Gianna had become so unfamiliar to him that he almost didn’t recognize her.

“You...” Vince couldn’t help but speak up.

Gianna ignored him, calmly placing the washed dishes back in the cabinet. She removed her apron and brushed past him.

His gaze drifted downward, and his brows furrowed. Raising his voice, he called out, “Gianna, wait.”

She stopped but didn’t bother turning around. “What is it now?”

His voice carried a hint of awkwardness. “You... there’s a stain on the back of your pants. Looks like quite a lot. Is this a hormonal imbalance or something?”

Gianna took a deep breath, and she was just about to respond when Vince’s phone rang.

Seeing the caller ID, he didn’t hesitate to answer, his tone softening immediately. “Rox, what’s wrong?”

Through the receiver came a girl’s sobbing voice, broken by hiccups.

“Vince, I twisted my ankle while trying to change the light fixture. It’s so swollen and hurts so much. Can you come over? I’m scared...”

“Don’t move. I’ll be right there!” Vince anxiously replied.

Gianna didn’t care about their affairs. She turned and headed to her bedroom to change her pants.

“Gianna,” Vince called after her. “Do you need me to take you to the hospital on the way? That bleeding looks like a lot.”

His attempt at concern felt shallow and insincere, like a casual afterthought.

She paused at the door and smirked faintly. “No need. Have you ever heard of a woman dying from her period? You’d better hurry to Roxan’s house. It’s dangerous for a girl to be home alone.”

Hearing her mention Roxan, Vince’s unease grew stronger.

But Roxan’s sobbing on the phone became even more pitiful. Without time to think further, he said to Gianna, “Alright then, I’ll go. Take care of yourself and drink more water if you’re not feeling well.”

Gianna didn’t respond. She simply closed the door.

For the next two days, Vince didn’t return.

It wasn’t hard to guess why—Roxan must have made him stay. Not that it mattered to Gianna; his absence only made things more convenient for her.

The bags Michelle had gifted her had already been sold as nine-tenths new, bringing in over 1.2 million dollars.

Having spent so many years with the Perkins family, Gianna knew that Michelle had always wanted to recover the couple’s heirloom pocket watch—a memento from her youth with Vince's late father. However, the demands of running the company after her husband’s death had left no time to track it down.

Years ago, Gianna had seen a photograph of the watch and taken a picture of it herself. She had quietly asked a friend to help locate it. Last month, her friend informed her that it had finally been found.

If not for the incident with the baby, she would have already brought it back. Thankfully, it wasn’t too late now.

Early the next morning, the package containing the pocket watch arrived. Though it bore some minor scratches, the photograph of Perkins family inside remained intact. That alone made it worthwhile.

Gianna was about to call Michelle to share the good news when her phone rang.

“Gia, can you come to the old house?” Michelle’s voice was tinged with frustration. “That Roxan has stirred up trouble again.”

From their conversation, Gianna quickly understood the gist of what had happened.

It was almost laughable. Roxan’s leech-like parents had shown up outside the TerraLink Group headquarters, causing a scene and demanding some “pocket money” from their son-in-law, the general manager.

Everyone knew that Vince’s wife was Gianna. Her father had passed away in an accident years ago, and her mother had died, saving the former TerraLink Group general manager.

Now, two random people were claiming to be his “in-laws,” causing a public spectacle.

What even more outrageous was Roxan’s mother, who, after crying and making a scene, went as far as to hoist a banner proclaiming that Roxan was Vince’s “second wife.” She essentially admitted that her daughter was a mistress, destroying another woman’s marriage.

The news exploded online. Media outlets rushed to report the scandal. Within half a day, the TerraLink Group building was swarmed by onlookers and reporters, leaving no room to breathe.

The scandal caused TerraLink Group’s stock prices to plummet, leading the board members to grow restless. The old foxes in the boardroom began pressuring Michelle to remove Vince from his position as general manager.

Naturally, Michelle refused. Once the Perkins family relinquished control, the company would be stripped bare and divided up by others.

When Gianna arrived at the Perkins family’s old residence, Vince was kneeling in front of his father’s portrait. His expression was cold, but his voice was steady as he said, word by word, “Roxan is not a mistress.”

Michelle trembled with rage, her voice shaking as she rebuked him, “A woman who shamelessly climbs into another’s bed for status—if that’s not a mistress, then what is? Vince, have you forgotten that Gianna is your legitimate wife? With the Chandler family creating such an ugly mess, how do you expect her to face the world?”

Vince fell silent for a moment before replying coolly, “Gianna and I have been married for three years, but I’ve never touched her. Does that even count as a marriage?”

His words left Michelle momentarily stunned, but at the doorway, Gianna laughed aloud.

It was true: for three years, they had slept in separate rooms, never crossing that line.

But there was one exception, an accident three months ago.

That night, Gianna had been returning from a school reunion. Passing a bar, she caught sight of Roxan supporting a clearly drunk Vince. The two of them stumbled toward a luxury car parked by the curb.

Despite everything she had endured over the past two years, the sight still stirred a bitter ache in Gianna’s heart. Her feet felt like they were weighed down with lead, and she couldn’t move a step.

Just as Roxan was about to open the car door, a rough-looking young man grabbed her arm. A heated argument broke out between the two.

Gianna couldn’t hear what they were saying, but whatever the man said next made Roxan’s expression falter. Left with no choice, she pushed Vince into the back seat and followed the man away.

Gianna stood frozen on the spot for over half an hour, but Roxan didn’t return.

Eventually, a traffic officer approached to issue a parking ticket. On impulse, Gianna retrieved the car keys from Vince’s pocket, started the car, and drove him home.

She barely managed to drag him to the bed before he grabbed her and pulled her into his arms. His breath was hot and unsteady, his cheeks flushed unnaturally red, and the way he looked at her was hazy and unfocused.

A sense of danger surged through Gianna.

He wouldn’t...

Her fears were confirmed. Vince began pawing at her, tearing at her clothes, his fiery kisses landing everywhere.

She was scared and tried to struggle, but the disparity in strength between a man and a woman was too great.

Unable to break free, she bit down hard on his shoulder.

The sharp pain made him flinch, and he let out a low groan. Gianna thought the pain might snap him out of it, but instead, he held her even tighter. His breath, hot and heavy against her ear, carried a seductive murmur, “Anna, be good. Don’t fight.”

Gianna froze.

Anna.

It was the nickname he had given her when they were children. He had called her that countless times, but ever since university, he had grown distant and cold toward her. After meeting Roxan, he even started picking fights and giving her the silent treatment. He hadn’t called her that name in years.

Her brief moment of distraction gave him the chance to overpower her completely.

What followed was a night of madness.

The next morning, to avoid any awkwardness, Gianna left early.

Vince, however, never mentioned that night. Instead, he became even more attentive to Roxan, likely thinking he had mistaken Gianna for someone else in his drunken state.

The last flicker of hope in Gianna’s heart was snuffed out.

But fate loves to play cruel tricks. That one night left her pregnant—a fleeting moment of joy that ended in heartbreak when she lost the baby.

Her love had finally run dry.

“I’m not the only one tired of this sham marriage,” Gianna said with a faint smile, her tone calm and emotionless. “Vince, I’ve already filed for a divorce online. Please cooperate and sign it.”

Gianna's voice was soft yet resolute, causing both people in the room to freeze in shock.

Vince’s body shuddered slightly, and his gaze toward her was filled with malicious mockery.

"That act you put on last time was pretty convincing. I almost believed you. Are you trying to use the same trick today?"

Michelle shot him a glare and then, feeling sorry for Gianna, stepped forward to embrace her gently. "Gia, it's my fault. I forced you to marry Vince all those years ago and couldn't get rid of that woman from the Chandler family..."

She shot another angry glance at Vince. "I’m giving you one day. End all ties with that woman, or don’t come back to this house!"

As though he had seen through their actions, Vince straightened his back, his eyes full of disappointment as he looked at Gianna. "The only people who know Roxan’s family background and her parents' contact details, apart from her and me, are you. Gianna, can you guarantee you didn’t orchestrate this mess?"

Gianna let out a light laugh.

Back in college, Roxan had framed her countless times, and Vince never believed her. Even if she swore in her life, she was always treated like a clown in his eyes.

Trust, once broken, was thinner than paper.

She had stopped defending herself after that, but today, she refused to stay silent. "Since all three of us could have done it, why is it that you’re certain it’s me? You have no evidence. What are you basing these accusations on?"

Vince narrowed his eyes, trying to detect even the slightest trace of guilt in her, but he found none.

"You’re talking nonsense. It can’t be Rox. She..."

Michelle, unable to listen any longer, interrupted his words. "Enough! It’s obvious that you’re so captivated by that woman from the Chandler family that you’re doubting Gia. Have you forgotten Evelyn's kindness to you?"

Mentioning "kindness" made Vince react like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. His eyes darkened, and his voice turned as cold as ice. "Yes, I owe Aunt Evelyn a debt. But who exactly I owe it to, and what it was for, you know best."

Michelle, struggling to control her emotions, released Gianna and stepped forward to slap him across the face with all her strength. "Enough! You have no right to speak of her!"

The slap hit Vince’s left cheek with a loud crack, causing it to swell immediately. But he didn’t utter a word. He just stood up and walked out of the room.

Michelle, furious and distressed, sat down and took a long time to recover.

She grasped Gianna’s hand, apologizing for her son’s behavior and explaining why Vince had always been antagonistic toward them since college.

It turned out that Evelyn had once been Antonio’s first love.

They had been in love during college, but due to family reasons, they had separated. Years later, Evelyn and Michelle had both given birth at the same hospital. Due to a nurse’s mistake, their babies had been swapped, and the mix-up lasted for three years.

It was only because little Gianna fell ill and the blood types didn’t match that they discovered the error.

After the children were swapped back, Evelyn couldn’t bear to part with Vince. After her husband passed away, she decided to settle with Gianna in New York, and she and Antonio put their past behind them. Since then, Evelyn and Michelle had grown closer.

For a time, both families lived harmoniously.

But during the summer of their senior year in high school, Vince accidentally found out about his father’s past with Evelyn. He believed she was just a mistress his father had brought back, and he began to target Evelyn. As a result, his relationship with Gianna also grew distant.

Then came the assassination attempt where Evelyn saved Vince’s life, but he turned the baseless hatred onto Gianna. He believed she had used her mother’s death to manipulate him, ruining his freedom and marriage. This misunderstanding eventually led to the consequences they were facing today.