Betrayed by My Trash Husband, Surrender Myself to the Devil-Chapter 18: Snake Den (I)

Claudia POV

"I am not a picky eater. I just like eating efficiently," Ray replied. "If I can get more nutrition from eating other things, then I’d rather do that than eat carb-filled junk food."

...

One more thing I disliked about this man was how much of a buzzkill he was, even when we were dating.

He liked to do things—even something as simple as eating—based on efficiency. Sometimes, when I tried to show affection by bringing him snacks between our classes at university, he would lecture me about how unhealthy they were.

Of course, I knew they were unhealthy. But eating a snack was a small joy in this bleak life. Why should I care that much, especially when I was in my early twenties back then?

"So, have you changed your preferences since then?" I asked.

Ray looked down at his slice of pizza. He swallowed his saliva, not out of hunger, but as if suppressing disgust.

"I just thought it would be good to experiment a bit."

I rolled my eyes. He made something so trivial sound like a great deal. But then again, we lived in completely different worlds, so maybe it was normal for him to be extremely particular about his food.

After all, he was the sole heir of Gatlin Gold, one of the biggest private banks rivaling J.P. Morgan.

While I was just... Claudia.

A woman from a backwater town in the middle of Kansas who ran away from her abusive family and had no one to back her up.

We were too different from the beginning. The fact that we dated for a year was already a miracle that shouldn’t be repeated.

Ray didn’t touch his food at all until I finished my pasta. In fact, all he did was stare at me, which should have felt uncomfortable.

But I had grown used to his habit of staring and observing when we dated. It seemed he hadn’t let go of that habit.

Strangely, I was somewhat relieved by this calm atmosphere. Maybe it was because I was too focused on eating after starving for an entire day. Right now, all I wanted was to refuel my empty stomach before facing this four-eyed devil.

I sipped my wine after finishing my meal and finally asked, "I admit that I promised to see you again after visiting Aurora. I... I wasn’t in the right headspace at that moment, so... can you just forget about it? Surely Dr. Ray Gatlin has something better to do than deal with a nobody like me, right?"

I hoped he would agree and drop the promise, since it sounded like a huge waste of time.

But he didn’t.

His dark green eyes continued to stare at me behind his frameless glasses, sending chills down my spine and making me nervous.

"We can discuss the contract back at my apartment," Ray said, deliberately ignoring my request.

"Y-your apartment?" I gulped nervously.

I was scared of what might happen there. It wasn’t about sex—I doubted this man even had a sex drive, knowing how cold he was.

I was afraid he might murder me in cold blood if I stepped into his apartment. Maybe he wanted revenge for the harsh things I said during our breakup. Maybe he wanted to get even for the humiliation after I married his stepbrother instead. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Whatever it was, I was too scared to go.

"M-my friend told me I should hurry to her place, since I’ll be crashing on her couch for a while..."

"What friend?" Ray raised a brow. "You are a full-time housewife who has no connection with your new gated community neighbors. You’ve also severed contact with your family."

I was terrified that he knew so much about my life, especially since we hadn’t spoken in years.

His understanding of me made me question whether he had been spying on me all this time.

"H-how do you know I have no friends?"

"Nobody stood by your side when you were arrested and framed. Since Miles and your half-sister were bold enough to frame you, they must have known you had no support," Ray explained calmly. "It’s natural for a full-time housewife to only have friends within her neighborhood. And I know the gated community Miles chose is harsh and snobbish, with people who were born into wealth and kept everything in a small circle, which you detest—just like you detest me, Claudia."

Ray’s detailed explanation made me question myself. Why did I assume that a man as busy and powerful as him would waste time spying on me?

"I-is that so?"

Ray scoffed. "Do you think I’d spy on you all the time? Everything about you is easy to read, Claudia. It’s a simple observation."

"And your reaction confirms that I’m right," he added. "So stop lying to avoid your promise. I declared you mentally sane because I have my own interests."

It felt like an invisible dagger was pressed against my throat. He cornered me so thoroughly that I had no escape.

In the end, I nodded.

Yes, I nodded in defeat. When he said he would make me regret breaking the promise, I believed him. With his money and connections, it wouldn’t be hard for him to make my already hard life a living hell.

"Good." Ray stood up and grabbed my hand, clenching it tightly until I winced. "We should leave now."

"W-wait, I need to pay for the food—"

"Don’t worry about it, Claudia. E-everything is on the house today!" Don blurted as he suddenly popped his head from the kitchen’s curtain.

He saw Ray dragging me out of the restaurant, yet did absolutely nothing.

In fact, he looked relieved when we left, which infuriated me even more, because I believed that I had a good friendship with him.

Could it be that Ray had threatened him to clear out the restaurant for us?

But then again... was I really important enough for Ray to go that far just to talk to me?