Chapter 4

Mona looked disheartened. Her eyes slightly flickered before saying, “I… I don’t know.” The man scoffed. He landed a kiss on her lips. “You really are careless.” Mona’s shoulder trembled lightly. All she wanted was for this to end quickly. She tried her best to go along with his pace. After a rough round of sex, she returned to the bedroom and saw him signing his name on the divorce papers. The sharpest pen strokes resembled his personality perfectly— ruthless and decisive. After Thaddeus signed the papers, he tossed them into his drawer. He covered his pen and then looked at her. “We’ll settle the remaining procedures after my grandfather’s birthday.” Mona counted with her fingers. There were two more weeks until Thaddeus's grandfather’s birthday. It would be over before she knew it. “Then I’ll be leaving. These are the keys to the house.” Thaddeus ignored her and headed to the mini bar to get himself a glass of wine. Mona put the keys down quietly and headed downstairs. She even picked up the ring in the trash before she strode out of the house. The man watched her leave from the window until she disappeared from his sight completely. His eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a sharp and bloody gaze that held one too many emotions behind the glass of wine. The ringing of a phone on his desk pulled him out of the temporary trance. Instantly, he answered the call and out it on speaker. The voice of a young man came through the phone. “Have you two signed the papers?” “I suddenly don’t want to divorce her just yet. I haven’t had enough fun.” “Not enough fun? You played her for three years. That’s more than enough time for you to vent whatever emotions you have.” Thaddeus pinched the leg of his glass tighter and drained it to the last drop in a single gulp. The man continued, “She’s already miserable enough. She doesn’t remember her past nor has any family to rely on. The divorce would be branded in her life forever, so just go easy on her.” Thaddeus licked the wine off his lips. His eyes narrowed. “Raymond, run a background check on her. I want to know if she had any boyfriend or slept with anyone else before me.” The man named Raymond went silent for a moment before he chuckled. “Thaddeus Fontaine, are you in love with her?” “Shut up.” “Fine. I’ll look into it.” The call ended with a monotonous beep. Thaddeus leaned on his desk with his fingers rubbing the center of his brows. “I want to eat…” Before he could finish, he realized he was alone in the room. He released a self-mocking chuckle to cover the emptiness in his heart. After a busy morning, Mona went to work after sending her kids to kindergarten. Before she met Thaddeus, she had been a model for a while. She contacted her old agent and managed to secure some jobs. However, the agent would take a portion of her pay as commission, and no contracts would be involved. These were known as freelance models, and it was a way to earn quick money. She had a fashion show to attend today. When she arrived at the venue, she was grouped with a bunch of young and tall models. Everyone had the same outfit on and a face full of camouflage paint. It was difficult to distinguish one from another. “I thought this was a fashion show. Why is there camouflage paint on our faces?” someone grumbled. “Tsk. We’re not the main focus of the event. We’re just some background models on stage.” “Then who’s the main girl today?” “Marianne Colister. The most popular movie star in the industry right now. She just won herself the Best Supporting Actress award recently.” “That Marianne Colister? Wasn’t there a scandal about her sleeping with her sponsor? If I remember correctly, she’s Thaddeus Fontaine’s favorite girl, the CEO of Timez Group. Hmph. She got into the spotlight because of the financial support from her backer.” Mona listened quietly from the side. She suddenly remembered that Marianne was the ambassador for this clothing brand. It was Thaddeus who got her the role in the first place. “Hey, there she is.” Everyone looked towards the entrance when they heard it. Mariane came out from a Bentley at the entrance. She was dressed meticulously for the event and easily became the center of attention. Mona sneaked a glance at the car, and her heart skipped a beat— it was Thaddeus’s car. She instinctively moved backward and made her way to the end of the line. “Hey, isn’t that the CEO of Timez Group? He’s more handsome than those in magazines!” Mona looked across the other models, finally noticing the man they were talking about. The man came down from the car in a black suit. Standing at 6’3, his height granted him an overbearing aura and a dignified presence. Marianne curled her hands around his arm, and the two walked the red carpet with smiles on their faces. When they passed by the model’s resting area, Thaddeus paused and threw a gaze in Mona’s direction. The two of them locked eyes for a few seconds before she nervously looked down, pretending to fix her wig. Thaddeus never liked her being in the public’s eye, and since they were still legally married, she did not want to make the man mad. Though, she was at the end of the line and had paint on her face. She doubted he would be able to recognize her at first glance.