?Chapter 1539:


    Brenna let out a sharpugh. “Waldo was obsessed with Gracie before, chasing her like a lovesick fool. Now he has already moved on from her?”


    “Seems so,” ni said with a nod.


    Brenna didn’t linger in conversation. She marched directly into Ethan’s office


    Ethan leaned casually against his opulent desk, a cigarette dangling between his fingers, its tendrils of smoke weaving around him.


    His brows, faintly knitted, softened the instant he caught sight of Brenna, a warm smile breaking across his face. “Brenna.”


    Brenna gave a slight nod, her tone calm. “It’s past work hours. You weren’t heading downstairs, so I figured I would see what’s keeping you. Are you wrapping up soon?”


    Her eyes drifted to the plush couch where Gracie sat. Gracie was delicately dabbing at her tear-streaked face with a tissue, her makeup smudged.


    Gracie’s gaze snapped to Brenna, a flicker of irritation crossing her features at the intrusion. Undeterred, she poured her heart out to Ethan, her performance a touch exaggerated to needle Brenna.


    “Ethan, you’re my only friend here. If you don’t step in to help me, Waldo will crush me,” she said.


    Her hand rested protectively on her rounded belly, her cries growing more fervent. “I’m over five months pregnant, Ethan. What am I supposed to do now? Waldo is gallivanting with two college girls, and when I told him I wanted a divorce, he just shrugged and agreed without hesitation…”


    Brenna observed Gracie’s theatrical disy with a cool, skeptical eye. The tears were real enough, but something about the scene felt staged.


    Ethan, who had already postponed a critical meeting and canceled a client discussion to handle Gracie’s crisis, wasn’t about to let her disrupt his evening with Brenna.


    ??????????? с??αρ???????? g??????ν??????﹒с??ｍ


    Other than rearranging his schedule for Brenna, he had never allowed another woman to meddle in his professional affairs.


    He extinguished his cigarette in the ashtray with a decisive twist, his voice cool and measured. “Waldo has always been trouble—you knew that. I cautioned you when you married him, didn’t I? You told me you knew it was a marriage of business, not love. So why the shock now? If you’re unhappy, file for divorce. You’re wee to return to work at the Mitchell Group.


    “As for your child, you’ve got the means to raise them, and I’ll lend a hand if you need it.”


    Gracie’s eyes gleamed with joy—this was precisely what she had been angling for. She had long since abandoned any feelings for Waldo; what she needed was…


    Ethan’s backing to secure a divorce without sacrificing her shares in the Chapman Group.


    “You’ll really help me?” she asked, her voice bright with anticipation. “Once I’m free of Waldo, I’lle back to work in yourpany. And don’t worry, Ethan, Brenna—I would never dream ofing between you two.”


    .


    .


    .