"As proof?" Mai asked. "Do you have to act like that, Ma’am? No offense, but I know you are far tougher than that, and you will degrade yourself to be an abused wife in court later?"
Kate smiled, but her smile didn’t reach her eyes, "Yes, I must."
"You see, Mai. Because of that prenup I stupidly signed before I married him, he will get half of my assets without putting any work into it. I know our married life is no longer traditional since I am the breadwinner. I can tolerate giving that much if he is willing to do house chores like a househusband, or at least, just the bare minimum, NOT cheat on ."
"But here we are, about to get divorced because he thought he’s entitled to everything I worked hard for and thought I wouldn’t fight back once he slept with another woman," Kate laughed lightly, but she was only ridiculing herself. "That’s why, I want to show him how petty I could be. I will NEVER let him leave with my money, not after what he has done to !"
"Actually, your question is similar to what Henry asked before. He disapproves of my fight to annul the prenup because he doesn’t want to be reduced to this weak, ntally abused woman who can’t get her shit together," Kate said. "In his mind, I am far tougher than that, and I think you have the sa idea, right?"
Mai nodded.
She genuinely thought that Mrs. Woods was strong, professional, and domineering. After all, she could take the mantle as temporary CEO for three months and did the job perfectly.
In fact, everyone in the office has nothing bad to say about Mrs. Woods because they know she made a huge contribution to helping the company thrive.
Kate sighed.
She held Mai’s hand and stared at her, "Mai, you should know, no matter how much I try to look cold and unfeeling, I am still a woman at heart."
"I cried myself to sleep, sotis in the bathroom, so my husband wouldn’t hear crying," Kate admitted. "My families are conservative. They pressure to get pregnant. No matter my achievent and how much money I earn, I am not a complete woman as long as I stay childless."
"I may look like I don’t care about other people’s thoughts. But I cried, I cried a lot whenever those relatives left a scathing comnt about my infertility."
"Funny thing is... I’m not even infertile," Kate scoffed. Tears welled up and was about to drop from the corner of her eyes. But Kate quickly wiped it. "It’s Matt who’s actually barren, but because of my family, they simply think the whole problem is in . Why? Because I am a woman and the only one responsible for this childless stuff!"
Kate got worked up thinking about all her wasted years with Matt. She kept asking him to go and have a fertility test, but that bastard refused and always blad her for it.
Mai could feel that her boss was upset, and she understood it well.
She was also a victim of a stigma regarding won in her country, but she didn’t want to talk about it because it was far too traumatizing for her.
Ultimately, all she could do was lower her head and act like nothing was wrong because she shouldn’t speak about it, or she’d be branded as a dirty woman.
Kate lowered her head. She felt ashad that she had told too many things to Mai.
Of course, she wanted Mai to keep her good image of Kate as the Chief Editor.
But at this point, Kate knew that she couldn’t hide the secret much longer, "And about what I talked to Matt just now. Yes, my dad was a child molester. I reported him, and he got arrested and jailed for it. He’s free now, though I don’t know where he is, but the news broke out in my small town, and the local newspaper put it as a headline."
"Matt is holding that newspaper clip and blackmailing into giving him ten grand each month so that newspaper clip won’t spread," Kate said. She scoffed again, but this ti, she did it to laugh at herself and the circumstances surrounding her family.
"I know I’ve crushed your idealized image of the Chief Editor in your mind, Mai. I’m sorry, but I’m not as good and tough as you think. I’m the daughter of a child molester, and my marriage is a ss," Kate lanted. "I suggest you not look up to too much, Mai. I don’t want to ruin your expectations even worse."
Kate thought that Mai would leave her alone, probably disappointed that Kate wasn’t the idol she wanted.
But she actually felt Mai squeeze her hand tight and raise her voice, "What are you saying, Ma’am? Do you think that revealing all of your struggles would make lose my admiration for you?!"
Mai’s words just now caught Kate off guard, "I just thought that you expect to be perfect."
"No, Ma’am. I idolize you because you’re a strong and professional leader. But I also know you’re just a human in the end," Mai said. "I didn’t expect you to have so many awful experiences in your life, but now I know you’re a human, just like . So, I admire you even more now."
"For what exactly?" Kate asked. "I don’t have any qualities that you can praise."
Mai sighed, "Ma’am, stop downplaying yourself. You’re still an amazing woman. You are able to keep your sanity even after so many things are happening to you. I think you should praise yourself for that."
"Besides, now that I know your backstory, I feel much closer to you, Ma’am," Mai said. She got a little shy, and her ear reddened, "I—If it’s okay, I want to be your friend outside of work. O—Of course, I will still be your dependable assistant at work! But, um... maybe we can be friends outside of work too?"
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