Ch. 111..115: Divorced My Scum Husband, Married His Evil brother Chapter 111-115

Chapter 111

"Vernon, did Mackie do something wrong?"

Vernon and Mackie stopped arguing for a second and looked at Chloe simultaneously.

Mackie was the first one to report on what happened, "Mommy! Uncle Vernon wants to rob my banana cream pie! He said he would eat Mommy if I didn't give my pie!"

"What the— rob?! I was trying to take my rightful pie!" Vernon insisted, thinking it was his pie to begin with. Mackie was stealing it from the fridge— he did that once… or twice… whenever his sister-in-law cooked an extra and put it in the fridge when he was a kid.

He would sneak in the middle of the night to steal it and eat whatever was in his room.

So he expected Mackie to do the same.

"Ah, yup, that one is for Mackie. She scored perfect on her math test, so I want to give her something to reward her," Chloe confirmed, not wanting to let long bickering between these kids. It was funny to hear them bickering and arguing the smallest thing possible.

Mackie and Vernon looked at each other, and the little girl stuck her tongue out, "BWEEEE!"

"Hmph!" Vernon tried to ignore this little devil who dared to mock him. "And you gave her Banana cream pie as a reward?" Vernon asked, still couldn't accept that Mackie got special treatment.

"Mhm, she really likes banana cream pie," Chloe smiled at him. "Her taste is very similar to you when you're a kid. So I thought you might like to have a banana pie as well. This will be my thanks for saving me before."

Chloe showed the banana pie that she had just made. It was still fresh and definitely delicious. It had been more than ten years since he tasted the banana cream pie made by his sister-in-law.

"Do you want it? If you don't want it, I can just give it to Mackie—"

"Who said I don't want it?" Vernon got up and walked toward Chloe. He carefully grabbed the large plate from Chloe, intending to dig the whole thing all by himself, just like he did when he was a kid. Though, it seemed that his habit had been inherited by his little niece.

Chloe smiled, "Then I'll bring two glasses of water for you two. You can sit beside Mackie, okay?"

"What the— you're telling me to watch Spongebob while eating this banana cream pie? What do you think I am? A little kid?!"

"Uncle, don't raise your voice to Mommy!" Mackie protested.

"Ugh!" Vernon was frustrated but was nowhere near angry. For whatever reason, his anger just disappeared right when he opened the penthouse door.

Maybe it was because of Mackie, who sat and watched Spongebob, maybe because the pie was delicious, or maybe because of her…

Chloe was more relaxed now because Vernon didn't seem to be in a bad mood. He was grumpy as always, but it was almost like a second trait for him.

She also sensed no hostility from him. She was still unable to predict the crazy mood swing that Vernon had, but alas, she was assured that Vernon wouldn't yell at her or destroy things anymore.

Thus, Chloe smiled at him again and patted his chest since he was too tall for her to pat his head, "Go sit with Mackie, okay?"

Vernon glared at Chloe, who dared to touch his chest with her warm palm and ordered him around, "Who are you trying to order me? I'm the one who hired you, and I will do whatever I want! I'm not a kid anymore!"

Chloe ignored his anger because she knew that Vernon wasn't truly mad.

How'd she known?

Because her palm was on his chest, she felt that Vernon's heartbeat was long and steady, signaling that he was actually in a good mood. Despite being hostile as always, Vernon's expression had a slight (almost unnoticeable) tint of red on his cheeks.

She tiptoed to the right to see what Mackie was watching right now, "Ah, it's an old Spongebob episode. Don't you like Spongebob when you were young?"

"I'm not a kid anymore…." Vernon replied, but his response wasn't hostile this time, especially with Chloe's palm on his chest. It made him feel comfortable and improved his mood with a single touch.

"Well, that means your taste has changed as well, right? I'll make you something else then, give me back the banana cream pie, and I'll make you a… cup of coffee. You can drink it while you're working, right?"

…

Vernon said nothing but turned around and walked toward his little niece.

He put the large plate on the carpet and took off his suit and shoes.

He sat cross-legged beside Mackie, who ignored him and resumed munching her banana pie while watching Spongebob on the TV.

He clicked his tongue, feeling that he had been humiliated by his sister-in-law because he couldn't control his urge not to eat this banana pie. So she dared to order him around, even though he was the one who hired her to work as a maid.

Though, he thought it was quite justified since he knew exactly how delicious this homemade banana cream pie was.

Vernon glanced at Mackie, who had just used a plastic spoon to stab the banana cream pie, and started eating by scooping the cream first and using her left hand to break the crust and started eating it.

It was messy and childish, exactly how Vernon ate it when he was a kid.

Vernon scoffed, 'What a kid. I don't do that anymore, thankfully.'

Vernon wanted to eat the banana cream pie per slice like normal people. But when he realized that his sister-in-law didn't cut the crust first and how she prepared a bigger spoon, it was already proof that she expected him to eat like he was a kid.

"Ah, screw this!" Vernon was already hungry. He had no patience to wait for Chloe to cake the pie for him. So he resumed the old way and started digging the banana and cream with a spoon and breaking the crust to dip it in the cream.

 

Chapter 112

Vernon closed his eyes as he savored the first taste of banana cream pie.

Vernon was annoyed that his sister-in-law still treated him like a kid, even though he was already a 25-year-old, CEO of a skyrocketing company, and a heartthrob in the entertainment industry.

Now he sat beside a little girl on a carpet, eating banana cream pie while watching Spongebob. It was so ridiculous that Vernon thought he was dreaming right now.

Yet, when he scooped the cream, he instantly reminisced about his time when he was a kid. Something that he treasured deep in his heart.

What made him even more surprised was the fact that his rage deflated as if it had never appeared in the first place.

Vernon felt it was so strange, but he wouldn't lie that he was relieved his rage had dissipated. It wasn't fun to hold on to so much anger and have to vent every day.

Vernon and Mackie watched Spongebob and laughed simultaneously when something funny popped out, "Hahaha! Poor Squidward!"

—

Vernon and Mackie realized they were laughing and simultaneously commented the same thing. They glared at each other and looked away to other sides.

"Uncle, stop following Mackie!"

"You're the little one here. Stop copying me!"

Chloe chuckled and sat beside them with two glasses of water. She put it on the table, "Don't forget to drink water and eat slowly, okay?"

Mackie and Vernon looked at the drink on the table and complained;

"You only give us a glass of water?"

"Mommy, I want milk!"

Chloe shook her head firmly, "That cannot do. You guys are already eating a sweet pie. It's not good to eat too much sugar."

…

…

Vernon and Mackie had to accept because what Chloe said made sense.

"You guys have fun, okay? I'll wash the dishes first," Chloe said. But before she could get up, Mackie held her hand and said, "Mommy, sit with us here! Let's watch Spongebob and eat banana pie together!"

"A—Ah, I need to do something—"

"Sit," Vernon instructed firmly. Chloe glanced at him, and realized that Vernon was serious for some reason, so she couldn't refuse and sat between these two.

Mackie and Vernon continued watching, but they scooped their banana cream with their spoon and offered it to Chloe;

"Mommy, have some!"

"M—Mommy can't eat sweet…." Chloe refused. Just looking at the banana cream already made her nauseous. Because of her eating disorder, she would never eat anything sweet.

She didn't have any health problems like diabetes. But when she imagined something so rich in fat or sugar went down in her throat, she'd automatically get the sudden urge to puke her guts out.

Vernon was annoyed by Chloe, who would refuse literally anything they offered. This had happened a lot of times. She ate only fruits and plain bread or berries most of the time. She ate like a caveman!

"You can't leave if you haven't eaten this pie," Vernon said. "At least one spoon."

"Ah, just a little—"

Vernon scooped a big spoonful of cream from his pie and offered it to Chloe, "Eat this. It's just one spoon."

Chloe's eyes widened, and she felt a little weak, imagining all the puking she'd have after eating that.

She glanced at Mackie, thinking that Mackie would say something to save her. But it seemed that Mackie agreed with her evil uncle because Mackie said nothing and continued eating her banana cream pie.

Chloe gulped nervously. Under Vernon's hostile gaze, she finally opened her mouth and ate a spoonful of banana cream.

She swallowed the food with difficulty, imagining that all the sugar that went down her throat had already upset her stomach.

Vernon watched his sister-in-law's expression turn pale and greenish in just a minute. He asked, "What's wrong?"

"N—Nothing's wrong. Can I leave now?" Chloe asked.

Vernon had no right to hold her since she had eaten the spoonful of cream he requested.

Thus he nodded as a response.

"Thank you, please excuse me," Chloe got up and rushed to the kitchen and then to the toilet.

She puked everything on the sink, feeling weak as she couldn't stop retching whenever she imagined the sweets.

She wanted to refuse but didn't want to be the party pooper for Vernon and Mackie, who were enjoying their time together. So now, she had to bear with the aftermath.

"Ugh—Urk!"

It took at least thirty minutes of her continued retching and vomiting her lunch and dinner at once. She was breathing heavily and felt her weak body would pass out soon.

So she sat on the toilet seat for a while, trying to relax before she had to act as if nothing was wrong. She didn't want to be seen as a burden to Vernon, and the fact that Vincent always ridiculed her when she was fat and also ridiculed her when she developed an eating disorder because of many extreme methods of dieting…

It gave her the idea that her body was something to be ashamed of.

"Knowing how blunt Vernon is, I bet he will also comment on my eating disorder once he found out. So it's best not to tell this to anyone, especially him…."

**

Meanwhile, Vernon stared at the empty kitchen from the living room. He saw how reluctant it was for Chloe to eat a spoonful of cream from him as if she was truly disgusted just by the sight of it.

Then, they stared at each other for a few seconds before Chloe's expression turned green, and she ran away in disgust.

It gave the impression to Vernon that she was disgusted with the idea of having a sweet time together with Vernon. Even something as simple as sitting together and feeding each other was too much for that woman.

Vernon's hand that held the spoon trembled when he imagined his sister-in-law vomiting because of him. His happy mood turned bitter in less than a second;

'See, Vernon Phoenix Gray? This is what you get for trying to lower your guard. You pathetic bastard!'

Chapter 113

'See, Vernon Phoenix Gray? This is what you get for trying to lower your guard. You pathetic bastard!' Vernon cursed himself. He wasn't in the mood to enjoy the time anymore— though he still wanted to eat this banana cream pie alone.

He wanted to be angry, but he found himself feeling even more pathetic if he let his sister-in-law's act of disgust affect his emotion that much.

Thus, Vernon grabbed his large plate and a glass of water and got up.

Mackie stopped eating her banana cream pie and asked, "Uncle, where are you going?"

"I'm going to eat alone in my room. I have things to do," Vernon replied. He slammed the door into his bedroom, eating the banana cream pie alone.

Mackie followed her Uncle's back until he entered his bedroom and wondered, "What's wrong with Uncle? Why is he angry?"

Mackie didn't know what went wrong and mostly didn't care because she had gotten used to her big bad wolf - Uncle Vernon's mood.

She was more worried about her Mommy. It was usual for Mommy to vomit everything she ate after eating something. Mommy told her it was normal for her and Mackie shouldn't make a big fuss about it, especially in front of her Daddy.

No matter how serious it looked, even if her Mommy almost fainted, it was no problem. Mackie shouldn't tell her Daddy— Vincent, about Mommy's condition.

Sometimes, Mackie also found Mommy fainted in the bathroom after vomiting. She was worried, but after Mommy woke up a few minutes later, she said she was alright, and Mackie didn't need to make a big fuss about it.

Thus, Mackie just formed in her mind that it was a normal thing for Mommy.

But still, Mackie was a little worried, so she got up and walked to the bathroom. She stood in front of the bathroom and called her Mommy from outside, "Mommy, are you okay?"

…

"Mommy? Mommy!"

Chloe collected all her remaining strength and walked to the bathroom door to open it. She saw Mackie standing in front of the bathroom door, smiling at her, "Yes, dear? What's wrong?"

"Mommy, are you okay?"

"Mommy is okay…." Chloe replied, not wanting to make Mackie worried about her current condition. After all, she was the one who created the problem, just like what Vincent said;

-

'So, you're telling me you've developed an eating disorder because of diet? And whose fault was that?'

'You're the one who became a fat, blobbery hag after giving birth, and now you're the one who went on many extreme diets. Did I ever tell you that you should lose weight?'

'The only thing I told you is to mind your weight because I don't want to find— Jabba the hut in my bed every day, hahahahah!'

-

Chloe couldn't refute that because Vincent never told her to lose weight. He just bullied her about her weight to the point that she couldn't stand it anymore and resorted to many extreme diets she found scattering on the internet.

"Why don't you eat with your Uncle? Or have you finished your banana cream pie?" Chloe asked, trying to shift the topic so Mackie won't be worried about her wellbeing.

Mackie shook her head, "Mackie hasn't finished it yet! But I want to check on Mommy!"

"T—Then, you should return now and eat with Uncle Vernon, okay? Remember what I told you before about Mommy's condition?"

"Umm… that Mommy is not sick. It's just Mommy who can't eat many things?" Mackie tried to remember the details.

"Yes," Chloe confirmed. "Now, just go to the living room and eat with your Uncle, okay?"

Mackie shook her head, "Uncle Vernon already went to his room, Mommy!"

Chloe was a little surprised and then started thinking of many possibilities on why Vernon suddenly went inside his room instead of eating with Mackie.

'D—Did he get disgusted and lose his appetite after seeing me rushing to the bathroom?' Chloe tried to hold her expression, hoping that Vernon wouldn't notice it. But it should be fairly obvious when they were sitting side by side.

'Oh no, did I ruin his appetite?' Chloe asked herself. She remembered vividly how Vincent said that her eating disorder disgusted him, making him unable to eat anything she cooked because he didn't know whether Chloe had vomited her guts into the food while cooking them.

"D—Did Uncle Vernon say anything, dear?"

"Mmm… nope!" Mackie replied. "Uncle Vernon brought his banana cream pie and glass of water to his bedroom, Mommy! He said he is busy and has things to do!"

"Really? Thank god…" Chloe was relieved by Mackie's explanation. Vernon might have lost his appetite to eat in front of Chloe, but at least he still wanted to eat his favorite banana cream pie in the bedroom alone.

"Mommy, are you done puking?" Mackie asked casually because her Mommy always told her it was a normal thing, but only for Mommy.

"Yes, can you wait in the living room, Mackie? Mommy will wash my face first."

"Okay! Mackie will wait and eat again!"

Mackie returned to the living room and resumed eating her banana cream pie.

Chloe washed her face and gurgled water in her mouth before spitting it out. After ensuring that she looked okay, she wiped her face with a tissue and went out.

She checked on Mackie, who was still busy watching her cartoon, and her banana cream pie was halfway to be finished.

Vernon was nowhere to be seen, unfortunately.

'I just hope that he won't find me disgusting because of this…' Chloe wished. She was already insecure about her body image because of her life with Vincent. If Vernon did the same, she might never want to show up in front of anyone.

Chloe started washing dishes, doing all the cleaning because she was a maid hired by Vernon.

Mackie finished eating her banana cream pie and returned the large empty plate to her Mommy, "Mommy, I'm done eating!"

Chloe smiled at her and picked up the plate, "Okay, you can go downstairs and take a bath by yourself, right?"

"Yes, Mommy! Mackie is… smart and independent!"

Chapter 114

"You can go downstairs and take a bath yourself, right?"

"Yes, Mommy! Mackie is… smart and independent!" Mackie claimed, to which Chloe chuckled as a response.

Mackie had just heard about the word independent at school about three days ago, and she started using it because she thought it was a cool word.

She also wanted to show Mommy that she was a cool, independent girl!

Chloe was washing Mackie's large plate after she ate a whole banana cream pie all by herself. Then, she heard a click from Vernon's bedroom door and turned around instinctively.

​ Vernon left his bedroom with a large plate of empty banana cream pie and an empty glass. He walked to the kitchen and saw his sister-in-law staring back at him.

Their eyes widened at the same time, and after that… there was only silence.

Vernon noticed that Chloe was paler than before. Hence, his assumption was correct, 'She is seriously disgusted just because she ate something from me? Was it the spoon? Did she get disgusted because she ate with the same spoon I used? Damn it, thinking about it already ruined my mood.'

Meanwhile, Chloe was also thinking about Vernon, 'Did he notice any difference? Please, please don't get disgusted with me, please….'

Vernon's eyes darkened, but he wasn't in the mood to get angry because the banana cream pie was so good that it prevented him from lashing out for a while.

He walked to the dishwasher, where Chloe stood near, and ignored her completely. He passed her and put the large plate on the kitchen sink.

He frowned when he noticed something, "Why are you washing the dirty dishes in the kitchen sink? There's a dishwasher, you dumb."

"Ah—"

"Did you not know how to use the dishwasher? Are you that spoiled by my big brother?" Vernon started asking Chloe questions that took time for her to process. Because he thought that Chloe was used to so many maids in Vincent's mansion, she never touched the dirty dishes to the point that she didn't even know how to operate the dishwasher.

Actually, it was the opposite;

She could use the dishwasher, but Vincent always complained, calling her a lazy woman because she used the automatic dishwasher instead of washing the dishes manually.

So she developed a habit of washing the dirty dishes by hand in the kitchen sink to save up on water bills, just in case Vincent would also nitpick at her for that.

Vernon clicked his tongue when he didn't get any answer from Chloe, "Speak, I'm asking you."

"I—I just like washing the dirty dishes by hand…." Chloe replied.

…

"That's buillshit," Vernon said. "Just admit you're a spoiled woman who doesn't even know how to use the dishwasher. It's that easy."

"I—I am a spoiled woman, yes…." Chloe admitted, though, that was a complete lie. As long as she didn't make Vernon angry.

She thought Vernon would ridicule her even more, and she was mentally prepared for that.

But contrary to her expectation, Vernon crouched in front of the dishwasher and said, "Let me teach you how to use it."

…

Chloe saw Vernon pressing a few buttons and opening the dishwasher. She started putting the dirty dishes in the sink to the dishwasher.

"You should press this one, and this…." Vernon started explaining.

She watched everything; of course, she already knew all the buttons and how to operate them. She pretended to listen carefully so Vernon wouldn't get mad at her.

In fact, she was more impressed with Vernon, who knew how to operate this. After all, he was the second son of the Gray family. He could get all the maids or housekeepers he wanted, and Chloe knew well how spoiled Vernon was before he left the family right after Chloe married Vincent.

'Makes me wonder what he went through in Europe for ten years…' Chloe wondered.

After explaining, he looked at his sister-in-law, who was dazed, "You're not listening, aren't you?"

"I—I do!" Chloe said as she snapped out of her daze. She crouched beside Vernon and explained how the buttons were used. It was convincing enough for Vernon, at least.

"Good, you can return downstairs now. It's already night," Vernon said as he turned around and walked to his bedroom.

"W—Wait, Vernon!" Chloe said spontaneously. She wanted to apologize for vomiting, making it unappetizing for Vernon to eat his favorite banana cream pie.

Vernon halted his step and asked, "What?"

"Um, about my face before… I'm sorry…." Chloe said. "I don't know how to control it. I hope you understand…."

Vernon knew what Chloe was talking about. She must've apologized because she couldn't control her disgust at eating with the same spoon as Vernon and sitting close to each other.

'You might not remember, sister-in-law. But remember that you said you're grossed out— disgusted with me.'

'I don't know what I did wrong, but apparently, I'm that disgusting. You don't even want to be with me. I thought your disgust had disappeared after ten years, but it's still there, huh?' Vernon sneered, thinking all the good memories in his childhood that he cherished didn't matter anyway. Because his sister-in-law never appreciated him, never actually liked all the time they spent together when he was young.

For her, he was just a gross little kid that would never reach the same glory as his big brother.

…

"I don't care about that," Vernon replied despite his heart feeling heavy. "You don't need to eat in front of me anymore. You can eat alone or downstairs or wait until I leave," Vernon said, thinking it was the best solution so his sister-in-law wouldn't be disgusted because of his presence.

He entered his bedroom and slammed the door, leaving Chloe alone.

"Ah, he is definitely disgusted with me…." Chloe lamented. She had a bitter smile on her face. "He doesn't want me to eat in front of him. Maybe he knows that I'll vomit everything in front of him and gross him out…."

Chapter 115

"Ah, he is definitely disgusted with me…." Chloe lamented. She had a bitter smile on her face. "He doesn't want me to eat in front of him. Maybe he knows I'll vomit everything before him and gross him out…."

Chloe knew there was no use in lamenting since Vernon hired her only as a maid. She shouldn't involve emotion in this and work her ass off so she could leave to another state with Mackie.

Chloe's heart was heavy right now. But she resumed her duty as a maid before going downstairs. She checked on Mackie first, and after making sure that Mackie was already sleeping, she returned to her bedroom and sat in front of the vanity mirror for a while.

Chloe was already thin, at least thin enough that her cheekbone and collarbone were already protruding, a stark contrast to her body a year ago.

But this was achieved through a grueling and unhealthy diet that gave her an eating disorder in the long term.

Yet, Vincent kept calling her a fat bitch despite her constantly shedding weight at an unhealthy rate, which made her believe that she was. Even in her current condition, Chloe still believed that she was fat and had to lose even more weight.

"I don't know why I am so ugly and disgusting…." Chloe murmured. "Even my husband doesn't want me anymore, let alone other people…."

"What should I do to be likable?" Chloe asked herself. Yet, she didn't find an answer to that question.

After lamenting for a while, she lay on her bed, eyes open while checking on her phone, scrolling through a hidden album she treasured.

It was an album full of old photos, most dated about twelve to fifteen years ago, where she still dated Vincent. It was mostly fun and sweet memories. It was like an addictive poison— she knew she couldn't return to the old days when Vincent still loved her.

Yet, she still loved these old memories.

She also had a picture of Vernon when he was fourteen to fifteen. He disliked taking pictures when he was young, so it was rare that he stood there in silence when Chloe told him that she wanted to take her picture.

Vernon still had his baby face in the picture and was visibly shorter than Chloe, let alone Vincent. He was like this feisty young master who would bite anyone who dared to insult his height.

"Well, at least Vernon is in a good position right now," Chloe said, acknowledging all of Vernon's achievements.

"Hope he can make peace with this woman in his heart, so he would have a healthy relationship. I want him to be happy…." Chloe said. She closed her eyes, imagining the old days when she still dated Vincent and Vernon was still a teenager.

They did many things together, and Vernon often third-wheeled her date with Vincent. When he was fourteen to fifteen years old, Vernon never allowed Vincent and her to have free time together whenever they were in the Gray mansion. He was like a watchdog who would bark at his big brother if he dared to touch Chloe, which Chloe found to be funny and endearing.

"Good times…"

**

Vernon lay on his bed after taking a bath. He scrolled through his phone, checking a hidden gallery where he stashed a few pictures of him and his sister-in-law before she married his big brother.

She was always a ravishing beauty, and it wasn't surprising for the Gray brothers to like her.

Yet, he was severely disadvantaged, giving him no chance to win against his big brother.

So he left in heartbreak.

But now, Chloe was still disgusted with him even after his return with all the things that would make any woman turn their head and swoon. She still saw him as a filthy young boy, not as a man.

"So, what's the point of all this?" Vernon asked himself. "What's the point of me taking you in when you don't appreciate me at all?"

"I don't want to hurt you, but if you always underestimate me like this, I have no choice but to drag you down to hell with my big brother."

Vernon felt a sharp pain in his chest as he remembered the original plan to ruin Chloe and Vincent's life. Both of them deserve it anyway.

But he was always hesitating to drag Chloe into this. He was unsure if hurting her would make him satisfied.

"But I have no use in keeping someone who doesn't appreciate me. Chloe… after the plan has been executed, you'll never hear from me anymore."

"Because I will be on top while you beg on the street with my big brother, you two are a despicable pair who ruined my life."

**

Vernon woke up in the morning groggily. He stretched out his limbs first before going out of the bedroom.

"Uncle Vernon, good morning!" Mackie's loud voice rang in the living room. Vernon's eyes went down, and he saw the little girl greeting him before running around the living room, jumping on the sofa, and rolling on the carpet as if she was in an action movie.

Vernon watched in a daze until he heard Chloe's voice coming from the kitchen, "Mackie, come here and have breakfast! Don't run around like that. You might break something!"

"Okay, Mommy!"

Mackie approached her uncle again and grabbed his wrist with two hands, "Let's eat, Uncle!"

Vernon followed the little girl in a daze and sat at the dining table. He saw Chloe serving two plates of pancakes for breakfast.

She smiled at Vernon as if there was nothing wrong with them last night, "Good morning, Vernon. This is your breakfast. Eat it while it's still warm. I'll be downstairs, so you can eat in peace. Just call me if you need anything."

…

Vernon nodded and started eating his breakfast. After ensuring they ate well, Chloe went downstairs and sat at the last staircase.

"I hope he can eat well since he doesn't need to look at me while eating anymore."