THE DIVORCE GAMBIT From Dumped Wife to CEO's Forever novel Chapter 1118

This was Elsa's first serious relationship, the first one she was considering for marriage. Otherwise, she never would have brought Xander Forrester to meet Caitlin and Gertrude. For that reason, she was anxiously awaiting Gertrude's verdict.

Gertrude looked back at her friend and raised an eyebrow. "Elsa, do you want the truth, or do you want me to be nice?"

Elsa rolled her eyes. "The truth, obviously! What good is a nice lie?"

Gertrude nodded and spoke with frank sincerity. "The truth is, he's not right for you. You two are from completely different worlds."

Elsa was kind, passionate, and had a strong moral compass. In all their years as roommates, none of them had ever tried to take advantage of the others. But Xander, from the moment he arrived, had been scheming to arrange a marriage with Caitlin's family. His intentions were so transparent, it was almost vulgar. If it weren't for Elsa, Gertrude would have never sat through a meal with someone like him.

Not right for her?

Elsa never expected to hear that from Gertrude. In her eyes, her boyfriend was handsome, fit, and at 5'9", a decent height. He had a master's degree from a good university, came from a business family, and seemed to have solid values. She had been so sure Gertrude would approve.

The response left her feeling a little deflated. "Gertrude, what do you mean we're not right for each other?" she asked.

Instead of answering directly, Gertrude posed a question of her own. "Don't you think your boyfriend is a bit of a user? A social climber who looks down on people? He's not from your world, Elsa. I think even if you did get together, your different values would eventually tear you apart."

"A user? A social climber who looks down on people?" Elsa was floored. "Gertrude, where are you even getting that from?"

Gertrude was speechless. She never knew Elsa could be so completely blinded by love. How could she still think he was just pushing for marriage after a display like that?

Seeing Gertrude's expression, Elsa pressed on. "Gertrude, don't you believe me? Xander just wants to marry me, so he used that whole arranged match idea as a way to bring it up! He's just a typical guy, not very subtle. Don't take it to heart. Just pretend he said nothing."

In Elsa's mind, Xander's clumsy attempt was a sign of how much he loved her and wanted to marry her.

Gertrude subtly frowned. "Elsa, you're too close to the situation to see it clearly. Even if he was just pushing for marriage, he didn't need to keep bringing it up! And did you notice something else?"