Chapter 106

Seeing me still pouting and sulking, he didn’t even glance my way. Instead, he just gave a faint smile and said, “Weren’t you the one who said you were tired? Seems like the more we make love, the more awake you get.”

I couldn’t be bothered to deal with him. I marched straight into the bathroom for a shower, and when I came out, I just curled up with my back to him and went to sleep.

If Jared refused to agree to a divorce, then my only option would be to dig up evidence of him cheating and take him to court myself.

Of course, I knew the moment I brought up divorce, my whole family would jump in and try to talk me out of it.

Just like in my previous life, when Jared wanted to divorce me, everyone tried to convince him otherwise. They said we had a kid, that I hadn’t done anything truly wrong, that he shouldn’t ruin the child’s life, and that I couldn’t survive without him.

In the end, Jared didn’t go through with the divorce, but he moved out. I was trapped in a fancy villa with a fat allowance, but feeling like some bug crawling in the dark, insecure, anxious, and completely lost.

Weighing all the pros and cons, if I divorced Jared and didn’t walk away with a fat settlement, then I’d be getting nothing out of this marriage at all.

I didn’t know how other women saw material things, but as far as I was concerned, money was everything. Without it, one couldn’t do a thing in this world.

Jared knew how to make money, and his investments were all over the place.

Back in my previous life, Tracy’s family started out a little better off than his, but later on, Jared ended up pouring hundreds of millions—no, billions—into patching up the Darwin family’s messes.

He spent so much on them because he was head over heels for Tracy.

So, if I treated Jared like my personal cash machine, using marriage and his sense of duty to drive him to make more money for me, that was just another kind of win.

In this world, hardly any truly capable man was willing to be a woman’s lapdog.

I wasn’t naive enough to think that once I got divorced, I’d magically turn into some powerful, independent woman.

This was the real world. Without resources, skills, or a clear direction, 99% of people were just scraping by, barely making ends meet.

I turned my head to glance at Jared. He seemed lost in thought, and right then, our eyes met.

He got the wrong idea and thought I was checking him out, and a little smirk appeared at the corner of his lips.

I slowly turned away, thinking, “Divorce isn’t something I can rush. For now, I’ll just treat him like my money-making tool and learn the ropes of making money from him.

“He’s got all the connections and resources, and honestly, Jared isn’t some ruthless, cold-hearted jerk. If we can split up peacefully, he might even help me out with contacts and resources afterward.

“There’s no need to turn him into my enemy. Both love and hate just breed drama. I might as well treat Jared like my teacher and figure out how to compete with men for survival in this world.”

Honestly, when it came to Tracy, besides being into Jared, she was probably just after his power and what he could do. 1/2

With that thought in mind, I drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, while Jared was still sound asleep, I was already up and reading.

I’d brought this book over from Jared’s bookshelf at his place. It was about financial investments.

“Take a look at the notes, too. I made them in there,” Jared said to me, his voice husky and still thick with sleep.

I put the book down and looked at him.

Jared slowly sat up. “Since when did you get so into studying? Did you finally decide to use your brain?”

I kept the book up, blocking his gaze, and replied coolly, “I said I wanted a career. Talk is cheap. I have to actually do something about it.”

Jared let out a soft laugh. “Do you really admire women like Tracy, the career-driven type?”

I curled my lips in a wry smile. “I have to admit that she’s definitely smarter than me.”

Jared gave me a long look, as if wondering if I’d lost it, then got out of bed. “So, where do you want to go today? Anything you want as a present?”

I put the book down. “Is this my reward for last night?”

Jared nodded. “From now on, every time we sleep together, you can ask me for something in return. As long as it’s not over the top, I’ll agree.”