Burning Away the Griffin Thorns

"This is Scarlett's first big deal here. I don't want anything to go wrong."

I watched it all with a sense of detachment.

That night, after the negotiations, we returned home. Killian lingered on the sofa for a long time before finally speaking.

"Our alliance is on shaky ground. I haven't found the right moment to make things public. I'll make it up to the Thornes, I promise. But right now, Scarlett's deal has to succeed. It's critical."

I nodded, noncommittal.

I didn't remind him that the truly important thing should have been our upcoming alliance ceremony.

A ceremony he had promised but had never once prepared for.

Nor did I remind him that on that day, our alliance's dissolution agreement would become final.

After all, in his eyes, Scarlett was still his priority.

During the project, Killian deliberately avoided situations where Scarlett and I might meet, but Genevieve still sensed something was off.

She asked me with obvious curiosity, "What's really going on between you and Killian?"

I smiled. "What do you mean?"

Genevieve pouted. "He's looked at you more than once with this incredibly guilty expression. That's the look of a man who hasn't completely moved on."

I paused, thinking back.

It wasn't that I hadn't noticed. It was just that everything in the past made it impossible for me to believe what I saw in his eyes.

Ten days left.

That day was supposed to be a regular meeting between our two families.

Scarlett and I talked for a long time. I wasn't sure if she was doing it on purpose. I knew she had probably guessed my relationship with Killian.

I maintained a polite facade.

After the meeting, Killian surprisingly offered to drive me home.

It was the first time.

"Your appraisal skills are impressive. More than I expected," he said.

In five years of marriage, this was the first time he had complimented me.

My hand, which was organizing documents, paused, and I looked at him in confusion.

Killian hesitated for a long time before finally speaking. "About the alliance ceremony… I'm not sure we can go through with it."

I lowered my head, knowing he wanted to cancel it. Because of Scarlett.

"Let's just cancel it. We don't have time to prepare anyway."

I looked up at him, playing along, unwilling to cause a scene.

Killian stared at me in shock, as if he'd heard an answer he never expected.

He suddenly asked, "Are you okay with that?"

He had a point. The old me would have lost it on the spot, demanding to know why.

So many of the humiliating scenes in our marriage stemmed from me losing control, though he was always the one to blame.

I smiled faintly. "Of course. It's just a ceremony."

After a long silence, Killian spoke up again.

"How about this? I'll get you a new armored sedan in a few days."

I glanced at the countdown on my phone. Ten days until the dissolution was complete.

I refused.

His hands on the steering wheel froze, and the bulletproof car nearly ran a red light.

"What about that mansion downtown? Or we could go to that private club you've always wanted to visit."

Killian proposed several compensation plans, but I rejected them all.

By the time I got out of the car, his expression had shifted from embarrassment and guilt to confusion and annoyance.

Reading the confusion on his face, I offered, "Why don't we visit the lakeside villa?"

That villa was where our marriage had first begun.

I did miss it a little.

Killian was stunned, visibly trying to decipher my motives.

Long after I got out of the car, he remained sitting there, staring blankly ahead.