Chapter 3

Since I had decided to step back onto the right path, the filth festering in the dark deserved to be cast back into the swamp where it belonged.

But a phantom ache still lingered in my chest.

My feelings for Jackson Sharp over these past few years had been genuine. If they weren't, I wouldn't have given him chance after chance. But he was the one who failed me. He was the one who let me down.

Stepping out of the marital home I once shared with Jackson, I breathed in deep.

For the first time in a long time, the air actually tasted fresh.

I deleted every trace of Jackson Sharp from my phone and blocked his number. Our wedding rings? I tossed them into a roadside trash can without breaking my stride.

Right on cue, a message pinged on my screen. Amy Kemp. The mistress desperate to leverage her pregnancy into a social climbing ladder.

**Amy Kemp:** [Ms. Henson, the hen who can't lay eggs. Have you thought it through? Are you going to pay me fifty million, or are you going to step aside and let me become the new Mrs. Sharp?]

A short, cold laugh escaped me.

"I was so busy deleting him, I almost forgot to take out the rest of the trash."

A few taps. Blocked. Deleted.

Finally, my world was quiet.

I dialed my father immediately after.

Dad knew my situation like the back of his hand. He didn't waste time with pleasantries. "Silly girl. The family required you to undergo a test of character, but we never said you had to smash your head against a brick wall."

"So what if you came back a little earlier? I would have handed the company's inheritance rights to you regardless. Not just because you're my only daughter, but because you are worthy. Only you are qualified."

The scolding was gentle, wrapped in warmth. He was blaming me—both openly and implicitly—for not reaching out sooner.

Before leaving the house, I had warned myself to be strong. Crying over a piece of trash like Jackson wasn't worth it.

But the moment I heard the gruff warmth of my father's voice, the dam broke.

"Dad..."

My throat tightened. My voice came out thick with unshed tears.

He sighed, his tone softening into that familiar indulgence he reserved only for me. "Forget it. It's not too late to turn back now that you've learned your lesson. Your mother and I have already prepared a banquet to announce your return. It's in a week. Come home."

I nodded obediently, though he couldn't see me. "Okay. Thank you, Dad."

It took until today for me to truly understand one simple truth: no matter what happens, there is only one man in this world who will love and protect me unconditionally.

That man is my father.

...

The news of my return banquet dropped the moment I stepped through the door of my family home.

As the only child of the capital's top power, my return was destined to make waves. Everyone with even a shred of status began making preparations, desperate to curry favor with the elusive Henson heiress.

At the same time, another piece of news began circulating—Jackson Sharp and I were divorcing.

Jackson was a rising force in the capital, someone not to be underestimated, so the dissolution of his marriage was equally explosive. To make matters worse, Amy Kemp was secretly leaking the fact that she was pregnant with his child.

Jackson's circle of rich friends began whispering, trying to verify the rumors.

"Is it really a divorce?"

"No way. She's such a sensible woman. Sure, she doesn't have much status or background, but she handles everything perfectly—even the mistresses. How could he bear to let go of a wife like that?"

"It has to be fake, right? Is sister-in-law playing hard to get again? Jackson, just coax her a bit. Though, I have to say, you've been playing too hard lately. How could you let another woman get pregnant?"

Unfortunately for them, Jackson responded to none of it.

Instead, after discovering I had blocked and deleted him on everything, he went into a frenzy, using every means available to track me down.

It couldn't be denied that he had feelings for me. That was why he had never brought up divorce himself.

But his scumminess and moral rot were just as real. He would always be blinded by hormones and novelty, entangling himself with other women again and again.