Chapter 2

Taylor replied quickly, telling me to gather all the transaction records that Gavin had spent on Isabelle. That way, I would have more leverage in the negotiations. He had the habit of keeping accounts of his daily income and expenses. At that, I quickly called a cab home with my daughter. A "wrong password" prompt popped up just as I keyed in my birth date to log into Gavin's computer. I'd been right there when he set the password himself. Back then, he'd said with a smile, "You're my wife, Tiff. There's nothing to hide between us." But now that Gavin had a change of heart, his password would naturally change as well. I tried keying in "1129"—Isabelle's birth date—and the computer unlocked immediately. Even though I'd braced myself for this, I still felt bitter deep down. I struggled to reel in my emotions before opening Gavin's bookkeeping file. At the bottom, there was a column with Isabelle's name, filled with rows of transactions of various amounts. There were also plenty of single expenses ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands, with notes indicating the purchases were Chanel bags, Dior lipsticks, and Cartier bracelets. They were all luxury gifts, adding up to over two million by now. Next to the column was my name, filled with entries of baby formula, toys, baby products, Gavin's necktie, leather shoes, and other personal items. My name only came up here and there, with notes indicating purchases like toilet papers, rugs, and bedding sets—all of which were daily necessities. My expenses for the entire year only add up to 30 thousand. It wasn't even a fraction of what Gavin spent on Isabelle. How ironic. Gritting my teeth, I suppressed the despair and rage I felt as I copied all the evidence. Gavin returned home just as I shut down the computer. As soon as he entered the house, he kicked off his leather shoes at the door and carelessly tossed a small diamond pendant onto the coffee table. Gavin said offhandedly, "Here's your gift for giving birth to our daughter. This one's real diamond, not like the fake ones Isabelle posted on her social media. It's small, but it still cost me a good three thousand dollars!" I felt nothing but disdain seeing how he could easily lie without flinching. Gavin was surprised I wasn't reacting the way he'd imagined. I didn't light up at the sight of the small diamond pendant, nor did I fuss about how much it had cost. He stared at me for a while before finally asking, "Aren't you going to try it on?" "There's no need to," I replied calmly before putting the pendant away. Gavin then nodded in satisfaction, smugly replying, "Just smile if you're happy. There's no need to hold it in. This is about as good as it gets for a housewife like you." He chuckled while shaking his leg, then added lazily, "We haven't named our daughter yet. Belle had already picked out a name for her baby, but too bad she lost the child. "I'm thinking we can use the same name for our daughter instead, and Belle can be her godmother. What do you think?" My expression fell. No wonder Gavin bought me a gift out of nowhere—it turned out he wanted our daughter to take the name of Isabelle's dead baby. He even wanted Isabelle to be our daughter's godmother. What exactly did he take our daughter for? "I don't agree with this!" I flatly refused. Gavin's expression darkened instantly. He glared at me irritably and snapped, "Look at how petty you're being again now. It's just a name! It's not like Belle is a bad person. You used to be kind and easygoing. How did you turn so bitter and petty just after a few years of marriage?" Seeing how I kept my cold front and left him no room for discussion, he kicked a nearby chair aside and grumbled, "You're such an eyesore! Do what you want!" He then slammed the bedroom door close behind him. From the moment Gavin stepped in, he hadn't even bothered to look at our daughter even once. My despair slowly turned into indifference. Once I returned to my room, I immediately started organizing the evidence I had copied. I was ready to take them to the law firm tomorrow. … Gavin was no longer at home by the time I woke up the next day. The living room was a mess—his razor and worn socks were tossed around everywhere. I used to pick them up without a word. But now, I didn't even spare them a glance and walked straight out of the door. I dropped my daughter off at my parents' place first, then took a cab to the law firm to show the evidence to Taylor. … Two hours later, I walked out with the divorce agreement Taylor had drafted. I was about to head home when I saw two familiar figures stepping out of the beauty salon nearby. "Your wife is young and beautiful, Mr. Jefferson. She'll be even more stunning after this treatment. It's rare to find a man like you who's so willing to spend money on his wife nowadays…" As Gavin and Isabelle walked out side by side, the salesperson praised them for how sweet they were. Gavin did not deny their relationship. He smiled at Isabelle and said, "You don't have to worry about spending my money, Belle. It's only fair for women to maintain their appearance, after all…" His expression shifted when he suddenly saw me standing by the side. He then walked over and started scolding me, "Tiffany? What are you doing here when you're supposed to stay at home and look after the kids?"