Walker hung up the phone and, in one swift move, pinned Chloe Reed beneath him.

"I really want to strangle you!"

He stared at her, gritting his teeth, his eyes blazing with fury.

Chloe Reed opened her eyes. She hadn’t expected him to find out so quickly that the wedding ring was being auctioned off, and certainly not like this.

Her gaze was perfectly calm, showing no hint of guilt at being found out. She just said lightly, "Our marriage is in name only, which makes the wedding ring even more meaningless. Of course I was going to sell it while it’s still worth something."

"That was the wedding ring I gave you. How could you sell it without my permission?" Walker’s voice grew dangerously low.

"You gave it to me, so it’s mine. I have the right to do whatever I want with it." Chloe looked at him. "It’s just a ring. Why are you so angry? It’s not like I threw away your child or something."

Then, she laughed. "Oh, that’s right. You had a vasectomy. You can’t have children."

The dim light seemed to grow even dimmer.

They stared at each other in silence, neither willing to back down.

Her eyes were filled with undisguised mockery and cold indifference.

His, with pure fury.

’That wedding ring wasn’t just a ring. It was a symbol of their eight years together, of everything they had been through.’

’And now, she had actually sold it.’

Walker abruptly shot up and strode out of the bedroom.

The covers had been thrown aside, and a chill rushed in. Chloe shivered, as if she couldn’t bear the sudden cold.

She pulled the covers back up, wrapping them tightly around herself, trying to hold on to the lingering warmth for just a moment longer.

But it was futile. With the source of heat gone, the warmth quickly vanished.

She calmly watched the sky outside darken bit by bit, unable to stop a thought from surfacing: ’If he gave me this house, I’d sell it too.’

’It would be best to erase every trace of him, to make him vanish from her world completely.’

She lay there for a while until she felt hungry. She got up and headed downstairs, planning to go out for something to eat.

However, the faint aroma of a home-cooked meal drifted through the living room.

She glanced toward the dining room and saw two dishes and a soup set on the table.

They were all her favorites.

A complicated expression crossed Chloe’s face.

’She’d thought he would just storm out in a rage. She never expected him to actually make dinner.’

She didn’t hesitate, sitting down and starting to eat.

Once she finished eating, she felt some of her strength return and left immediately.

She had just gotten back to her apartment when her phone rang. She took it out and saw it was Judith Pierce.

"Hello, Mom."

Judith Pierce’s cheerful voice came through the phone. "Chloe, you introduced Miss Adler to Walker today, didn’t you?"

"Yeah," Chloe said listlessly. "I had her hired as Walker’s secretary. Whether or not she can win him over is up to her now."

Judith suddenly asked, "Doesn’t that upset you?"

Chloe lowered her gaze. After a moment of silence, she said, "I just want a divorce."

Judith sighed. "Well, I suppose things have come to this. There’s no turning back now; we can only move forward. By the way, Walker refuses to let Sunny Reed leave that company, and there’s nothing I can do. So, I found you a few other voice acting jobs. I’ll email you the details. Take a look, and if any of them interest you, you should audition."

’So, this was compensation.’

A small smile touched Chloe’s lips. "Alright. Thanks, Mom."

Judith said, "I’m still very fond of you, you know. It’s just a shame you and Walker weren’t meant to be. Anyway, it’s getting late. You should get some rest."

Chloe agreed and hung up.

Her face settled into an expression of silent mockery.