owe you in a past life!" I hung up, left the building, and headed straight for the law firm. The divorce papers, printed in duplicate, sat snugly in my bag. Less than five minutes after I got home and sat down on the sofa, Mason opened the front door and walked in. The corners of his lips were tilted upward. As he held his phone to his ear, he absentmindedly tapped the back of it, radiating an unmistakable wave of smug happiness. In the past, whenever he took a call, his expression was completely unreadable, never giving away his emotions. Lately, though, he was glued to his phone, his eyebrows curving into a happy arch whenever he caught a glimpse of a text. "When did you get back?" When he asked me, Mason had already wiped the smile off his face, reverting to the familiar, detached expression I knew so well. I answered honestly that I’d only arrived a few minutes ago. The man just gave a faint "Oh." I knew he didn't really care when I got home; he just asked out of sheer habit. Otherwise, he wouldn't know what to say to me. And as for me, quiet and unbothered as ever, I pulled out my phone and started drafting my resignation letter. When Mason reached for his mug and found it empty of the calming herbal tea I brewed for him every single day, his gaze finally refocused on me. "Nora, you were the one who poached Chloe's project this time. Don't blame me for docking your team's bonus like that. Newcomers need encouragement, or they'll never grow." I paused for a second, unable to help myself from speaking up. "I was a newcomer once, too. When I first joined the company, I accidentally missed a few page numbers on a project proposal, and you docked my entire year's bonus." "You said back then that we couldn't give special treatment just because someone was new. Well, don't I need encouragement? Don't I need to grow?" Even to my own ears, my voice carried a layer of grievance I hadn't intended to show. Mason's expression shifted slightly. He slammed his mug down onto the table and said coldly, "Nora, are you just looking for trouble? Can you even compare yourself to Chloe?" He had never spoken to me like that before. And I had never laid my grievances out so bluntly before either. So what if I said it? It was just words, floating into empty air. Earlier that afternoon, after leaving the law firm, I had gone straight to the hospital. At three months, the fetus wasn't big or small, but it was a child I had prayed for and waited a whole decade to conceive. Ever since marrying Mason, by day I was his business partner fighting on the front lines. By night, I was his subordinate stepping in to take heavy drinks off his hands, and when we finally got home, I still had to cook, do laundry, and revise project proposals for him. I had endured a life like that for ten years. Back when he loved me, every bit of it felt sweet and willing. But now? Now, all of it felt utterly meaningless and vile.I let out a cold laugh, and Mason's newly calmed expression instantly darkened. "What on earth is your problem? I work hard all day at the office, and now I have to come home and deal with your attitude?" "I know you're upset about the team bonuses being cut at the gala today, but didn't I buy you that exact necklace you saw in the magazine? Can't you just show a little understanding of my position?" My gaze dropped to the gift box sitting on the coffee table. I reached out and unboxed it. The diamond's fire immediately caught the light, but what a pity. Using cubic zirconia to pass off as a real diamond—did he really think I was so cheap that even a necklace had to be fake? Mason probably didn't know that because I was obsessed with jewelry back then, I actually studied and got certified as a professional gemologist. I was almost angry enough at my own past humility to laugh. A flicker of guilt crossed Mason's face, but he put on a brave front, assuming I wouldn't notice. "I knew you'd had your eye on this necklace for ages. I ran through half the malls in the city just to grab the last one. Stop making a fuss." I ignored his words. Having pushed myself through the pain since the afternoon, the local anesthetic had finally worn off, and a dull, cramping ache radiated from my lower abdomen across my entire body. Unwilling to look pathetic in front of Mason, I reached into my bag, pulled out the medication the doctor had prescribed, and swallowed a couple of pills. Mason's expression shifted drastically as he snatched the pill bottle right out of my hand. "What are you taking? Don't you know you shouldn't be taking random medicine?" Noticing how pale my face looked, Mason finally softened his tone a fraction. He squatted down in front of me, "If you don't like the necklace, we can throw it away. I'll buy you a new one, okay?" "Babe, you can't treat your body like this. Taking pills is bad for you." I cut him off, shoving the printed divorce papers directly into his hands. "I've already had my lawyer draw up the papers. Sign them if you have a free second." "Oh, and I know Chloe is the rookie you're mentoring. Since you dote on her so much, you can just marry her and bring her home once our divorce is final." Mason froze, his face darkening as he abruptly stood up. "Divorce? Are you seriously talking about divorce just because I patted her on the butt at the year-end party?" "Sure, I've been mentoring her since she joined the company, but you were the one who recruited her from campus in the first place! If something was going on between us, do you really think it would happen right under your nose? Can you stop acting crazy?" With that, he suddenly swept everything off the coffee table onto the floor, venting his frustration. I swallowed the words stuck in my throat and let out a bitter, self-deprecating laugh. He was always like this—never caring about my emotions, just demanding that I swallow my feelings and accommodate him. Now that I was walking away, whatever he did had nothing to do with me anymore. I raised my eyes to look at him and nodded calmly. "Yes. It's because you patted her on the butt. Isn't that reason enough?" "Mason, before we got married, I told you clearly: if you ever stopped loving me after we tied the knot, just tell me straight. I'd accept it." "But you shouldn't have lied to me behind my back. Do you honestly think we can keep living like this?" Mason's brows furrowed tightly, and the next second, fury threatened to spill past his lips. I spoke up again. "Besides, we were going to have a baby." I handed him the abortion clinic receipt. "Too bad I already had it terminated." Without waiting for his frozen figure to react, I turned on my heel and walked straight out the door. From behind me came his heartbroken, roaring shout. "Nora, how dare you? How the hell could you? That was our child!" "If you walk out that door today, don't ever bother coming back." The corners of my lips curved into a cold sneer. He had used those exact words to imprison me for ten years. I had constantly endured, compromised, and begged for peace. And what did it buy me? No understanding at all—just his high-and-mighty arrogance and a string of escalating disrespect. "Instead of wasting time screaming at me here, you'd better sign those divorce papers ASAP. I'll drop by the office to pick them up." He probably thought I'd turn around and apologize like I always used to, so our fragile marriage could somehow drag on. But as the words left my mouth, my steps only quickened. I was finally about to break free from the chains of this matrimonial cage!Wanting a divorce just because your husband patted a coworker's backside sounded utterly absurd to anyone on the outside. Only I knew the depth of the lingering, unmasked affection in both of their eyes at that moment. I drove back alone to the apartment I had bought before we got married. I took a sick week off to rest. Not a single phone call or text message came from Mason. Meanwhile, the company chat group occasionally popped up with juicy gossip. "Hasn't Chloe been with the company for less than a year? Now she's suddenly handed 10% of the stock fund. Talk about an overnight promotion to upper management." "Can't you read the writing on the wall yet? Didn't you see her swaying her hips into Mr. Miller's office every single day, just the two of them locked inside for two or three hours? What else do you think they're doing?" "Who are you calling Chloe? It's President White now! Do you even want to keep your job here?" "Weren't there always rumors about Manager Nora and Mr. Miller? Did they never hook up?" "Oh, please. Would Mr. Miller ever look twice at Nora? That would be slumming it big time." ...... Back when Mason and I chose to keep our marriage a secret, he said the company was just starting out and announcing we were married would hurt business. Now, looking back, it was just a convenient excuse to cultivate a single persona. On the eighth day, which happened to be a Monday. I went to work as usual. I submitted my ready-and-waiting resignation letter to the HR department. Director Chiang gave me a surprised look. "Manager Nora, you're resigning? Does Mr. Miller know? You're not doing this just because of all the silly rumors going around the office lately, are you?" "Everyone knows you're one of the company's founding veterans. I wouldn't dare approve this resignation without higher-level clearance." Before Director Chiang could even finish his sentence, a colleague's cold sneer rang out from the doorway. "Director Chiang, what's so hard about approving it? Our company has always run on performance metrics." "If someone made a habit of stealing the hard-earned results of their coworkers like she does, I wouldn't even have the face to stay in the office. I would've packed my bags ages ago." "What she stole was the West District Redevelopment proposal that President White spent three months drinking with clients to secure! Ask Nora—do you think her alcohol tolerance could ever pull that off?" The proposal she was talking about? I was the one who had stayed up late night after night writing it. And I was the one who had gotten up at dawn for three months straight delivering breakfast to the client just to lock down the deal. It was only at the very final stretch that Mason had brought Chloe along to drink with the client twice. Yet in the end, it was spun around to make it look like I had stolen Chloe's credit. Swallowing down a mouthful of bitter injustice, I smiled and raised my head. "Yep, you guys are spot on. As long as you're happy after I quit." "Do me a favor and step aside. Good dogs don't block the path!" "I just hope that after I leave, under Chloe's brilliant leadership, you all manage to land countless new projects—and watch your salaries skyrocket." "Don't say I didn't warn you, though: being a mindless yes-man never ends well for anyone." One colleague flew into a rage. "Who the hell do you think you're talking to in riddles? Who are you calling a yes-man? I've been sick of your face for ages! Just because you're a manager, what are you acting so high and mighty for?" "Don't think I don't know how you used to hang around Mr. Miller's office before Chloe arrived. Did you really think he'd ever look at you? Keep dreaming." Not content with running her mouth, she even lunged forward as if she wanted to put her hands on me. Luckily, someone beside her held her back. "Relax. If you hit her, what if she tries to scam you? Why waste time on trash like this? She can't do her job right, she's pushing an older age, and she doesn't even have a man. Once she leaves this company, she's going to get a heavy dose of real life." Ignoring the yapping of these petty, power-tripping bullies, I took my resignation letter and headed straight for Mason's office. I pushed the door open and found Chloe lounging on the sofa, fast asleep with Mason's suit jacket draped over her. The sound of the door woke her up with a start. "Manager Nora, what brings you here?" As the only subordinate personally mentored by Mason, Chloe was the sole person in the company who knew my true identity. Mason's excuse had been that there was no need to hide it from Chloe. Yet a year had passed, and at work, Chloe had never once treated me like a superior. Instead, behind closed doors, she had provoked me both overtly and covertly on numerous occasions—though I had never bothered to stoop to her level. My gaze swept over the jacket on the sofa, and I felt only a bitter wave of irony. In the past, when I entered his office, even lingering for two more minutes was a luxury, let alone sleeping on his sofa and wrapping myself in his jacket. He always said we needed to avoid gossip, that we were an old married couple and any business should be discussed at home. He claimed he was afraid of hurting the company's image. Now that Chloe had taken my place, he suddenly didn't care about office gossip anymore, nor did he feel any need to avoid suspicion. When Mason saw me walk in, his expression instantly turned glacial. "Manager Nora, don't you know how to knock before entering an office?" "Get out! Knock and come in again." Chloe sat up from the sofa and hurriedly stepped forward to smooth things over. "Don't be mad, Mr. Miller. Manager Nora must have been in a rush and just forgot to knock. Please don't hold it against her." "If you make Manager Nora go back outside and knock all over again, how is she supposed to hold her head up high in the company from now on?" I cast a cold, sideways glance at her, mentally labeling her a first-class pick-me green tea bitch. "Since when is it your turn to speak in this room?" Chloe's triumphant smirk froze on her face, and tears welled up instantly in her eyes. I had to hand it to her—even professional actresses couldn't match her speed with artificial tear drops. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have spoken out of turn. I'll leave right now." Before she could even take a step, Mason violently grabbed her wrist.