Chapter 2

I couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Chase, why did you transfer my company shares to Chloe? Because you used to love her? Or are you still in love with her right now?"

Chase froze with the bowl of ramen in his hands, then slammed it violently onto the counter.

The scalding soup splashed onto my bare arm, making me gasp in pain.

Chase sneered.

"Playing the victim now?"

"Elena, I run the company now. What I say goes! I can give shares to whoever the hell I want, and you don't have the right to interrogate me!"

I placed my hand on his arm, desperately trying to keep my voice steady.

"That company was my life's work. You know how much it meant to me."

He let out a dry laugh and shoved my hand away, noticing the band-aids covering my fingers.

"What, into self-harm now?"

I stared at him, numb. "I cut myself while chopping vegetables."

He glanced dismissively at the table, his brow furrowing with disgust.

"Don't bother cooking anymore. The food looks hideous and completely ruins my appetite."

With that, he slammed the front door and walked out.

Leaving me alone in the dead silence of the empty house.

A sudden wave of intense nausea hit me.

I bolted to the bathroom, dry-heaving over the toilet.

It suddenly dawned on me: I was a month late on my period.

I rushed to the 24-hour pharmacy to buy a pregnancy test.

When two distinct pink lines appeared, my heart skipped a beat.

I was pregnant.

My chest fluttered with anxiety and fear.

I grabbed my phone and dialed Chase repeatedly, but the line rang endlessly without an answer.

Just as I was about to give up, the call finally connected.

The voice on the other end didn't belong to Chase. It was Chloe.

"Hello? Elena? Is everything okay? It's pretty late. Chase is in the shower, so he can't come to the phone."

Her breathy, artificial voice made my stomach churn all over again.

Before I could speak, she continued purring into the mic.

"Elena, Chase just bought me the newest Hermès bag. It's way too extravagant. I told him to take it back, but he insisted on giving it to me."

"I can ship it over to you once I'm free. It feels wrong keeping something so expensive."

I lowered my head, a bitter smile tugging at my lips.

I had been longing for that exact bag for a month. Chase had told me it was an overpriced waste of money and forbade me from buying it.

Yet he didn't hesitate for a second to drop thousands on his ex.

Did I really mean that little to him compared to her?

I played along, keeping my tone crisp.

"Sounds wonderful. How considerate of you! I'll call an Uber courier to pick it up from your place right now, so you don't have to bother going to the post office."

Chloe clearly didn't expect me to actually call her bluff. She choked on her words.

"You..."

The sound of a door opening came through the receiver. Chase was out of the shower.

Chloe instantly switched to a tearful, delicate tone.

"Elena, I had no idea you wanted this bag so badly... It's just that Chase gave it to me, so it feels special. But if you really want it, I'll give it to you. I'm so sorry."

Chase's voice boomed in the background, thick with irritation.

"Is that Elena? Give me the phone."

The second he took the call, a barrage of furious shouts came down on me.

"Elena, are you out of your mind?!"

"It's just a damn purse! Do you have to be so petty? Chloe has never owned luxury bags in her life. What's wrong with me buying her one?"

"And you have the nerve to demand it back? Unbelievable!"

"Apologize to her right now!"

I burst out laughing, furious.

"Why should I apologize? My husband buys another woman a designer bag, and I'm the one who has to say sorry?"

Chase roared into the mic.

"Elena! I'm telling you one last time—apologize!"

I refused to back down. "Hell no!"

Chase lost all patience. "You're unbelievable. Just you wait!"

He hung up violently.

I never got the chance to tell him about the pregnancy.

Deep down, I knew that if this baby were born into this mess, they would never know happiness.

At five in the morning, my phone buzzed on the nightstand.

It was a photo from Chloe.

She was cuddled up against Chase's chest, her lips swollen, both of their bare shoulders dotted with vivid red marks.

Then came a short video.

Chloe's voice was soft and teasing as she asked, "Chase, who do you love the most?"

Even in his half-asleep daze, Chase murmured back tenderly, "I love you the most, Chloe. Always you."

He reserved all his cruelty and terrible temper for me, while giving every ounce of his gentleness to Chloe.

In that exact second, I realized that everything between us had shattered long ago.

It was time to let go.

After that night, Chase disappeared for three weeks.

He blocked my number and all my social media accounts.

Through Chloe's Instagram stories, I tracked their entire three-week luxury vacation.

Chase took her to so many places.

Many of them were destinations he had promised to take me to, only to push them aside indefinitely.

Looking at their smiling couple photos, it looked like a dream honeymoon.

My mind drifted back to our own honeymoon years ago.

Chase had held my hand, gazing into my eyes with utter devotion.

"Elena, I'm going to take you all over the world. I'm going to make you the happiest woman alive."

He had kissed my forehead, so sincere, so romantic.

Snapping back to reality, a sharp ache pierced my chest. How terrifyingly fast a heart can change.

Promises only hold value when love still exists.

Once I collected myself, I hired a divorce lawyer to draft the separation agreement.

I was going to claw back every single dime Chase had spent on Chloe.

One morning, I was suddenly yanked awake from my bed.

Chase threw a folder containing the house deed directly into my face, his voice dripping with malice.

"This house belongs to Chloe now. Pack your crap and get the hell out!"