Chapter 2

"How come you have time today?" I asked, looking at the meticulously prepared meal on the table. A thought crossed my mind—guilt. Is he making this fancy breakfast because he feels guilty about something with Lily?

"I just finished up a big project, thought I'd take a break."

Yeah, right! He just wants to relax because his precious Lily is back in town. Workaholics like him don’t just decide to "take a break."

Ethan placed a piece of fish on my plate. "Eat up, you need to keep your strength up."

Ugh, you scoundrel! I glared at him before burying my face in my food, deciding not to say anything more.

After breakfast, I lounged on the couch, watching my favorite trashy romance drama, while Ethan sliced up some fruit and settled beside me, checking the stock market on his iPad.

The drama on TV was so over-the-top that I couldn’t resist pulling out my phone to scroll through Instagram. That's when I saw it trending:#Lily White Returns.#

That’s right! Lily White, once a famous natural beauty in Hollywood, had left without a word to study abroad. Her fans were devastated.

Sure enough, the comments under the trending topic were flooded with her fans’ cheers:

"Welcome back, Lily!"

"Is Lily making a comeback? So excited!"

"Finally, we get to see Lily more often!"

I suddenly grew curious about Ethan’s reaction and turned to him. "Did you know Lily White is back?"

"Oh, really? So what?" Ethan responded without much emotion.

I snorted quietly. He’s such a good actor. If I hadn’t seen that Instagram story, he might have fooled me!

That evening, Ethan’s friend Big Mike called. "Hey, sis! You and Ethan should come out tonight. My bar’s having its grand opening. I’m begging you to show up!"

I looked over at Ethan, who was reading. "Why didn’t you call him directly?" I asked.

"Because you’ve trained him well, sis! Ethan told me he’s a married man now, and he can’t go out at night without checking in with you first. Plus, it’s a bar—if you don’t approve, he won’t come."

What?! I almost believed I was some sort of control freak! I’ve never stopped him from going out before.

I thought we were just going to show up to support his friend, but when we arrived, I was taken aback.

Lily White was there too.

"Sis, Ethan," Big Mike led us to our seats. Noticing my gaze fixed on Lily, he quickly added, "That’s someone Evan Moore brought along. Apparently, she used to be a small-time actress."

Big Mike had known Ethan for years, so he had to be aware of Ethan and Lily’s history. Was he just pretending not to know?

"Ethan, long time no see," Evan Moore called from across the room, lounging on a sofa. I smiled and nodded in response. Our families had business dealings, so we knew each other fairly well.

Ethan wrapped his arm around me and led us to the opposite end of the room, sitting as far from Lily as possible. I could tell he was a little upset.

Hmm? Did they have a fight?