Reaching for the Stars Without You

Dorothy stared at Jason with bitter mockery, but his next words plunged her into an icy abyss.

“Ten years without children, and you’re still jealous of a younger woman? She’s seven years younger than you.”

A sour, bitter taste flooded her mouth. His words stabbed deep, each syllable a fresh wound.

It all traced back to when Jason won that bid. A rival, seeking revenge, had tampered with the car’s brakes.

They crashed together. Terrified for his life, she’d demanded the doctors treat him first.

She missed the critical treatment window. The damage was permanent, leaving her unlikely ever to conceive.

When Jason woke, his eyes held a tenderness that ached. He’d gripped her hand, vowing he’d never let danger touch her again.

But even that sea-deep devotion—she’d given everything—he had long since cast aside.

Seeing Dorothy silent, Jason took her arm without a word and steered her into the banquet hall.

“As my wife and a board member, cutting her cake would be the proper gesture.”

The crowd swarmed Katherine, celebrating her new luxury brand endorsement.

And there she was—Katherine, the undeniable center of attention, stunning in her designer gown.

As if the endorsement hadn’t been Jason’s gift to bestow all along.

Guests pressed forward with congratulations and gifts. Katherine’s bright eyes locked onto Dorothy, gleaming with malice.

“Mrs. Jason, might I trouble you for a gift as well?”

Under the public gaze, Dorothy chose not to make a scene. She offered the custom necklace she’d ordered six months prior.

Katherine made no move to take it. Her eyes instantly welled with tears.

“Do you despise me so much, Mrs. Jason, that you’d insult me with this… cheap trinket?”

Jason frowned, his reproachful gaze landing heavily on Dorothy.

“This is a significant occasion. The brand partners are watching. How could you bring something like this?”

Dorothy snapped the necklace case shut, ready to turn and leave. Why waste another breath on these two?

But Katherine’s eyes had caught the heirloom jade pendant at Dorothy’s throat. She spoke up at once.

“Mr. Jason, perhaps your wife could give me that jade pendant as an apology instead.”

Jason hesitated. That pendant was a family heirloom.

Yet in the next breath, Katherine’s expression soured. “Didn’t you promise I could pick any gift today? You said you’d make things right for me.”

Jason’s gaze flicked to Dorothy’s profile for a split second before the command dropped. “Give it to her.”

Dorothy stared, disbelieving. “Jason, have you lost your mind? You know what that is—”

He cut her off, impatient. “Dorothy, if you’ve done wrong, you make amends. Give it to her.”

Dorothy froze. What wrong had she done?

As Jason motioned for a bodyguard to seize it, something in her shattered. She shoved the guard away, and the jade pendant struck the floor.

Her eyes glistening with furious tears, she met his gaze. “Who gave you the right to lay hands on me?”

Jason’s displeasure sharpened. “Dorothy, must I spell it out? You schemed to blind Katherine. That debt remains unsettled!”

Dorothy almost laughed at the grotesque lie. “It was Katherine who paid someone to blind *me*! Her own wickedness came back to haunt her—”

***Crack!***

Before everyone, Jason’s palm connected hard with her face. “Enough! How long will you disgrace the Zhang family?”

“Slandering Katherine like this—is this how the wife of the Zhang family should act?”

Dorothy’s ear rang from the blow. His infidelity wasn’t a disgrace, but her speaking truth was.

A dull ache began in her chest, tightening, pulling at every nerve until she could barely breathe.

Feeling her heart rebel, Dorothy fumbled desperately for her emergency pills. Her pockets were empty.

Her breath grew ragged, as if a vise gripped her throat. Her face drained of color, and her legs gave way.

“Ja… Jason…”

The plea was instinctive, torn from her. But as it left her lips, she caught the sly, triumphant curl of Katherine’s smile.

“Ah… my eyes! The pain!”