Chapter 1

After finding out my husband was cheating on me, I demanded a divorce without hesitation.

I fought for every penny in court and made sure my husband walked away with nothing.

I never expected that after the divorce, I’d reach the peak of my life instead.

I had a car, a house, no parents, and no husband. At twenty-five, I had officially reached the top.

Who could’ve guessed that after partying all night at a bar, I’d wake up the next morning and find my ex-husband’s divorce papers on my bed?

I answered the phone.

“Did you freaking sleep with me again?!”

Ethan sneered. “Don’t accuse me of something you can’t prove.”

“Thanks to you, I’m homeless and starting over from scratch. Where would I sleep with you? How would I even sleep with you?

“You’re seriously the woman with the biggest mouth and the least evidence I’ve ever met.”

I was speechless, but I wasn’t scared of him at all.

“Your divorce papers were left on my bed.”

“Let’s make one thing clear. This house in Rosewood Heights was my premarital property. You have no right to claim any part of it!”

I pointed furiously at the assets listed under my name on the judge’s computer.

The man in front of me widened his eyes. He was fairly handsome, but his twisted expression ruined the effect.

“Avery, you hid a house from me?!”

“Don’t be ridiculous! It’s my premarital property. You had no right to know about it! And I didn’t have any income after we got married. I bought it with the money I saved before our wedding!”

“You’ve got to be kidding me! This place was bought after we got married. We should each get half. Stop arguing and sign!”

I didn’t give Ethan a single chance to interrupt. My voice echoed through the courtroom before bouncing straight back into his ears.

The judge took a quiet sip of bottled water. This was a private matter between husband and wife. His only job was to witness the proceedings.

He knew Ethan, but he didn’t dare say a word. The previous judge had been forced to recuse himself simply because he knew Ethan. Avery had apparently filed the motion herself.

Ethan’s face turned green with rage. He pointed at me several times, but couldn’t form a sentence. After struggling for a while, he finally spat out, “You’re completely unreasonable!”

“I just remembered something!” I cut him off. “Listen to this recording. When we got married, you promised that if we ever divorced, all the property would go to me and you’d leave with nothing. I have proof!”

“You recorded me?! Is there no trust left between us?”

I crossed my arms and glared at him.

“That’s called leaving a paper trail.”

Ethan took a deep breath and accepted his fate. He picked up the pen and signed, thinking, What the hell was I thinking, marrying a legal bandit?

I drove the brand-new luxury car Ethan had bought during our marriage with all the windows down, thinking about my twenty-five years of failure.

When I was five, my father ran away with his mistress after my mother fell from a great height and became paralyzed from the waist down, losing the ability to work.

When I was seven, my mother couldn’t bear living with her disability anymore and took her own life.

When I was twelve, my grandmother, who had raised me all those years, died in a car accident.

I became a child nobody wanted.

Fortunately, the people around me changed like flowing water, while my life stayed as tough and resilient as wild grass.

With financial aid and meals from kind neighbors, I managed to make it to college.

During my junior year, I met my future ex-husband, Ethan.

He treated me wonderfully. We did everything together, and eventually, getting married felt like the most natural thing in the world.

After the wedding, I began living like a rich man’s wife. I thought I’d finally escaped my miserable life and become a princess.

Who could’ve guessed that at twenty-five—this year—everything would collapse again?

Claire sent photos and videos to my phone showing my husband entering a hotel with another woman. After questioning him and trying to test his story, I filed for divorce without hesitation.

I’d always been alone. Becoming single again didn’t scare me.

A light drizzle began to fall outside. I felt the rain brush gently across my skin and looked at the Mercedes emblem on the steering wheel. Then I thought about all the assets in my name and burst out laughing.

A man had betrayed me, so I simply didn’t want him anymore. The only two things in this world that would never betray me were money and knowledge.

With that thought, I stepped on the gas. The car shot forward like an arrow.

My new life, here I come!