I looked at Clement, the man I'd married three years ago.
He didn't argue. He just stared at the table.
As if he agreed with every word Hayley had said.
"Clement, do you remember what you said on our wedding day?"
He looked up, his gaze shifting.
"You said you'd be good to me for the rest of your life."
I let out a bitter laugh. "Turns out your 'rest of your life' only lasted three years."
Hayley was getting impatient.
"What's the point of bringing all that up now? Clement loves me—"
She didn't get to finish.
I raised my hand and slapped her across the face.
"You... how dare you hit me?"
The slap stunned her. She stood frozen, clutching her cheek.
A few seconds later, her eyes turned red, tears pooling along her lashes.
I lowered my stinging hand. "That's for being a homewrecker."
"Women like you aren't welcome anywhere."
She tried to lunge forward, ready to argue.
I raised my hand again, and she flinched.
She scrambled behind Clement, grabbing fistfuls of his sleeve.
Clement's jaw tightened as he stepped in front of her.
"Are you done?"
"It is what it is. What else is there to say?"
I looked into his eyes. The warmth that had once lived there was gone.
All that remained was indifference and irritation.
So I nodded. "You're right. It is what it is. No point in trying to save something that's already dead."
"The divorce terms: the house goes to me, the car goes to me."
"If you agree to leave the marriage with nothing, we can head to the county clerk's office right now."
Clement was quiet for a few seconds. Then he nodded.
"Fine. I'll leave with nothing."
That easy? I hadn't expected that.
Beside him, Hayley's face changed. She tugged at his sleeve.
"You're giving up the house? Then where are we going to live?"
Clement leaned toward her and lowered his voice. "My family's property is about to be demolished. If I want, I'll get at least a million or two from the settlement."
"Plus I'm about to get promoted. I can take care of you."
Hayley pursed her lips but said nothing more.
The resentment in her eyes, though, was hard to miss.
I turned and walked out.
At the county clerk's office, Clement showed up with Hayley in tow.
She clung to his arm like she was staking a claim.
The paperwork went surprisingly fast.
When the clerk asked about the property division, I handed over the agreement.
"All set."
The clerk stamped the papers and handed us each a divorce certificate.