“I never told my wife’s family I owned the $15.9M company that paid their salaries. To them, I was just the “broke handyman” they loved to mock9360

“She was disrespectful.”

“To you?”

“To this family.”

I took one step forward.

“Don’t ever confuse disrespecting you with disagreeing with you.”

Martin’s face hardened.

Then Claire walked toward the table.

She picked up a folder.

My stomach tightened.

She walked back to me.

“I think we need to stop doing this.”

“Doing what?”

“Living like this.”

She handed me the folder.

I opened it.

Divorce papers.

For several seconds, I simply stared at them.

Claire whispered,

“I’m done.”

Martin smiled.

Bradley leaned back in his chair.

Someone at the table muttered something I couldn’t hear.

I looked at Claire.

“You’re serious?”

“Yes.”

“Tonight?”

“I can’t keep pretending this marriage works.”

I looked around the room.

The people who had mocked me for years were watching.

Martin finally spoke.

“Best decision Claire ever made.”

I closed the folder.

Then I looked at Sophie.

She was staring at the floor.

Something inside me changed.

Not anger.

Not revenge.

Something quieter.

Something final.

I handed the folder back to Claire.

“No.”

She frowned.

“No?”

“I’ll sign it.”

Her expression changed.

She had expected an argument.

A fight.

Maybe tears.

Instead, I simply nodded.

“Okay.”

Martin laughed.

“Where are you going to go?”