Chapter 14

With Elisabeth’s blessing secured, Anastasia felt like she could finally breathe again. Once her grandmother learned they were already married, she immediately started pushing Anastasia to move in with Cassian.

“Forget about fancy engagement parties and expensive weddings,” Elisabeth had said with a dismissive wave. “As long as you two are happy together, that’s what matters.” Her grandmother’s wholehearted approval of Cassian was obvious. After eight decades of life experience, Elisabeth could spot bullshit from a mile away—and she clearly saw none in Cassian.

Anastasia felt genuinely relieved, though meeting his family still made her want to throw up from nerves. At least with Cassian in her corner, she wouldn’t be completely defenseless. He’d promised his parents were chill and easy to get along with. Anastasia was determined not to embarrass herself.

Since Cassian didn’t want to overwhelm her, he suggested waiting until after she moved in before the family introductions. That timeline worked perfectly for Anastasia. Honestly, just being around Cassian made her nervous enough as it was. His presence was so intense—quietly commanding in a way that was both magnetic and slightly terrifying.

After Cassian left Sunday evening, Anastasia spent the night packing while Elisabeth supervised and offered commentary.

Chapter 14

Tomorrow after work, she’d officially become a resident of the Rhodes estate. Elisabeth seemed genuinely at peace knowing her granddaughter was moving on to something healthier. Early Monday morning, Anastasia grabbed coffee and a bagel before heading to J&A for what would probably be one of her last days there. She was there to wrap up her projects and figure out what to do with her company shares. If Jasper wouldn’t buy her out, she’d find someone else who would. The goal was complete separation from her old life.

“Ana! Thank God you’re finally here,” her assistant Claire practically sprinted over the moment she walked in. “Jasper’s been blowing up my phone looking for you.”

Anastasia nodded without surprise. “Yeah, I bet he has.”

Back in her office, something felt immediately wrong. Someone had definitely been messing with her computer. Anastasia was obsessive about her workspace organization, so the subtle changes were glaringly obvious. A knowing smile spread across her face as the pieces fell into place. She logged into her computer and checked her design folders. Bingo—clear evidence that someone had been rifling through her files. Her expression stayed calm and focused, though satisfaction flickered in her eyes. Jasper and Valeria’s little scheme was already underway, and she was about to flip their game completely upside down. Only Jasper knew her computer password anyway. She’d never bothered changing it from his birthday—an oversight that would now work perfectly in her favor.

She had no intention of changing it anytime soon. Time to set the perfect trap. She knew exactly what they were hunting for: her newest competition designs. The A’ Design Award submissions had just opened online. Contestants uploaded their work for preliminary judging, and only the top entries advanced to finals. Valeria had studied jewelry design and was clearly desperate to make her mark in this competition. But she obviously knew her own work wasn’t good enough, so she planned to steal Anastasia’s talent instead. The simplest approach was to take Anastasia’s designs and submit them under Valeria’s name. Jasper knew Anastasia had won multiple international awards—competitive success was basically her specialty. His plan was probably to charm Anastasia into creating fresh designs, then quietly swap Valeria’s name onto the submission. Instant credibility for his side piece. And all Jasper had to do was manipulate the woman he thought was still wrapped around his finger.

“You really think I’m still that same naive girl, don’t you?” Anastasia muttered, steel flashing in her eyes. Moving quickly, she gathered her latest design portfolio and logged onto the competition website. After setting up her account, she uploaded her completed designs along with her artist statements and creative process documentation. Once everything was submitted and confirmed, she logged out. Competition entries stayed confidential until preliminary judging started. To make sure she caught them red-handed, Anastasia had already hidden a tiny camera in the plant beside her computer.

Then she deliberately left her design files in plain sight on her desk.

“You want my work so badly?” she said with a cold smile. “Let me give you exactly what you deserve.” Time to have her final conversation with Jasper.

Standing outside his corner office, Anastasia could hear suspicious sounds from inside—definitely not business-related. She knocked politely. Frantic shuffling, then Jasper’s obviously flustered voice: “Uh, come in!”

Anastasia pushed the door open wearing her most innocent smile, though her eyes were sharp as diamonds. She immediately spotted Valeria frantically climbing off Jasper’s lap, her face flushed, hair messed up, and blouse clearly wrinkled. Jasper was desperately trying to straighten his tie, panic written all over his face—clearly not expecting this particular interruption.

“Whoops, sorry!” Anastasia’s tone was cheerfully oblivious. “Bad timing? I thought you were looking for me?”

Valeria turned bright red, frantically smoothing down her hair. “Ana, this isn’t what it looks like! We were just going over some quarterly reports.”

“Really?” Anastasia’s laugh was pure sugar with a razor blade hidden inside. “Must be some pretty exciting spreadsheets to get you both so…worked up.”

Jasper’s face darkened, his voice taking on that familiar controlling edge. “Cut the bullshit, Ana. Valeria was briefing me on her department’s performance. Nothing else happened.”

Anastasia gracefully settled into the leather chair across from his desk, completely unruffled. “Honestly, what you two do is zero percent my problem now. We’re done, remember? I’m here about business.”

Jasper’s frown deepened, though he tried to maintain his cocky facade. “What kind of business?”

Anastasia pulled a thick document from her designer handbag and slid it across his desk. “My resignation and separation agreement. I’ve already signed everything—just need your John Hancock to make it official.”

“Also, since I’m leaving J&A, I want to liquidate my shares. You can buy me out at current market value—about three hundred million—or I’ll sell to outside investors.”

J&A’s stock is hot right now. I’m sure Goldman Sachs would love to get their hands on a piece of this company.”

Both Jasper and Valeria went completely white, staring at her like she’d just announced she was joining a cult. Jasper shot out of his chair, real panic bleeding through his voice. “Ana, what the actual fuck? Have you completely lost your mind?”

Anastasia’s smile could have frozen Hell itself. “Lost my mind? I think I’ve finally found it. You should understand better than anyone why I’m doing this.”

Jasper’s expression turned dangerous, his voice dropping to that threatening register she remembered from their worst fights. “Don’t do something incredibly stupid, Ana. Do you have any idea what you’re throwing away? You’ll end up with nothing!”

Just as Anastasia opened her mouth to respond, her phone started buzzing. She glanced at the screen and felt her pulse spike. The caller ID read “Husband.”