Jalen’s POV

The moment Marian left my office, the temperature in the room seemed to plummet. I stood frozen behind my desk, staring at the closed door as if it might swing open again at any second. My breath came shallow and tight, my legs gave out as I dropped into my chair, elbows braced on the polished wood, and dragged both hands down my face.

She wasn’t bluffing.

After everything I had seen during our marriage—her cruelty, the manipulation, and the way she destroyed anything that ...