THE DIVORCE GAMBIT From Dumped Wife to CEO's Forever novel Chapter 22

The only reason Caitlin accused him of cheating was because she was jealous of Sophie, plain and simple.

"Do you have any children?" the clerk asked.

"No," Caitlin replied coolly. "I've already signed the divorce papers. There are no property disputes between us. Please just process the certificates as soon as possible."

Hearing that, the clerk didn't press further. With a few swift stamps, she finalized the divorce certificates and handed them to both Caitlin and Julian.

As Caitlin took her certificate, she let out a quiet sigh of relief. No mandatory waiting period—what a blessing.

Julian narrowed his eyes as he watched Caitlin walk away, then spoke sternly. "Caitlin, we're divorced now. From this day forward, you have nothing to do with the Chandler family. I hope you'll stay away from Sophie and never set foot in our home again. Otherwise, don't blame me for forgetting the past."

He had a gut feeling that as soon as Caitlin left city hall, she'd go straight to Sophie to cause trouble.

Sophie was a gentle, kind-hearted girl. Even if Caitlin bullied her, she'd pretend nothing had happened and keep it to herself.

That was exactly why Julian couldn't let Caitlin anywhere near Sophie.

Caitlin stopped in her tracks, her brows arching in annoyance. "Julian, don't go diagnosing others when you're the one who's clearly sick. If you need something to do with your mouth, why don't you go clean the toilet with it instead of polluting the air in here?"

Julian's frown deepened. What had gotten into Caitlin today? She'd never talked to him like this before.

But soon enough, Julian convinced himself he understood. Love and hate go hand in hand, after all. She must be madly in love with him—why else would she lash out like this? If she didn't care, she wouldn't bother.

In the end, though, what difference did it make? He would never love Caitlin, no matter what.

BEEP BEEP BEEP—

Just then, his phone rang, breaking the tension.

Seeing the caller ID, Julian's expression softened. "Hello, Sophie?"

Sophie's gentle voice came through the line. "Julian, did Caitlin try to hurt herself again? She loves you so much… If she doesn't want the divorce, maybe you should just stay with her. I'm willing to let you go, really…"

Her voice trailed off, tinged with sadness.

Hearing Sophie sound so hurt made Julian ache inside. Sophie was wonderful—her only flaw was being too kind.

How many women in this world would be willing to step aside and let another woman have the man they loved?

As Caitlin came in, Fortune called out over the sound of sizzling pans, "Catie, you got a few packages this afternoon! I put them on the coffee table for you."

"Thanks, Grandpa!"

After kicking off her shoes, Caitlin headed to the living room and started unboxing her deliveries.

Three boxes in total—all computer parts she'd ordered. Once she'd unpacked everything, a small mountain of components was scattered across the living room floor.

She sat down and began sorting the pieces.

When Fortune came out of the kitchen and saw the mess, he almost jumped. "Catie, what on earth did you take apart this time?"

The scene triggered a wave of nostalgia. He remembered how, as a little girl, his granddaughter used to love taking apart every appliance in the house. For a moment, it felt like he'd traveled back in time.

"Nothing's broken," Caitlin laughed. "These are just parts I bought online. I'm building a new computer."

Fortune eyed the pile dubiously, but he didn't want to dampen her enthusiasm. After all, she'd just gone through a divorce—she needed something to occupy her mind. So he just smiled and said, "Dinner's ready. Go wash your hands and eat first. You can finish up with those later. And tomorrow morning, let's go visit your uncle if we have a chance."