Chapter 1 Divorce

The thud of paper landing on a hard surface echoed in the room.

A divorce agreement was thrown in front of Tessa Lopez.

"Your cousin has woken up, and I've promised her that she'll be my only wife for as long as she lives. Sign it, Tessa, so that we can finally end this marriage."

Tessa's expression did not show the slightest sign of surprise. She already knew this would happen the moment she heard that her cousin had woken up.

She looked at the man and asked bitterly, "You still don't believe me, do you?"

Samuel Pearson sneered. "Why should I believe in a greedy and vain woman like you? Anyway, don't make me repeat myself. Sign it, and this villa will be yours. That should be enough for you, right? I'm being generous already."

Tessa smiled mockingly.

He genuinely believed that he was being generous to her just because he was giving her a house.

She picked up the document and read it. His signature was already on it.

Tessa felt a lump in her throat and a strong desire to cry.

However, she forced herself to calm down.

She turned her gaze back to Samuel and questioned, "Did Grandma agree to this?"

"You can't always rely on Grandma whenever the odds are stacked against you. She won't help you every time." In a cold tone, Samuel added, "You know damn well why I married you. Now, stop being greedy, or I'll hate you even more."

Tessa rolled her eyes. "You already despise me. What difference will it make if you hate me even more?"

"Tessa!" Samuel called impatiently.

"Okay, I'll sign it," Tessa said as she grabbed the pen.

Following her cousin's awakening, she received a deluge of intimate photos of her and Samuel. They were obviously in love, so there was no point in Tessa staying married to him.

With that in mind, she crossed off the name of the villa on the divorce agreement before finally signing it.

Just like that, their marriage of three years had come to an end.

She was free at last.

Tessa gave Samuel the divorce papers and said, "Give me an hour. I'll be on my way as soon as I finish packing."

Samuel furrowed his brows. He gave her a hard look and replied, "This villa is yours. You don't have to leave."

"I don't need it. For me, every place you've been to…" After a chuckle, she continued, "They're all filthy."

"Tessa!"

Ignoring Samuel's outburst of rage, she pushed him out of the room, no longer as submissive as she used to be.

An hour later, Tessa discovered that Samuel was gone when she went downstairs. She looked down at the Casio men's watch in her hand.

It was a gift she had prepared for his upcoming birthday. But now it was useless since she had cut off any expectation of him. In fact, just looking at it stung like hell.

Without hesitation, she dumped the million-dollar watch in the bin.

She sighed deeply, lamenting that the past three years had been for naught.

It was all over now, though. From now on, she would live for herself.

Tessa rode in a taxi to get to her own private residence.

She had purchased her villa years ago, but she never returned to it because she had moved to live with Samuel instead.

The servants were all shocked to see her. A moment later, they were standing in a row, their voices raised in a reverent chorus: "Welcome home, Mrs. Pearson!"

Setting her luggage down, Tessa flopped onto the sofa and massaged the skin above her brows. She corrected, "I'm not Mrs. Pearson anymore. Call me Miss Lopez from now on."

She once took pride in being known as Mrs. Pearson, but now, she found the title ironic.

Despite their curiosity, the servants left without asking any questions.

Once she was in her room, Tessa called her assistant, Monica Herbert. "Hey, how are you doing?"

"You called me first. This is new," Monica remarked, with surprise evident in her tone. "Did something happen?"

"As of today, I'm officially single again. From now on, I'm going to do nothing other than focus on my career."

"What? Really?" Monica exclaimed in disbelief.

"Oh my god! Did I hear it wrong? You've been so devoted to your husband over the past three years that you even quit your job to become a full-time housewife. Why did you two split up? You're not kidding me, are you?"

Monica was her assistant. She was one of the few people who knew that Tessa had another identity.

Unbeknownst to others, Tessa was a top-notch lawyer who went by the name Iris.

And she was not just an ordinary lawyer. In fact, the mere mention of her name was enough to strike fear into the hearts of many lawyers.

"Has anyone asked for me recently?" Tessa asked Monica, who had yet to recover from the shock. "Are there any interesting cases?"

Monica recalled a recent event and sighed. "Yes, there is, and the client is offering an extremely high reward to anyone who can help them win the case. However, no one is brave enough to accept it. Also, you absolutely can't accept it."

"Tell me more about it." Tessa was intrigued now.