After The Divorce, I Suddenly Inherited $100 trillion

Bruce's unstable marriage

Caro returned home at the stroke of midnight.

She unlocked the door and stepped into the living room, taking off her high heels.

The house was silent and drowned in darkness.

Thinking her husband had already gone to bed, she reached for the switch, turning it on.

Lights flooded the room.

Bruce was sitting on the couch, his elbows rested on his knees, hands clasped together and head bowed.

Caro was stunned to find him still awake.

"I thought you'd be asleep by now, Bruce," she said. "Why are you still up by this hour? I told you not to wait."

Bruce slowly lifted his head but he couldn't meet her eyes. Not yet.

"We need to talk," he said quietly. "Caro."

Her lips pressed into a thin line. Annoyance flashed across her face.

"There's nothing to talk about," she replied, tossing her heels aside. "I've had an exhausting day. I need rest."

"You broke your promise to me," Bruce said. "You said you wouldn't see other men. But you lied to me."

Caro stopped moving.

She turned, studying him for a moment as if deciding whether he was even worth the effort.

Then she walked over and sat across from him, crossing her legs slowly.

"Bruce," she said, her voice hardening. "Before you start drowning in self-pity, let me tell you what I've accomplished tonight."

Bruce’s jaw tightened, but he stayed silent.

"As you know, my family's company is having some serious financial difficulties at the moment," she said. "We are nearly at the brink of bankruptcy."

Bruce was well aware of this.

The Griffin family have been struggling with their business lately. Things have gone so bad they laid off a hundred employees.

Bruce even had to pull his weight around by getting a job.

He went from being a house husband to delivering pizzas in order to support his wife.

Caro continued. "As CEO, I couldn’t just sit around and hope for a miracle. I met Willis at an exclusive club and we hit it off. We have been talking for two weeks."

She leaned back slightly, her eyes gleaming like a blade under moonlight.

"Tonight, Willis agreed to invest $8 million into Griffin Enterprise," her face lit up with a smile. "Do you have any idea what that amount of money could do for this family? It'd solve all our financial problems."

"So you're telling me you slept with Willis because he promised to invest in the family business?" Bruce said darkly. "Isn't that like selling your body for favours? Where's the dignity in that?"

Caro's jaw tightened and a deep frown furrowed in her brow.

"Say that again."

"Where’s your dignity, Caro?" he demanded. “Where’s the line? Is there anything you won’t trade for money?”

"You piece of shit!" She hurled one of her heels at him.

The heel nearly struck him across the face.

"You should be grateful I'm working my ass out to provide for this family," she continued, her voice laced with venom.

"Before you start judging me, let's see the colour of your money. Can you invest in Griffin Enterprise?"

Bruce swallowed hard. "I can't... But—"

"Exactly, you ungrateful bastard," She cut in. "You're poor and pathetic. You don't own a dime to your name. All you do is cook and clean and deliver pizza like a servant."

Before Bruce could respond, she shot to her feet and pointed her finger at him, her eyes as hard as nails.

"I put food on the table. I clothe you. I keep a roof over your head despite how useless you are to me. Your greatest achievement in life is that you married me."

Bruce’s fists clenched so tightly his nails dug into his palms. He finally met her fiery eyes.

"I know I'm not worth anything to you or the Griffin family," he said. "But that shouldn't be an excuse to cheat on me. I'm your husband, Caro. I love you."

Caro laughed.

"Love doesn't pay bills, Bruce. I have a duty to my family and your so-called love, can't fulfill that duty."

She leaned forward, her eyes as cold as ice. "I slept with Willis because you don't have the balls to do what he did tonight."

Bruce’s throat burned.

"But I'm your husband," he said. "Doesn't that count for anything?"

"Let's be real here," Caro said flatly. "I only married you because for some odd reason, my grandmother forced me to."

She spread her arms wide as if stating a fact. "You wouldn't seriously call us a couple, would you? We don't sleep in the same bed. We are more like roommates who happen to be legally married."

Bruce said nothing.

Because it was true.

They had been married for three years but slept in separate beds. She wouldn't even let him touch her. It was as if she had built an invisible wall between them.

Her parents had been strongly against the marriage, but Elizabeth, her late grandmother, forced the union to happen.

This led Caro to begin an open marriage.

Bruce loved her so much he believed it was only a phrase. That one day, she'll finally acknowledge him as her husband.

But tonight tore whatever thread of hope he had left to shreds.

"Caro," Bruce said after a long silence, his voice raw. "I know I was never your first choice. But I loved you. I still do. I believed that if I stayed, if I tried harder, you’d eventually see me as your husband."

His chest tightened painfully.

“But what you did tonight,” He shook his head. “You crossed the line. That’s unforgivable.”

"So what are you going to do about it?" Caro asked, planting her hands on her hips. She looked down at him like he was something disgusting she had stepped on. "Are you going to divorce me?”