Dear Billionaire, I'm Not Your Wife Anymore! - Chapter 20: Chapter 20

I was startled and looked up at Braden: "I'm not angry."
"Then why are you treating me this way?" He stood there, his gaze carrying oppressive pressure, his tone heavy, as if trying to see through me.
I laughed lightly: "Then how should I treat you?" I asked back, my tone calm but unyielding.
His eyes darkened, dangerously narrowing. The air between us seemed to freeze instantly, like the silence before a storm.
I had once thought that at some opportunity, I would bring up Linda and confront them both face to face. But now, I couldn't be impulsive. Until I was 100% sure of winning Mia's custody, I couldn't do anything. This marriage couldn't be broken yet.
"I understand." I said in a bland tone.
But he suddenly approached me, stepping in front of me and roughly grabbing my wrist, his body leaning down with obvious oppression, his cold aura instantly enveloping me.
"Don't placate me." His low voice seemed to vibrate from his chest, revealing anger and control.
My wrist hurt from his grip. I frowned and commanded firmly: "Let go of me."
Those eyes were black as deep pools. After a moment, he finally released his hand, but still wouldn't let go of verbal control.
"Fulfill your duties as a wife." After saying this, he turned and left.
The sound of the door closing was like muffled thunder, making my heart feel oppressed.
I looked down at the reddening marks on my wrist, gently rubbing them with my fingertips. A man who couldn't even play the role of "husband" well actually had the face to demand I fulfill my "wife's" duties?
How ridiculous.
In the following days, I continued living at my own pace. Morning: sending Mia to school. Noon: going to the laboratory to handle work. Afternoon: picking her up from school. Evening: bathing her, telling stories, coaxing her to sleep.
Since being rejected by me that night, Braden never mentioned anything about married life again. With his proud personality, he was destined not to bow to a "disobedient" wife. He was like a lone wolf—arrogant, self-controlled, and obsessive.
And I was no longer the little deer willing to wag my tail and beg for his favor.
Until this afternoon, when I went to pick up Mia but was delayed by a minor rear-end collision at the school gate for more than ten minutes.
I felt uneasy and rushed into the school as soon as I parked.
Just as I reached the classroom door, I saw that scene—
Mia stood there in a pink tutu dress, while Linda was slightly bent over, tying a bow for her, her tone gentle but hiding needles: "Your mommy is late again, isn't she? But it's okay, Aunt Linda brought you hazelnut chocolate... look."
A surge of anger rose in my chest, and I could barely maintain the smile on my face.
Every word she said was subtly trying to drive a wedge between my daughter and me. She knew how to do the most malicious things with the gentlest posture.
I took a deep breath, suppressed my emotions, walked forward with a smile: "Mia, Mommy's here."
Mia glanced at me, pouting: "Mommy, why are you so late?"
I crouched down to gently hug her: "Sorry, baby, Mommy came late today. Tomorrow, I'll definitely be the first to pick you up, okay?"
"Mm..." She seemed a bit aggrieved.
Just as I picked her up, she suddenly remembered something: "Aunt Linda, I want chocolate!"
Indeed, the temptation of chocolate was irresistible for a child her age.
Linda stepped forward and handed her the chocolate.
I pressed my lips together and said softly to my daughter: "Mia, go play over there for a while, okay?"
She nodded and ran to the playground area with her chocolate.
Once she left, my expression immediately darkened.
"Linda." I stared at her, my voice cold as ice. "I don't care what you're scheming, but if you dare to drive a wedge between my daughter and me again, I won't let you off."
Linda tucked her hair, still looking charming, completely unruffled: "I came to see Mia. Braden has no objections. Why are you so anxious?"
I suddenly stepped forward, almost gritting my teeth as I stared at her.
"You can approach Braden, even crawl into his bed, but—" I said word by word, "don't touch my daughter again."
"Otherwise, I'll call the police immediately."
After saying this, I turned to find Mia.
Seeing me wave, her small body immediately bounced toward me, still clutching the chocolate tightly.
I bent down to pick her up, kissed her forehead, and said gently: "Let's go home, our little Toby is still waiting for us."
At dinner, Braden casually mentioned that he was going on a business trip for a week tonight.
I didn't ask where he was going, nor was I interested.
But Mia, upon hearing that Daddy would be away for so long, immediately looked dejected, stopped eating, and cried breathlessly. Finally, Braden coaxed her by promising to buy her gifts, and she reluctantly nodded.
I silently watched this scene without interfering. As long as Mia could be comforted, that was more important than the struggles between him and me.
For the next week, I was busy at the laboratory while taking care of Mia. The laboratory construction progressed much faster than I had imagined, with a full schedule of work that kept me too busy to think about where Braden was or who he was with.
On Friday, after sending Mia to kindergarten, I drove straight to the laboratory building at New York Medical University.
There was an important meeting today.
As soon as I stepped into the lobby, my steps suddenly stopped, my gaze fixed on a figure not far ahead.
Someone stood there wearing a light camel trench coat, chatting with others and laughing from time to time. Those slender fingers pushed up the gold-rimmed glasses on his nose—elegant, refined, yet emanating an undeniable composure and sharpness.
My heart jolted, hardly believing my eyes.
—Cole.
He sensed my lingering gaze, turned slightly, and his eyes met mine instantly.
My nose tingled and my eyes felt hot. That was a familiar face that made me feel at peace.
He walked toward me, his tone gentle as always: "We meet again."
I quickly steadied my emotions and smiled at him: "Senior Cole."
His gaze assessed me, his tone soft: "I didn't notice last time, but you really resemble your father, especially these eyes."
I laughed lightly: "How did you end up here?"
He said he heard that the country was building the world's largest genetic testing base, which attracted him, and he happened to be here to handle employment procedures.
"You're staying to work?" I asked in surprise.
He nodded, pushed his glasses, his eyes shining: "Yes, I decided to join this research."
In that instant, I was genuinely happy, smiling as I shook his hand without concealment: "Welcome back, I'm very glad to become colleagues with you."
He smiled, speaking unhurriedly: "Having the honor to work with your father, being your alumnus, and now becoming colleagues—I'm also very honored."
I was about to say more when I vaguely heard someone discussing in low voices in the corridor.
"She wouldn't have fallen for that handsome guy at first sight, would she?" A girl teased.
"Do you know who he is?"
"Who?"
"Cole, the genius of American medicine—Cole Maverick."
I could tell it was Vivian's voice.
I turned back to look, and sure enough, she stood there, her beautiful eyes staring straight at Cole without blinking.
But when she looked at me, her gaze instantly turned cold.
She must be wondering why I could stand next to Cole.
In many people's eyes, I was just a dropout who had gotten to this point by riding on my father's coattails. What they didn't know was that in these six years, I had used sleepless night after sleepless night, exerting all my strength to hold onto the words "scientific research."
The meeting proceeded as scheduled.
When the moderator announced that Cole was officially joining the project, everyone was excited. Leo specifically reminded me: "Charlotte, we're planning a welcome party for Dr. Maverick on Saturday night, you must come!"
I nodded with a smile: "Of course I'll come."
At this point, Cole finished talking with a senior colleague and walked toward me.
Leo playfully patted his shoulder: "Dr. Maverick, let's have a good chat at tonight's party and drink a few more!"
"Alright." Cole smiled in agreement.
He turned his head, his eyes full of appreciation: "How did you think of extending CAR-T cell survival time to over 90 days in a microenvironment?"
I was stunned for a moment.
This was the subject I had been researching for nearly six years. I had originally thought no one would notice, but he had apparently already seen it.
"Based on some original data my father left behind, I proposed this hypothesis." I answered seriously. "Currently, it's only at the theoretical deduction stage and still needs experimental verification."
He nodded gently, his eyes showing an additional layer of relief: "Charlotte, I've read your report. Many of your viewpoints are extremely cutting-edge. To be honest, if you ask me why I came back, the answer is probably—because of you."