The Year She Stopped Being Crazy for Him novel Chapter 1

After four years of marriage to Hassan Carlson, Natalie Thornton asked for a divorce.

The catalyst was an incident during their anniversary dinner. She had brought along the young boy they sponsored. Perhaps caught up in the moment, the kid looked at Hassan and blurted out, "Dad."

Everyone present froze. Especially Natalie.

Hassan sat at the head of the table, a cigarette between his fingers. Through the swirling smoke, his handsome features carried a hint of detached weariness. Hearing the title, he didn't look particularly surprised. He merely corrected the boy with calm patience.

"Call me Mr. Carlson. I'm not your dad."

The sponsored child quickly corrected himself, "Yes, Mr. Carlson. I just missed my dad too much. Mrs. Carlson, please don't misunderstand."

Natalie's nails dug fiercely into her palms. She looked down at the boy, then over at Hassan. To be fair, they didn't look remarkably alike, but the child did bear a striking resemblance to someone else.

In a flash of realization, she blurted out, "Hassan, what’s your relationship with Gardenia Sutton?"

Silence fell over the room once more.

And silence was the loudest answer.

Finally, one of Hassan's friends tried to smooth things over. "Natalie, don't get the wrong idea. Whatever happened between Hassan and Gardenia is ancient history."

With her suspicions confirmed, Natalie felt her world suddenly collapse, her mind going completely blank. So this was what it felt like to have your love crushed—a suffocating, chest-tightening agony.

Having chased after Hassan for years, she obviously knew he had an ex-girlfriend he had once deeply loved but couldn't have. But who didn't have a past? She had been generous enough not to make a fuss about it, never even asking for the woman's details.

It turned out she was Gardenia Sutton, an independent woman with a prosthetic right leg, working hard to raise a child on her own.

A year ago, Natalie and Hassan had agreed to sponsor the child. The mother and son were originally from a remote area, but Hassan suggested bringing the boy to Kingswood City, citing its superior educational and medical resources. Natalie had run herself ragged finding them a school and a place to live, settling them in completely.

Playing the details back in her head, the more she thought about it, the more pathetic and ridiculous she felt.

Whenever she brought up wanting a baby, he would always say there was no rush. It turned out he was just in no rush to have one with her.

When she suggested buying a higher-quality prosthetic for Gardenia, he immediately took over the task. It wasn't out of consideration for her—it was for Gardenia.

And marrying her had merely been a way to spite Gardenia.

Her very existence was a joke!

Natalie looked up, meeting Hassan's gaze, desperate to find even a flicker of guilt.

But there was none. It was as if he was absolutely certain that, even confronted with the reality of his betrayal, she could never leave him.

No one here was going to speak up for her, either. She had never truly fit into his circle. His world was filled with business elites and prodigies, while she was just a socialite who knew how to have fun—they had absolutely nothing in common. To them, her presence lowered their status, and she had never been truly welcome.

Given her usual temper, she should have flipped the table, flipped the whole room upside down, and made a scene the whole city would hear about.

But she didn't. She was calmer than usual. She had finally learned to do what Hassan always told her. *Natalie, grow up. Stop letting your emotions control you.*

"Natalie, you're here. Grab a seat," someone said, acting as if nothing was wrong.

At the door, Gardenia walked in to serve another dish. She was carrying a massive glass sashimi platter, piled high with shaved ice that weighed down her wrists. Her lips were pressed tightly together.

"Get together! Get together!"

"Kiss her!"

Crash!

With a loud shatter, the towering cake was shoved to the floor. The glamorous venue was instantly plunged into chaotic silence.

"Natalie! What are you doing?! Are you crazy?!"

Everyone glared at her, making no attempt to hide their outrage.

Under their shocked and furious gazes, Natalie pulled the wedding band off her ring finger and tossed it into the ruined cake.

After four years, the ring had left a deep indent on her finger. She didn't know how long it would take to fade, but with the ring gone, the mark would vanish eventually.

"Hassan Carlson, the anniversary is over. Let's get a divorce," she said, throat dry, feeling the sudden emptiness on her hand.

The crowd looked unfazed. Natalie was known for throwing tantrums and threatening divorce, only to come begging for his attention shortly after. There was no way this marriage was actually ending.

"Don't wake up tomorrow and regret this," he said, his tone casual and flat. "Stick to your word. No acting out and whining to me the next day."

"Don't worry. I won't."

What they didn't know was that this time, Natalie meant it.