After All the Hurt, She Chose Herself novel Chapter 264

Aria slept soundly until the morning sun filled the room. She woke up exactly at eight o'clock and didn't forget to pull Gideon off her blocked list to send a quick text: [9 AM. City Hall.]

Just the thought of finally ending this miserable marriage made her feel infinitely lighter. After washing up, she slipped on a stylish blush-pink coat, looking absolutely radiant and full of life.

She opened the front door.

A dark figure lunged at her from the shadows. Aria instinctively tried to duck back inside, but the figure violently pinned her against the heavy wooden door.

"Aria, whose child was it?!" Gideon's voice was a guttural, furious snarl.

Aria's mind went entirely blank, her heart hammering against her ribs. Lilith's final recording hadn't just been a tearful goodbye; she had left Gideon one hell of a parting gift! She had told him that before Aria even got pregnant, she had been secretly hooking up with Charles! Lilith's recording had directed him to a safe deposit box at the bank. When Gideon opened it, he found high-definition photos of Aria and Charles kissing passionately. The background was clearly the Flourish Research Institute, right near Alden Reaves's office.

If these were old photos from when they used to date, he might have let it go. But the agonizing truth was that the photos were recent! The time-stamps on the images matched the exact week Charles had returned to the country.

Aria thrashed wildly. "What the hell are you talking about?! Let me go right now, or I'm calling the cops!"

The hands pinning her shoulders dug in brutally. Aria let out a sharp gasp of pain, swearing she could hear her own joints popping under the intense pressure. But then she remembered the hallway's security camera. If infidelity didn't legally guarantee a swift divorce, domestic violence certainly would.

Her eyes darted around, a plan already forming in her mind. Seeing Gideon in this deranged state, she knew he wasn't going to just quietly sign the papers at City Hall. She had to use the law to force his hand!

Aria suddenly lowered her voice to a mocking whisper. "Gideon, honestly, you're terrible in bed. I didn't feel a single thing with you. That's exactly why I'm divorcing you."

Gideon's breath hitched, the air turning deadly silent. She actually dared to say she was leaving him because he wasn't good enough in bed?! Then who was better? Charles?! Raphael?!

Blinded by sheer, uncontrollable rage, Gideon's hand shot up, his fingers wrapping dangerously tight around her throat. "Aria! You're nothing but a tramp! You think I'm not good enough, so you couldn't wait to run off and spread your legs for someone else?! You're asking for it!"

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