"And to think, Queena was just trying to convince me not to be angry with you," Matthew said, his voice dripping with disdain. “She was hoping we could reconcile. But seeing you like this—so bitter and cruel—I realize there''s no point. The thought of spending the rest of my life with someone so vindictive makes my skin crawl."


    Yvonne remained seated across from them. Though she had to look up at them, her presence was anything but subservient.


    "You two were kissing when I walked in, weren''t you? Quite the peacemaker, that Queena. A few more minutes and she would''ve convinced you right into bed."


    Her words hit their mark. The pair, still clinging to each other, visibly stiffened.


    “I—I couldn''t help myself. It was all my fault. Yvonne, please don''t me Matthew..." Queena covered her face and ran out of the room, sobbing.


    “Queena!” Matthew started to go after her, but Yvonne blocked his path.


    "Let me remind you, Matthew, this is your one and only chance to settle this privately. Miss it, and we''ll see each other in court."


    Matthew froze, his eyes cold as he stared at her. “I''m not in the mood to fight with you, Yvonne. We can part ways peacefully, but only if you issue a public rification that Queena was not the other woman."


    "And why would I do that for a homewrecker?" Yvonne asked, crossing her legs with a mocking air.


    His face a hard mask, Matthew pulled a file from his executive desk and mmed it down in front of her. "This is for ten percent of thepany''s shares. I''m prepared to buy you out at market value. Look it over. If there are no issues, you can sign it."


    He delivered the offer with the same condescending grace he might use for a charitable donation.


    Yvonne didn''t even touch the document. Her crystal-clear eyes met his. “I''ll ept a buyout, but I want double the market value."


    “Don''t push your luck, Yvonne," Matthew snapped. “I won''t tolerate this kind of extortion."


    "You can always refuse and wait for the court''s ruling," Yvonne said calmly. "But once the verdict is in, I won''t be epting a buyout at any price."


    She knew he needed absolute control over hispany; allowing her to be a major shareholder was out of the question.


    His jaw tightened, but his resolve was clearly wavering. "Thepany needs liquid capital to operate. I don''t have that much cash on hand right now."


    “That''s fine,” Yvonne replied smoothly. "I''ll ept fixed assets as payment."


    Matthew let out a bitterugh. "I


    never knew you were so calcting, Yvonne." He nodded curtly. "I''ll have mywyer draw up a new


    reement. You''ll have the cash arte property titles within a month. After that, we''re finished. We have nothing to do with each other."


    “Good,” she said, rising to her feet and walking out.


    Matthew watched her leave without a backward nce, his expression aplex mix of emotions.


    After leaving the tech park, Yvonne


    drove straight back to Cherry Apartment. Although she was out of Vexel Mark was still atrge and she remained in danger. It was best toy low unless absolutely O necessary.


    When she arrived, Helen was tidying up. A drawer beneath the TV


    console was open, and Helen was


    carefully wiping it down. Yvonne


    and


    took off her coat and went


    help.


    over, t


    “Oh, no, no, I can handle it! You''re a guest, I can''t have you doing chores," Helen insisted, waving her away.


    “It''s no trouble. I don''t have anything else to do," Yvonne said with a smile, beginning to organize the contents of the drawer.


    One of the drawers was filled with medicine boxes. Yvonne picked up a couple and


    read thebels, surprised to find they were for treating mental health conditions.