Chapter 1
Ella Garcia woke up to a kiss.
In the middle of the night, feeling the familiar presence close to her, she held her breath, her heart aching with sharp pangs.
The man kissing her was her husband.
His name was Joshua Thomas, CEO of the Thomas Group—handsome, wealthy, refined, and distinguished.
But he was 34 years old this year, a full 10 years older than her.
He was very keen on having sex with her.
Whenever things got heated, Joshua would always lean close to her ear and say in a husky voice, "Ella, you're so soft, you smell so good."
Before, when Ella heard words like these, she naively thought Joshua still loved her.
If she hadn't witnessed him throwing a birthday party for his first love during the day.
Kissing his first love in front of everyone, she really would have believed Joshua loved her.
She had been such a fool.
Joshua didn't love her at all.
Touching her was just a physical need.
When she first returned to the country, he dragged her off to get married, but that was only because his grandfather forced him.
Ella felt she needed to wake up.
Thinking about what she saw during the day, and now being treated so passionately by Joshua.
Ella only felt nauseous, like she wanted to throw up.
She pushed him away in resistance and said coldly:
"I don't want to have sex tonight. Don't touch me anymore."
Joshua had never been someone who would force anyone.
Especially when it came to things between husband and wife.
In the darkness, he couldn't see clearly what expression Ella wore beneath him.
But this was the first time she'd rejected him, which surprised Joshua somewhat.
"Are you sure?"
He stopped his movements, really wanting a reason.
After all, Ella used to really enjoy having sex with him.
Sometimes she would even cling to him and ask for it while he was working.
Today was really strange—she was actually rejecting him.
"I'm sure. From now on, don't touch me anymore."
Ella moved out from under Joshua, turned over with her back to him, her voice turning cold.
Joshua didn't know what mood Ella was in now.
He got up and turned on the bedroom light, got out of bed to put on his robe, and saw that Ella wouldn't even look at him.
He felt inexplicably angry.
"Ella, what are you making a fuss about now?"
Ella still had her back to him.
Realizing that tonight she definitely couldn't lie quietly in the same bed with Joshua anymore.
She simply got up and took out the divorce papers she'd prepared during the day from the nightstand drawer and handed them to him.
"Joshua, let's get divorced!"
Ella was brought to the Thomas family at 15 and became engaged to Joshua.
Ella didn't deny that she started liking him from that time.
But Joshua didn't like her back then, keeping her at arm's length every day, making her give up.
At 20, Ella finally let go of all her feelings for him and went abroad alone.
But after just three years abroad, she was forced to come back and marry him.
During this past year of marriage, Ella had been living on edge every day.
Afraid that everything she'd finally gained would disappear, afraid that Joshua would leave her again.
Until she saw with her own eyes Joshua holding and kissing his first love, she suddenly realized.
He never belonged to her.
Ella didn't want to stay by his side anymore, living in fear every day.
Leaving was her best choice.
Joshua could hardly believe what he was seeing and hearing.
He snatched the papers from mid-air.
When he saw clearly that it was indeed divorce papers signed by Ella, the anger in his chest burned even hotter.
"Divorce me? Ella, do you know what you're saying?"
A penniless orphan girl like her actually dared to ask him for a divorce?
Did she know that a man like him, even if divorced, would have countless socialites in all of Emerald City lining up to marry him?
Damn Ella, actually wanting to divorce him.
Joshua was almost laughing from anger.
"I know what I'm doing."
Ella kept her delicate face expressionless.
"Since you like Scarlett Lewis, go be with her. I'll make room for her."
She gathered herself, preparing to change rooms to sleep.
Joshua's deep, hawk-like sharp eyes coldly pierced Ella.
"You know about what happened during the day?"
Otherwise, why would she suddenly mention Scarlett?
Ella snorted coldly, meeting his gaze:
"If I didn't know, would you have set up a home with her outside?"
Ella tried hard to control the hurt and bitterness in her chest.
She tried to convince herself that this was just a marriage of convenience.
She shouldn't care.
Besides, didn't she also have a secret home outside?
Joshua took two long strides forward, standing tall in front of Ella.
The height difference between them was too great. Ella looked petite and delicate in front of him, as if he could easily pick her up with one hand.
Joshua standing in front of her was even more imposing, his presence making it hard for her to breathe.
"Stop making a fuss. I was just throwing Scarlett a birthday party."
He raised his hand to hug her.
But Ella slapped his hand away and said coldly:
"Just sign it. We'll go to the courthouse tomorrow."
Then she left the room.
Leaving Joshua standing there, truly laughing from anger.
Damn Ella, without him, could her life outside be as good as it is now?
Really didn't know how good she had it.
Joshua didn't take it seriously, tore up the divorce papers and threw them in the trash, then went to bed.
But that night, he couldn't fall asleep no matter what.
It felt like something was missing from beside him, his heart felt empty.
The next day.
Joshua got up especially early and searched everywhere but didn't see Ella anywhere in the villa.
When he came downstairs in his suit, standing tall and straight, he asked the housekeeper:
"Where did Ella go?"
Karen nodded and said, "Mrs. Thomas went out before dawn."
"Where did she go?"
Karen shook her head, "I'm not quite sure."
Only then did Joshua realize that since Ella returned to the country, he hadn't really kept track of her.
Didn't know what she did every day when she went out.
Didn't know what work she did or what people she was in contact with.
In their year of married life together, they only had some common ground at night in bed.
After breakfast, Joshua got into the car driven by his assistant and instructed:
"Go look into Ella for me."
Brian Scott thought he'd heard wrong and asked again to confirm:
"Mr. Thomas, you want me to investigate Mrs. Thomas?"
"Yes."
Joshua realized he didn't understand Ella at all.
After all, Ella was his wife now. If his wife wanted a divorce, he should at least know the reason.
But the reason for divorce definitely couldn't be about him and Scarlett.
Ella had known about him and Scarlett all along, so she wouldn't ask for a divorce just because of yesterday's birthday party.
She wasn't that foolish.
Brian nodded, "Alright, I'll look into it right away."
Ella waited for Joshua at the courthouse entrance all day but he never showed up.
He didn't answer her calls either.
Frustrated, she had no choice but to return to Galaxy Bay Community.
This place was her other home.
When Ella arrived, the nanny was feeding her two children, Aurora and Dorian.