?Chapter 971:


    When the skies finally cleared that afternoon, sunlight slipped through the window. Nursing a pounding headache, Ste resolved to step outside and let the fresh air untangle her thoughts.


    Clutching her windbreaker close, she drifted into the park near her vi, the sharp gusts biting her cheeks and strangely softening her unease.


    Time escaped her as she wandered, until a sudden voice called her name from ahead on the path.


    Her eyes snapped up, and shock froze her where she stood. Marc was there—someone she hadn’t seen in what felt like a lifetime.


    A sleek suit draped his frame, his hair perfectly parted, and an insincere smile curved across his lips.


    There was no question he had noticed her long before she noticed him. In fact, it felt as if he had been waiting for this very meeting.


    Marc halted directly in front of her, his gaze roaming shamelessly from head to toe. “Well, well, Stel. Been a while. Judging by your face, life hasn’t been too kind to you, has it?”


    Without sparing him a word, Ste tried to slip past.


    But Marc shifted quickly, nting himself in her way once more.


    “I caught wind of your suspension from the institute. What happened? Didn’t William step in? He’s supposed to run the ce, isn’t he?”


    He clicked his tongue in mock pity, though the sly glint in his eyes betrayed his delight. “If you’d stayed by my side and continued being my wife, you wouldn’t be standing in this mess. But you demanded a divorce—and this is the result.”


    Ste shot him a sharp re, her voice cold. “Move.”


    Marc chuckled darkly, his tone swelling with smugness. “Did I touch a nerve? Tell me, what’s the point of clinging to William? Honestly, your standards have dropped since leaving me. Back then, you were pampered, and everyone addressed you with respect as Mrs. Walsh.”


    Ste’s brow furrowed. Did he truly imagine she valued that empty title? He had been the one to betray their vows, yet he twisted the story as if she bore the me.


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    When she remained silent, Marc leaned in, his voice dropping to a condescending whisper, dripping with false generosity.


    “See, I’ll be generous for old times’ sake. The Walsh Group has bounced back. If you crawl back to me, I’ll take care of you. We won’t remarry, of course, but it’s still better than wasting yourself on William.”


    Atst, Ste lifted her eyes. The venom in her gaze burned through him, and a slow, mocking smile yed across her lips.


    “Marc, you’re still the same pathetic dreamer you’ve always been. Go back to you? You don’t even deserve to say those words.”


    The contempt etched on her face froze Marc’s smirk. It curdled into shame, his pride stung raw.


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