I Chose Me Over My Marriage novel Chapter 83

Aria's face drained of color, and her knees gave out, slumping heavily onto the floor.

"Grandfather, I didn't mean..."

Before she could even finish her sentence, Godfrey cut her off with a vicious snap.

"Didn't mean what?"

Aria froze, looking up at him, only to be met with a gaze dripping with absolute contempt and disgust.

"Did you honestly think that just because we fed you, you were actually one of us? A real high-society heiress? Take a good look in the mirror. You actually thought you could push Lyra out and take her place as a Sterling wife? Stop living in a fantasy. Even if it weren't Lyra, it would never, in a million years, be you."

Every word felt like a physical blow, leaving Aria utterly shattered, her body trembling with weakness.

"But none of that matters right now. I have one question for you. Do you want to stay in Metropolis? Do you want to keep your pathetic career in the entertainment industry?"

"Yes! Of course I do!"

Aria lunged at the offer like a drowning woman grabbing a lifeline, desperate to survive.

"I know I made a mistake. Just tell me what to do. I'll do anything."

Godfrey's lips curled into a chilling smile.

"Excellent. Here is exactly what you are going to do. If you pull this off flawlessly, I will personally guarantee your resources. You'll get to keep playing pretend in your little industry."

Aria hesitated for a fraction of a second, staring into Godfrey's dead eyes.

She knew exactly what he was doing. He was throwing her to the wolves to save his own empire.

He was severing her from Maxwell, and by extension, erasing her from the Sterling family's history entirely.

"I can give you time to think about it. But you know who I am. If you don't do this willingly, I will force your hand. And if I have to do that... whatever happens to you is entirely on your own head."

In that moment, Godfrey dropped the facade entirely.

This wasn't a negotiation. It was a death threat.

People always changed.

When she was useful to the Sterlings, she was pampered and protected.

The second she became a liability, she was treated worse than the dirt on their shoes.

Maxwell was no different.

When forced into a corner, he had chosen Lyra without a second thought. Not her.

"Someone always gets thrown under the bus in a scandal like this. What other choice do I have?"

She muttered the words to herself, looking completely unhinged.

Seeing her in this state, the manager swallowed her rage. There was no point screaming at a sinking ship. She turned to leave, tossing one final sentence over her shoulder.

"You're on your own. I can't keep cleaning up your messes."