Chapter 159
Keen had this nagging feeling that something was off, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it.
One thing he did know for sure though, he didn’t want his mom and dad to get divorced. Sure, he liked Rachel well enough, but he didn’t want her to be his mom.
For some reason, his heart felt like it was up in his throat.
He was kind of scared to hear what his dad’s answer would be.
After a lengthy silence, Haynes’ deep, calm voice finally filled the room. “There’s no need to compare Rachel to you.” Yet, he still wasn’t directly answering the question.
Stella didn’t press him any further. “Alright, I got my answer.”
She turned her gaze to Keen.
“Why don’t you head back to your room? Your dad and I need to have a talk.” Keen glanced nervously at his dad, but eventually, he trudged upstairs.
Once Keen was gone, Stella pulled some papers out of a folder.
“This is the new draft of the divorce agreement. If everything looks good to you, go ahead and sign it.”
Haynes looked tense, his handsome face drawn. “Stella, I’ve given you plenty of chances to ease up. If you keep pushing like this, it’s only going to backfire.”
“Backfire?” Stella raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Is that supposed to be a bad thing? Sounds pretty good to me.”
Haynes’ expression turned stern. “Alright, Stella, you’ve said it. Just remember, I warned you.”
“You’ve said that a million times already. Do I look like I regret anything?”
Without another word, Haynes took the divorce papers from Stella and began to look them over.
A few minutes later, he glanced up at her, a cold smile playing on his lips.
“You actually think you’re entitled to half my assets? Stella, you’ve got some nerve.”
Stella’s expression was calm and steady, like a lake at dawn.
“I’ve raised our child, been a nanny, catered to your every whim, and even took care of your mom’s needs. Why shouldn’t I get half?”
Instead of getting angry, Haynes chuckled. “Stella, if you see yourself as a nanny, putting yourself so low, how can you expect Keen to be close to you?”
Stella replied casually, “Oh, I misspoke. I’m not even a nanny. I mean, nannies like Maisie and Zoey make thousands a month. Me? As your wife, doing nanny work and sharing your bed, I get nothing.”
“And your mom calls me a freeloader, like I starved before I met you.”
Haynes looked at Stella with a deep sense of disappointment.
“What do you mean you raised our child for my family? Keen is your son too. Hearing you say that is just… disappointing.”
Stella shot back, “Was I raising him for myself? Where were you when I was in the delivery room, going through hell to bring him into this world? I went through all that, and yet he carries your last name. You say he’s our son, right? Fine, when we divorce, will you let me take him with me?”
Haynes was taken aback by Stella’s rebuttal and finally managed to say, “No matter what, he is your child too.”
Stella nodded, “Exactly, no matter what, he’s my child too. So, let me have custody.”
Haynes found Stella utterly unreasonable. “Keen is the future heir of the O’Brien Group. I can’t just hand him over. Even if I did, you couldn’t support him.”