This wasn't the first time Austin had suspected Ella of having an affair.

Ella found it somewhat amusing.

She figured Judith must have already told Austin about her afternoon meeting with Jason.

Judith was truly as despicable as she had anticipated.

Nevertheless. Ella didn't bother to explain. Let him think what he wanted.

After all, in his mind, she was just a woman who had used underhanded tactics to cling to hím.

Looking at her silent form beneath him, Austin felt something slipping out of control, though he couldn't pinpoint what it was. "You're truly as shameless as they all say."

As if he hadn't always seen her that way.

His friends had always discussed behind her back how she didn't deserve him,yet now he was pretending to be disappointed.

Who should really be dlisappointed?

It was her!

She had loved him so sincerely for so many years.

Even a stone would have warmed up by now.

But what about him?

Ella felt too exhausted to fight back. She just wanted Austin out of her sight.

"That's perfect then. Divorce me, and we never have to see each other again."

The weight suddenly lifted from her body as Austin stood and viciously kicked the door.

His lips curled into a mocking smile. "You're just trying to use divorce to make Grandmother dislike Judith so I can't marry her. Dream on!"

Ella bit the inside of her cheek, tasting blood.

Even this pain couldn't compare to the salt Austin was rubbing into her heart's wounds.

The agony reached her bones.

She watched Austin leave.

The door slammed with a thunderous crash.

The next day dawned bright and clear.

She was awakened by her alarm, which she had set early to make a good impression at work.

After getting up, Ella opened the curtains and breathed in the fresh air.

Birds chirped melodiously around her, as if last night had never happened.

Ella brushed her teeth and washed her face.

She opened her closet and remembered that she had stored most of her

clothes at Sarah's place.

She called Sarah.

"Morning, Ella! Missing me already?" Sarah answered cheerfully.

Ella tilted her head, cradling the phone while rummaging through her limited wardrobe. "Have you seen that outfit of mine? I think I left it at your place."

"Which outfit?"

"That limited-edition fall blazer, the one Austin bought." She had become so accustomed to saying Austin's name that she almost forgot she was planning to divorce him.

Sarah noticed the slip but didn't point it out, pausing momentarily. "Let me check."

Ella put the phone on speaker and set it aside.

"Can't find it. Maybe it got lost somehow," Sarah said after a while.

Ella felt a headache coming on as she stood with her hands on her hips,staring at the few pieces of clothing she had.

Since it was her first day, she wanted to look presentable.

"Fine," she sighed.

"Have you divorced Austin yet?" Sarah asked abruptly.

"No."

Ella answered dismissively.

"Pathetic," Sarah sneered. "You've made up your mind,but he's backtracking."

"He's only refusing because of his precious Judith. Don't read too much into it." Ella said with a self-deprecating smile, thinking of his words from last night.

The floor still showed signs of the broken door.

She pressed her lips together and asked, "Have you ever seen a beagle that destroys homes?"

"What? Did Austin get violent?" Sarah's voice instantly flared with concern."Where are you? I'll come rescue you. Should we call the police? I can't believe he laid hands on you. I'll turn him into minced meat today!"

Ella shook her head, sighing as she explained what had happened the previous night.

"What the hell? Is he mentally ill?" Sarah cursed.

Ella planned to find someone to repair the door to prevent Austin from breaking in again.

Sarah sounded genuinely worried on the other end. "You don't think you're in actual danger,do you?"

"No, I'm going to install a steel door to keep him out."

"Good idea, make sure it has a keypad lock," Sarah agreed emphatically.

Ella abandoned the door problem for now and selected a white silk blouse with a polka-dotted bow at the collar, paired with a black pencil skirt.

Standing before the full-length mirror, she assessed her appearance,

confirming that her outfit looked appropriate before grabbing her bag and heading out.

Since she was an intern secretary. Ella was assigned to a floating workspace in the CEO's office area.

Besides her, there was a head secretary named Hannah Lewis in the secretarial office.

She was two years older than Ella and had worked her way up smoothly in the CEO's office, handling nearly all of Royce's work and personal matters.

"These are the documents Mr. Castillo needs to review. I've marked them with sticky notes, along with those that haven't been reviewed and those to be distributed to various departments," Hannah explained.

She stood beside Hannah, taking notes in a small notebook.

"You're new, and there's a lot to learn, so I've printed everything in a document. Just follow the instructions there," Hannah said.

Hannah was considerate and detailed in her guidance rather than making things difficult because Ella was new.

Ella felt touched by her thoroughness.

"I see potential in you, Ella," Hannah said, patting her shoulder.

Ella felt encouraged. "I won't let you down," she nodded.

"Good,now get to work," Hannah gestured for Ella to go ahead.

Ella remained in place for a moment, reviewing the notes she had taken before fetching boxes of files one by one to her desk.

Her workspace was a small corner outside the CEO's office.

Ella quickly filled the area with boxes.

She opened them and began sorting the files.

As she crouched down, her slender waist and rounded hips created an elegant silhouette in the bright office area, like a graceful landscape.

Royce, Austin, and Judith were conversing when they noticed the figure crouching by the boxes with her back turned.

Her attire today was particularly eye-catching.

Though not a designer brand, it was certainlyattention-grabbing.

Men are visual creatures.

Without exception, both Royce and Austin glanced in her direction.

Judith tensed, watching Austin carefully.

When she saw that his gaze lingered for only a second or two without any

further interest, her lips curled into a satisfied smile.