I Married The Beast Commander, Not His Match Chapter 03

I Married The Beast Commander, Not His Match Chapter 03

Chloe swept in and claimed every last bag like they had belonged to her all along.

Her smile was blinding.

“Thank you, Audrey! Thank you, Gideon! You seriously spoil me way too much!”

The comments blew up.

[LMAOOO, she literally shopped all day just to hand everything to the FL on a silver platter.]

[Those bags and that jewelry were always meant for bunny girl anyway.]

[Imagine doing the shopping and gift-wrapping for your rival. Couldn’t be me.]

“Audrey, eat with us! It’s my birthday!”

Chloe grabbed my arm. “Gideon already booked us a table. Come on, let’s go!”

I opened my mouth to say no.

Gideon cut me off. “Just go inside.”

In the private booth, Chloe settled into the seat beside Gideon like it was the most natural thing in the world.

“Let’s get the half-and-half broth. Gideon doesn’t do spicy.”

When the pot arrived, I stared at the angry red oil bubbling on one side, and something in me went quiet.

For three years, every time we came to a place like this, I’d stuck to the mild broth.

I was always afraid the spice would splatter onto his side and he’d hate it.

Tonight, I filled my plate from the spicy side and nothing else.

Gideon watched me. “You like spicy food?”

“Always have.”

I didn’t look up. I kept eating.

His voice tightened. “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

“You never asked.”

Gideon fell silent.

Through dinner, Chloe talked nonstop about work.

Gideon answered her here and there, served her portions, and at one point reached over to wipe the corner of her mouth with a napkin.

Gentle in a way I’d never seen from him.

I watched it all, and the ache in my chest sharpened.

So the cold, untouchable commander did know how to be gentle. Just never for me.

After dinner, Chloe wanted to keep shopping.

I said I wasn’t feeling well and excused myself.

“Audrey, it’s hard to keep shopping with all these bags. Could you drop them off at the house for me?”

Gideon stepped in. “She’s not feeling well. Just have them delivered.”

Something sharp flickered across Chloe’s face. Jealousy, maybe. Spite. Then it was gone. The sweet mask snapped right back into place.

“Whatever Gideon says!”

I saw the softness in his eyes when he looked at her, and I walked away.

An entire afternoon of shopping, and every last bag ended up in someone else’s hands.

Another plan, dead.

Back home, I pulled out my phone and started a new search.

Before I transmigrated, I’d been an agriculture major, raised in the country my whole life.

Farming, planting, raising livestock. That knowledge was in my bones.

The idea hit all at once.

Buy land.

Gideon would never fight me for a patch of dirt in a divorce.

I’d grow my own food, build a house, keep some animals.

Half for myself. Half as a U-Pick farm for visitors.

Win-win.

I called a realtor that same night and started looking at vacant land outside the city.

A few days later, the realtor found a property. I was heading out to see it.

Then the doorbell rang.

I opened the door. A delivery driver stood there, and behind him, three box trucks sat lined up in the driveway.

[The ML basically bought out the whole mall for her. She better not think it means something lol.]

[Ohh, so THAT’S why she gave everything away so easily. She knew the ML would replace it all.]

[Doesn’t matter. After the divorce, all of it goes back to the FL anyway.]

I called the housekeeper, had everything put in storage, and walked out the door.

I drove out to the edge of town.

The realtor walked me through it. Three acres, a small grove of trees, and a stream running along one side.

I crouched down and grabbed a fistful of dirt.

Dark, rich, damp.

Good soil.

“How much?”

“One point two million.”

“Done. Draw up the papers.”

I signed the paperwork and stood at the edge of the field, looking out over the bare, untouched land.

This was mine now.

Over the next few days, I was out at that field every morning.

I hired a crew to build a small house, hired someone to till the soil, and bought seeds and livestock.