Chapter 2

Tristan got home at 3 AM.

Scarlett was already asleep. She only woke up with a start when she felt someone gently stroking her forehead.

Tristan had tossed his suit jacket aside. Two buttons of his shirt were undone, and he sat in the darkness, gazing at her tenderly.

His straight shoulders, upright back, and sharp jawline—he always looked decisive and ruthless, yet only showed his soft side in front of her.

Scarlett was startled, her heart racing wildly.

"Sorry, did I scare you?" Noticing her subtle reaction, Tristan quickly turned on the bedside lamp.

Scarlett sat up and leaned against the headboard, her long hair falling beside her face, making her already thin face look even thinner.

Her pale complexion also looked somewhat haggard.

She quietly traced Tristan's features with her eyes, suddenly realizing she could barely remember what he looked like as a child.

"Let me ask you something," she said. "I haven't been able to get pregnant. If another woman got pregnant with your child, would you divorce me?"

Tristan froze, but his face showed no hesitation: "What are you talking about? How could I possibly get another woman pregnant?"

"What if?" Scarlett persisted. "What would you choose?"

"Honey, don't overthink it. Did you have a nightmare?"

"I just want to know the answer." Scarlett stared at him without blinking.

He used to be hot-tempered and wore his emotions on his sleeve. It was under her guidance that he gradually became calm and reserved.

Now he was using these acting skills on her too.

She couldn't describe the feeling in her heart—it was blocked up and uncomfortable. She wanted to cry but couldn't.

"Honey, are children really that important? I didn't inherit the Getty Group from my dad either."

Tristan held her hand, his manner serious: "Husband and wife are the ones who spend their whole lives together. It doesn't matter whether you have children or not. I only want you. As for who inherits the family business later—"

"There are billions of people on Earth. Can't we find someone suitable?" He made a joke.

Scarlett smiled along with him, but the smile didn't reach her eyes.

"You're so good with words," she sighed.

Getting Chloe pregnant while wanting to spend his whole life with her.

Besides her, he had other mistresses too. Were they all spending their lives together with him as well?

She felt wronged and wanted to throw herself into his arms for a good cry, but the man before her was no longer the same person. She couldn't travel back in time to embrace the him who once loved her deeply.

"These are all my true feelings. Alright, I smell too much like alcohol. I'll take a shower first. You get some good sleep." He kissed her forehead lightly, tucked in the corners of her blanket, then went to the bathroom outside.

Scarlett didn't fall asleep again until dawn.

Tristan never came back to bed either.

The night was extremely quiet. She heard his muffled voice, as if he was on the phone with someone, his tone gentle and tender—just like how he'd been with her all these years.

So his love wasn't just for her—it could be shared with other women too.

He left early the next morning without saying goodbye. Scarlett was too lazy to get up and slept on and off until noon, when she heard some noise downstairs.

She went downstairs and saw her birth mother, Harper Savoy.

"Chloe's pregnant. You know about it, right?"

Harper sat on the sofa with her legs crossed, holding a cup of coffee that was still steaming.

She took a light sip, her face showing obvious satisfaction: "I told you long ago that only Chloe deserves to marry into the Getty Family. What makes you think you're worthy?"

This kind of verbal abuse had continued ever since she was brought back to the Mellon Family.

Although Chloe wasn't Harper's biological daughter, she'd received an elite education since childhood and was very much like Harper—flamboyant and noble.

Meanwhile, Scarlett came from humble origins and wasn't worthy of sharing the same blood as Harper. She could only live in the servants' quarters and take Chloe's hand-me-downs.

"You dream every day about Tristan giving me up and falling for Chloe, don't you?" Scarlett asked her. "Too bad you only know Tristan because of me. Otherwise, the Getty Family wouldn't even know the Mellon Family exists."

"Shut up!" Harper slammed her teacup on the table. "Tristan pursued Chloe on his own! He knows Chloe is the one who deserves to be his wife! You're just a woman who can't get pregnant!"

Scarlett's fingers curled slightly. Even though she knew Harper was deliberately trying to provoke her, it still hurt.

She wanted to convince herself that Tristan had been seduced, but he was a clear-headed adult. He made his own choices.

Once, a business friend told Tristan that keeping a young actress on the side after marriage was perfectly normal.

Tristan had replied: "Too bad none of those in the entertainment industry catch my eye."

Scarlett had overheard this and asked Tristan if he would keep someone on the side if there was someone he liked.

Tristan swore it was impossible—he was just playing along and speaking casually. He even cut ties with that friend afterward.

Now, thinking back, maybe he'd started acting in front of her long ago.

Scarlett took the folic acid Rose had prepared for her with some water. The bottle was labeled as vitamins and didn't stand out.

"Scarlett, you are my biological daughter after all."

Seeing her silence, Harper softened her tone, though her manner remained condescending.

"As long as the Mellon Family exists, I'll always support you. So if you're smart, divorce Tristan early and stop occupying the position of Mrs. Getty. He said he'll give you a settlement too."

Scarlett's eyebrow twitched: "He's already discussed marrying Chloe with you?"

"Of course!" Harper laughed loudly. "They're already planning the wedding date. I came here today to get something."

She strode upstairs as if she were the lady of this villa: "Where's the wedding dress you wore when you married Tristan? The custom Valentino with hundreds of hand-sewn diamonds—I loved it back then."

"So today I'm taking that dress. We'll alter it to fit Chloe's figure. She's going to wear it at her wedding with Tristan."

Scarlett asked coolly: "Isn't Chloe the noble Miss Mellon? Being a mistress is one thing, but now she has to take my hand-me-down wedding dress? Is she a beggar?"

"Scarlett!"

Harper slammed her hand on the stair railing: "You're the one who doesn't deserve that dress!"

"Whether I deserve it or not, that dress is mine. I'd rather give it to a beggar than to you."

Scarlett smiled and called out: "Butler, throw her out."