Crystal Nash handed her the file folder, muttering, "Who still uses a courier to deliver documents these days?"

Wren Wynter took it and opened it.

Inside was the very divorce agreement she had signed.

And in the section that had been blank, there was now a clear, red thumbprint.

It was Kaden Xavier’s.

Crystal Nash leaned in for a look, a flicker of surprise on her face. "Huh? Kaden Xavier actually agreed to the divorce?"

Wren Wynter looked at the red thumbprint, but her heart remained calm.

Just then, Hugh Hale walked out of the study.

Seeing the document in Wren Wynter’s hand, he pushed up his glasses and spoke in a calm tone, "Kaden just messaged me. He’s asked me to represent him in the follow-up process of obtaining the divorce certificate. Has the agreement arrived?"

Wren Wynter brandished the divorce agreement in her hand and passed it to Hugh Hale.

Hugh Hale took it and examined it closely, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.

A thumbprint.

’Legally, there’s no issue.’

’Perhaps Kaden Xavier truly wants nothing more to do with this, to the point that even a signature felt like too much?’

"Since he has agreed and confirmed," Hugh Hale said, handing the agreement back to Wren Wynter. He asked in a strictly professional tone, "Miss Wynter, when do you plan to go register the divorce? I can accompany you."

Wren Wynter thought for a moment. "I have a flight to Ostrale tomorrow afternoon for an academic conference. I’ll be gone for about ten days. Let’s do it after I get back."

She didn’t want to make a trip to the Civil Affairs Bureau and ruin her mood right before her departure.

"Alright. In that case, I’ll wait for you to contact me upon your return."

Hugh Hale added one more thing, "Miss Wynter, are you certain about this? Once the certificate is issued, there will be no turning back."

As a lawyer, he needed to confirm his client’s true intentions one last time.

Especially since this divorce case was so fraught with complications.

Just as Wren Wynter was about to speak, her phone went DING with a text alert.

She casually tapped it open, and the photos that met her eyes made her pupils constrict. An icy chill shot through her fingertips.

The photos were clearly candid shots. The lighting was dim, and the background was a soft bed.

In the first picture, Kaden Xavier was lying on the bed with his eyes closed, his shirt collar open, revealing his collarbone and a portion of his chest.

Meanwhile, Seraphina Sutton, wearing an extremely revealing black lace nightgown, was practically draped over him. Her face was pressed against his chest, and one of her hands had even slipped inside his open shirt.

The second picture was a closer shot. Seraphina Sutton’s lips were pressed against Kaden Xavier’s jaw, her expression a mixture of infatuation and triumph.

The third was a close-up of their intertwined hands, an intimate pose.

Beneath the photos, there was a line of text.

"Dr. Wynter, Kaden got drunk and kept calling out my name. I just couldn’t bear to push him away. You don’t mind, do you?"

Crystal Nash leaned in for a look and scoffed, "What a couple of scumbags. Absolutely shameless."

Wren Wynter took a deep breath, then turned her phone screen toward Hugh Hale and Crystal Nash. "Lawyer Hale, you asked me if I was certain."

Her gaze swept calmly over them both.

"This is my answer. I’ve made up my mind. I am perfectly clear and absolutely certain."

Crystal Nash’s heart ached for her as she pulled her into a hug. "Wren..."

Wren Wynter gently patted her back, then eased out of the embrace and said to Hugh Hale, "Lawyer Hale, I’ll have to ask you to wait for me to get back. I’ll contact you the moment I return to get the paperwork started."

"Alright." Hugh Hale’s brow was furrowed, but in the end, he didn’t say anything else.

’Something felt off.’

「The next day.」

Sunlight piercing through a gap in the curtains stung Kaden Xavier’s eyes.

He woke with a frown, a hangover headache making his temples throb relentlessly.

Seraphina Sutton was wearing only a flimsy slip dress with a low-cut neckline. The blanket had slipped down to her waist, exposing a large expanse of pale skin.

As for him, his own shirt was open, several buttons undone.

Kaden Xavier’s expression darkened instantly, and he shot up into a sitting position.

The sudden movement startled Seraphina Sutton awake.

She rubbed her eyes and leaned toward him with the languor of someone just waking up. "Kaden, you’re awake? Are you hungry? I can go make you some breakfast."

"No need." Kaden Xavier’s voice was cold and hard as his gaze swept over Seraphina Sutton.

Seraphina Sutton froze. Meeting Kaden Xavier’s gaze, she immediately understood.

She pouted aggrievedly, her eyes welling with tears as her voice softened unconsciously.

"You drank too much last night and threw up all over me. I had no choice but to change, but all my other clothes were in the wash, so this nightgown was all I had left. Kaden, you don’t need to blame yourself. I’m not saying you have to take responsibility for anything."

Kaden Xavier was already out of bed, quickly buttoning his shirt. He cut her off, his voice devoid of any warmth.

"I don’t remember what happened last night. If I did anything inappropriate, I apologize."

"Kaden, we didn’t..."

"It’s for the best that we didn’t. Wren and I are not getting a divorce. The only reason I’m nice to you is for Asher’s sake."

He adjusted his collar, his back to her. "After you give birth, I will give you one percent of the Xavier Group’s shares as compensation. It will be enough for you and the child to live comfortably for the rest of your lives."

Seraphina Sutton’s eyes immediately reddened. "Kaden, what do you mean by that? Are you trying to get rid of me?"

"I’m not getting rid of you."

Kaden Xavier turned around. His gaze fell on her slightly swelling abdomen for a moment before quickly shifting away, his eyes devoid of any tenderness.

"This is just me repaying a debt. I owe Asher my life, so I’m repaying him with a child."

"But we’ve known each other for so long. Can’t we even be friends? Is it because Dr. Wynter minds?" Seraphina Sutton’s voice trembled as tears rolled down her cheeks. "Is it because she’s divorcing you that you’re in such a hurry to cut me off?"

Kaden Xavier was silent for a few seconds, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

"Yes," he admitted bluntly. "She minds, so I have to make a clean break."

His words were like a knife, stabbing viciously into Seraphina Sutton’s heart.

She opened her mouth but couldn’t make a sound, only able to watch as Kaden Xavier grabbed his phone and jacket from the nightstand and left without a single look back.

The moment the door clicked shut, the sorrow on Seraphina Sutton’s face vanished, replaced by a twisted expression of jealousy and hatred.

’Wren Wynter!’

’It’s always Wren Wynter!’

’She already signed the divorce papers, yet Kaden Xavier is still thinking about making a ’clean break’ for her sake.’

’On what grounds?!’

After getting into his car, the first thing Kaden Xavier did was send a message to Hugh Hale.

"Draft an agreement. Upon the birth of her child, Seraphina Sutton is to be gifted 1% of the Xavier Group’s shares."

Once the message sent, he wearily rubbed the bridge of his nose, started the car, and drove off.

Half an hour later, a reply came from Hugh Hale.

"The agreement is drafted. Please see the attachment. The terms have been written exactly to your specifications. The share transfer will be effective after the child is born and a paternity test is completed. I’ve also added confidentiality and future non-interference clauses."

Kaden Xavier glanced at the attachment and replied, "Acceptable."

A few seconds later, another message came from Hugh Hale, his tone hesitant.

"Kaden, are you sure about this?"

He rubbed his aching temples and typed back, "I’m sure. Just do as I say."