Chapter 251
Stella’s gaze drifted to Lauren.
Lauren stood slightly behind her, head lowered, saying nothing—her silence heavy with reluctant agreement.
“There’s no need to take it this far,” Trey said after a pause. His voice had lost some of its earlier firmness. “Khloe… I don’t think she would actually push things to the bitter end with me.”
The moment her name left his mouth, something in him shifted.
It wasn’t logical. It wasn’t even clean.
Khloe had been ruthless—cold enough to cut him down without hesitation, even going so far as to bring another man into the picture just to wound him in return.
And yet—
Just thinking of her made his chest tighten, as if even breathing had become a negotiation with pain.
“Trey, have you completely lost your mind over Khloe?” Angela snapped, unable to contain herself any longer. “That woman is shameless. You treated her well, and even if she wanted revenge, there are limits. But she crossed them—and you’re still defending her?”
“Angela, mind your words.” Stella’s expression sharpened at once. “Trey has principles. He has a conscience—unlike some people here.”
Her tone was pointed, deliberate.
Angela’s eyes turned icy. “And what exactly am I supposed to be, then?”
The room’s temperature seemed to drop.
“Enough.”
Lauren’s voice cracked through the tension like a whip.
For a moment, both Stella and Angela froze.
Lauren finally lifted her head. Her eyes were red-rimmed, exhausted, but steady as they locked onto Trey.
“Trey,” she asked hoarsely, “what are you planning to do?”
Silence stretched.
Trey hesitated for a long time.
His gaze flickered away from hers, past Angela, as though avoiding the weight of what he was about to say.
“I…” he began, then exhaled sharply. “I want to get back together with Khloe.”
“What did you say?!” Angela’s face flushed with disbelief.
It felt like a slap delivered in public.
Right in front of her.
“Have you really—have you lost your feelings for me that quickly?”
Trey’s jaw tightened.
“It’s not what you think,” he said, irritation creeping into his tone. “It’s just a delay tactic. Khloe has a soft heart. If I pursue her properly, if I stabilize her first—”
“Then what about me?” Angela cut in sharply, letting out a humorless laugh. “We are legally married, Trey. To ‘stabilize’ her, are you planning to divorce me?”
Stella watched Angela’s reaction with thinly veiled satisfaction, her lips curling faintly.
“Aren’t you supposed to love him?” she said lightly. “Love means sacrifice. If this helps him through a crisis, what’s wrong with a divorce?”
Angela turned slowly.
The air sharpened.
“You really think I’m someone you can push aside whenever it’s convenient?”
Her voice was calm—but dangerous.
Stella didn’t flinch. “I think you’re someone who understands what’s at stake.”
Angela’s hands curled into fists.
Before the argument could explode further, Trey stepped in.
He grabbed Angela’s arm and pulled her close, his voice lowering instantly, softening in a way it hadn’t moments ago.
“I won’t divorce you,” he said. “I can tell her it’s temporary. There’s a cooling-off period anyway. By the time anything is finalized, the company will already be public.”
Angela’s breathing steadied slightly in his arms.
The tension in her shoulders loosened—just a fraction.
Trey’s eyes darkened as they swept across Stella and Lauren.
“As for Khloe,” he said quietly, “I have my own plan.”
He hadn’t let go.
Not even close.
Before, it had been about control.
Now it was something more dangerous.
He didn’t just want to contain Khloe anymore.
He wanted to win her back.
That evening, Trey met Arthur.
The conversation stretched long into the night, heavy with numbers, strategy, and risk.
Khloe’s situation had become urgent—too volatile to ignore.
“I’m willing to give up my shares,” Trey said firmly. “Half the company’s equity can be transferred to her if necessary.”
Arthur’s brows drew together sharply. “You realize what you’re saying?”
“I do.”
“This isn’t just leverage anymore. This is exposure.”
Trey didn’t blink. “If you don’t risk the bait, you don’t catch the wolf.”
Arthur studied him carefully.
“And you’re sure about her? Khloe?”
Trey’s expression tightened—but his voice remained steady.
“What we had wasn’t fake,” he said. “If she’s seeking revenge, it’s because I hurt her first. This is just the consequence.”
For a moment, Arthur said nothing.
Something was unsettling about Trey’s certainty.
Even with Angela—his legal wife—he calculated every move like a transaction.
But with Khloe…
He was willing to gamble everything.
Finally, Arthur exhaled, conflicted but no longer resisting. “You’re really that confident in her?”
Trey didn’t answer immediately.
His silence was answer enough.
But plans rarely survived contact with reality.
Because early the next morning, unexpected visitors arrived at the gates of Fox Group—and everything Trey had carefully built began to shift.