Chapter 2

Kendall would show up at this glamorous party, crying and begging Esmond not to get engaged.

Then, Esmond would leave me behind for her without a second thought.

As I expected, halfway through the party, Kendall walked in wearing a white dress, looking every bit like an angel sent from above.

The instant she entered, everyone's attention shifted to her.

Tears streamed down her face, her eyes red and swollen as she looked heartbreakingly at Esmond.

She sobbed, "Esmond, you can't do this to me.

"You said you'd only ever love me."

The whole room gasped in disbelief.

Everyone's eyes were like daggers, darting between Esmond and me.

Esmond let go of my hand so discreetly that no one even noticed.

He walked straight toward Kendall.

I stood there, watching his back, feeling like the biggest joke in the world.

The whispers, the mocking laughter, and the sympathetic sighs all crashed over me like a tidal wave.

"I told you, Esmond would never go for a small actress."

"So it was a fling? Poor Whitney. She got totally screwed over."

"The rich play by their own rules."

I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my flesh.

I told myself to put on my best act.

I watched as Esmond walked up to Kendall, his voice low and soothing as he tried to coax her.

He spoke so quietly, but I was close enough to hear it all.

"Be good and don't make a scene," he murmured.

Kendall broke down even harder, her sobs growing more desperate.

"Then tell her you don't love her and you're using her!" she wailed, her voice cracking.

Esmond's patience was clearly wearing thin as he frowned, visibly annoyed.

Still, he gave Kendall a gentle, reassuring pat on the back before finally glancing over at me.

That glance was chilling, utterly indifferent, like I was nothing to him.

Then he turned to Kendall and dropped the most legendary, most brutal line in the whole story.

"I'm messing around with her," he said.

It was like everything exploded around me.

The whole world went silent.

Even though I'd rehearsed this moment in my mind a thousand times, hearing him actually say it still stabbed me right in the heart.

It wasn't love that hurt.

It was the sheer, naked humiliation.

I was like some toy he could throw away whenever he wanted.

I told myself not to mind it.

Esmond had asked for this.

Everyone was staring at me.

They were all waiting for me to break down, make a scene, and go totally crazy.

In the novel, that was exactly what I did.

I stormed over and slapped Kendall right across the face, only to be hauled out by the security guards Esmond had called and dragged away.

From then on, I became the laughingstock of the entire elite circle.

But this time, I wouldn't do that.

I took a deep breath, and when I looked up, my eyes were already rimmed with tears.

Huge teardrops slipped uncontrollably from the corners of my eyes, tracing lines through my flawless makeup.

I didn't look at Esmond. Instead, I fixed my gaze on Kendall.

My voice was quiet, but the shaky, broken edge made sure everyone in the room caught every word.

"Ms. Cole, I'm sorry," I said quietly.

Kendall was caught off guard, frozen in place.

Esmond was stunned too.

Everyone else was taken aback.

I gathered up my dress and walked toward them, one step at a time.

I stood tall, my back straight as a dying poplar that refused to bow, no matter how close it was to breaking.

I said, "I was foolish, reaching for something that was never meant to be mine.

"I never should have come between the two of you."

I gave them a deep, respectful bow.

Then I looked up at Esmond, tears streaming down my face, but my smile was tearful and strangely calm.

I said softly, "Mr. Adams, I wish you both happiness.

"I never deserved you."

With that, I didn't spare them another glance. I turned and walked away through the sea of sympathetic, pitying, and complicated stares.

I left the dazzling party hall that had humiliated me so deeply.

I didn't look back.

But I could feel Esmond's gaze fixed on my back the entire time.

There was a hint of something in his eyes. It was a searching look I couldn't quite decipher.

As I stepped out of the hotel, the night breeze hit my face, and the tears on my cheeks turned icy cold.

I pulled out my phone and dialed a number I knew by heart.

The call connected almost instantly, and a cocky, devil-may-care voice came through the line.

"Hello? Who's this?"

"Halsey, it's me, Whitney," I said.

On the other end was Halsey Field, Esmond's sworn enemy and the infamous playboy of Isthinand's elite.

He chuckled softly.