Trevor’s smile was gentle and sure, his gaze nostalgic. “You’ve been gone long enough. It’s time to come home.”
But when he noticed that she only had a single backpack with her, his smile faded into a frown. “You’ve been in Springfield for three years, and this is all
you have?”
Then he added casually, “Forget it. What could Barrington have bought you anyway? Once we get back, I’ll just buy out an entire mall. Whatever you want, take it.”
Xanthe gave a faint smile, recalling that the last three years had been a time of rapid growth for BMC Global. She’d been too careful not to splurge on anything.
She lived differently with the Wentworths. Before she married Barrington, the gifts she received from uncles and family friends every year were enough to buy out half of his company.
‘There’s no need to go overboard,” she said calmly, “I’m not interested in material things anymore.”
Trevor felt a sharp tug at his heart. She’d changed so much over the past three years–gone was the bold, carefree girl he remembered.
‘Let’s go,” she said, stepping toward the car.
As she turned, the fabric of her tight clothes clung to her frame. It was easy to notice a sharp bone protruding slightly from her back.
That made Trevor’s heart drop. He reached out and pulled her back, frowning deeply.
‘What happened to your back?” he asked, his voice tight with concern. “Did Barrington hurt you?
swear I’ll go drag him out right now!”
Ever since they were young, Trevor had treated Xanthe like a princess. He’d never let her get hur
-he couldn’t even bear to raise his voice at her.
Even three years ago, when she’d used every trick she could think of to force him to leave, he still hadn’t said a single bad word about her.
Now his gaze turned dark and cold, as though he could kill Barrington in the next second.
But before he could act, Xanthe stopped him. “He’s not home.”.
Trevor glared at her, still upset. “And you’re still defending him?”
‘I’m not defending him,” she explained. “He really isn’t home. And this is something I want to handle myself.”
She met his gaze, steady and sincere. “Trevor, I chose you. That means there’s no one else in my heart. Can’t you trust me with that?”
Her words struck something in him. He took a deep breath, forcing his anger down. “Alright. Whatever you say, I’ll believe you.”
Worried she might strain herself, Trevor bent down and lifted her into his arms, gently carrying her into the car.
Later that evening, Barrington returned home, frowning slightly when he didn’t see Xanthe come out to greet him.
Chapter 7
2/2 6.5%
8:02 pm DDDD
Normally, she would have taken his coat and hung it up for him by now.
His brow furrowed as he thought about all the messages he’d sent her–none of which she’d replied to.
“Xanthe,” he called out.
No one answered.
“Xanthe?”
Only his voice echoed back to him.
“Xanthe!”
He searched every corner of the villa, but she was nowhere to be found.
Thinking she was just making a fuss, playing one of her little runaway games, he swallowed his irritation and dialed her number.
But all he got was an automated response. “Sorry, the number you dialed is currently unavailable.”
Still furrowing, he quickly typed out a message.
[Xanthe, come on. I know you’ve been upset lately, but Vionnet is just a guest. You’re the lady of this house–you should be more understanding. In two months, the renovations on her new place will be done, and she’ll move out. After that, it’ll be just the two of us. You don’t need to worry.]
But as soon as the message was sent, it bounced back with a cold red exclamation mark.
‘She blocked me?‘ he asked mentally.
Just then, one of the maids stepped out of a nearby room.
“Sir, Ma’am Xanthe left this afternoon. She asked me to let you know that she’s left your anniversary gift in the safe.”
The fury that had been bubbling inside Barrington instantly settled into smug satisfaction.
‘I knew it–my wife wouldn’t really leave me. This has to be just one of her little games again!‘
With a quiet hum, he made his way upstairs to the study.
Every year, Xanthe insisted on celebrating their wedding anniversary and always prepared some sort of thoughtful surprise. He used to act indifferent, but deep down, he actually looked forward
to it.
Even before opening the safe, he already imagined what would be inside. ‘Probably something handmade. She always loved doing those things.’
Without him realizing, his lips curved up at the thought as his fingers quickly entered the code and opened the safe.
But the moment he laid eyes on the contents, his smile faltered.
There was no handmade gift. Just a single sheet of white paper.
Frowning, he pulled everything out.
The moment he saw the title on the topmost document, the air around him suddenly turned cold.
[LETTER OF RESIGNATION]
Chapter 7
