After the Divorce: Crushed on My Lawyer Ex-wife

1 “It Would Be On My Terms, Not Yours.”

“This is Mr. Stone’s divorce agreement, Mrs. Stone,” Alexander Stone’s butler, Charles said as he handed a large manila envelope to Sophia.

“Mrs. Stone, you have a three-day window to sign the agreement and vacate the premises.” Charles watched Sophia with indifference, his demeanor calm as he spoke.

Although Sophia had been anticipating this moment, her heart sank upon the mention of the divorce agreement. She glanced at Charles, accepted the envelope, and extracted the divorce agreement from within.

“Ten million dollars of alimony as long as he never lays eyes on me again?” she scoffed, looking straight at Charles, whose expression remained inscrutable. “How can he possibly believe he can get away with such an absurd demand?”

She continued reading, “In accordance with the terms of the divorce agreement, it is acknowledged that Sophia Stone has failed to fulfill her marital obligations for a period of three years. As a result, Alexander Stone reserves the right to initiate divorce proceedings.”

“This is ridiculous. How could I fulfill my duties when I couldn’t even see my so-called husband? He’s never been under the same roof with me in three years.” Sophia tossed the papers aside.

What a mockery this made of her marriage. She felt like Alexander was shrugging her off. Like she was the water on a dog’s back that he simply got rid of by shaking vigorously. She felt insulted.

Three years ago, Sophia reluctantly entered a marriage arranged by her grandfather, who had laid out three tasks to her during this marriage: stay out of the public eye, assist Alexander in taking over Stone Enterprise, and be his unwavering support.

Though the contractual stipulation that she remain invisible to the public eye always puzzled her, she had promised her grandfather to not disappoint him. She resigned from her powerful position at her own law firm, and tried to embrace her role as the low-profile wife of a CEO who never appeared in public.

Alexander took over Stone Enterprise soon after they united, and then, he became the world champion in hide-and-seek.

In the beginning, she tried to maintain a connection with her husband by preparing lunches and visiting his workplace. Yet, she soon realized that Alexander was either never at the office or too preoccupied to meet her.

After six months of futile attempts, she accepted the bitter truth that fulfilling her grandfather’s directives was impossible. She channeled her energy into developing her hobbies, all in her pursuit of self-improvement, persuading herself to see this period of respite as a relief from her life as a renowned lawyer and founder of the world-famous law firm.

Yet, she refused to touch a single cent of the money he sent her. She had her own income, enough to lead a comfortable life until the end of her days

She was certain that her marriage would eventually come to an end, but she was appalled by the way Alexander Stone twisted the narrative to paint her as the one who had failed in her marital duties.

resisting the urge to express her anger, and instead, she said sarcastically, “Well, where might my charming husband be today? As far as I can remember, a divorce agreement takes place between

and replied, “Mr. Stone is in town, most

or was he accompanied by someone?” Sophia didn’t say it directly, but her message

is that he wishes for you to sign these papers, and he emphasized that he does not need to be present while you do so.

to see me even at the end of our marriage,

her retort, he simply bowed to her, then turned on his heels

footsteps had vanished, Sophia picked up her phone and called Alexander’s office number—the only contact information she had for him which she had never even used in their three years of marriage. She was determined to know what was going on with this agreement

limits, and he was dancing dangerously close to those limits. On her third try, the call was finally answered. It was a young woman’s voice. “CEO’s

like to speak

speaking?” the woman

she heard the rude reply, but she kept her tone calm. “I’m his wife.

“Oh, I see. It’s his ex-wife to be precise. What do

resisted the urge to get angry and said, “I have questions about the divorce terms

on the other end of the line replied, “He won’t answer you. His attitude is already clear in the divorce agreement. As a useless wife, he feels that he has already given you enough. What

by a couple of very specific words. “Useless wife? Is

nerves. “You shouldn’t expect any more than what

suddenly heard the approach of a man’s voice from the other end of the phone. Her heart raced in anticipation. “Emily,

with an unsettlingly playful giggle. “Alex, your wife is calling you. She has some questions about the divorce agreement,” she said, her tone

this was the sordid truth

the silence stretching out agonizingly before he finally picked up the phone. His voice oozed with disdain and indifference as he coldly declared, “I no longer

a second thought, he hung up

ear for a few seconds after

bubbling over. “Useless wife?” she muttered angrily. “What right does he have to call me that? He was never around as a husband, so what does

this really how he sees me? Tossed aside like an old, worn-out rag once

days of their marriage, telling herself that arranged marriages succeeded

with love, patience, and unwavering support, hoping like an idiot he’ll eventually see the powerful, intelligent, and remarkable woman I am,” she

“With which he mocks me by throwing the blame on

or swayed by the lure of mere money. “If this is the callous attitude he wants to take,”

a few moments, she picked up the papers strewn across the floor. She read through them once again,

on her lips, “it’s truly a shame you never bothered to get to know the real me. That’s going to be the biggest mistake of your