Chapter 4

The following days passed simply. Chloe made a point of flaunting her affection with Ethan in front of me every day.

She even deliberately showed me the marks on her body, saying on purpose: "Lydia, that's just how Alpha Ethan is. He always wants everyone to know I'm his."

But I didn't care. Even when I saw them, I acted as if I hadn't.

Ethan was still holding a grudge against me, and this time I was determined not to placate him.

A month later, Chloe announced she was pregnant.

Ethan was so excited he wanted to announce the news to the entire world.

He moved up his wedding with Chloe, and the entire Shadowfang pack was busy preparing for their ceremony.

In this life, it was Chloe—the woman he deeply loved—who was pregnant. I decided to help them have their happy ending.

As soon as my paperwork for going abroad was ready, I immediately booked a flight to Switzerland for the day of their wedding.

Ethan finally couldn't hold back and came to find me. He waited until Chloe wasn't home, then came upstairs and pushed open my door.

He pulled out his phone, opened an email, and held it in front of me:

"You bought a plane ticket abroad? Why? Are you so devastated by my marriage that you need to go abroad to recover?"

My heart skipped a beat. I'd forgotten that any purchases on that card would send notifications to Ethan.

But his follow-up comment eased my tension somewhat.

Seeing me looking down without speaking, Ethan's tone grew cold:

"Lydia, haven't you thrown enough tantrums? You've been giving me the cold shoulder for an entire month. If I hadn't come to you, were you planning to ignore me for the rest of your life?"

"Ever since Chloe moved into this house, you've been cold to me. But she's the woman I love. If you love me, you should love everything about me, not avoid me and Chloe all day long."

"Are you going to avoid me forever? Even after Chloe and I are married, you plan to keep this up?"

I shook my head in denial:

"Ethan, I think you've misunderstood. I only see you as the elder who raised me. I only feel gratitude toward you."

He laughed as if he'd heard the funniest joke, unable to stop.

"Lydia, the whole world knows you love me beyond reason. You only feel gratitude toward me? Would you have wanted to sleep with me if that were true? Ask yourself—do you believe that?"

Then he glanced at the display cabinet in my room and smirked:

"All these gifts I've given you over the years—you've kept them in such perfect condition. And you're saying you don't love me?"

He walked over, picked up the gifts from the cabinet one by one to admire them, then said seriously:

"But you should probably put these things away. I'm about to marry Chloe, so you shouldn't keep harboring inappropriate fantasies about me. You're grown now. You should interact more with humans instead of revolving around me. After Chloe and I are married, I'll have her make arrangements for you."

I hummed in agreement, not telling him I'd already decided to leave.

I casually packed the items from the cabinet into a storage box.

I was planning to get rid of these things before going abroad anyway, so I might as well pack them up now.

Seeing my calm reaction, Ethan frowned deeply and stopped me:

"Lydia, can't you be more careful? Look, you've scratched the band of this watch!"

I glanced at the luxury watch in his hand.

After my parents died in an accident, Ethan, as their close friend, decided to adopt me.

And this watch was the first gift he'd given me.

The watch face was inlaid with priceless gemstones, and my name and adoption date were engraved on the back.

Over the years, I'd treasured it, carefully maintaining and polishing it every day. I wouldn't let anyone else even touch it.

But now, I'd just casually tossed it into the storage box.

I didn't answer.

Looking at my calm expression, Ethan actually couldn't take it anymore.

"Lydia, stop pretending! You're obviously so upset about my marriage to Chloe that you need to go abroad to recover, but now you're acting like you don't love me anymore! This behavior is really laughable. But it's good for you to go abroad and clear your head. Maybe you'll actually get over me!"

After speaking, Ethan handed me a supplementary card.

"Use this. Visit several countries. Stay for a month before coming back. By then, Chloe's baby will be stable too."

He looked at me meaningfully and handed me a key:

"I'll be a married man from now on. Living together would make Chloe unhappy, so when you come back, go live in this apartment."

I took the key, neither accepting nor refusing.

Ethan gave me a few more instructions about precautions.

But he didn't know that this time, I was truly leaving for good.

On Ethan's wedding day, everyone in Shadowfang pack got up early to help with preparations.

I left the key and card on the table, and while everyone was busy, I quietly slipped out the back door with my suitcase and headed straight to the airport.