Chapter 3

By the time the morning sun filtered through the blinds, the gloomy apartment was finally bathed in warm, bright light.

Just as I stepped out of a steaming hot shower, desperate for a good, long sleep, my phone buzzed with a flurry of texts.

The first was an audio message from Julian.

"Samantha, where the hell did you disappear to last night? I even went out of my way to buy you breakfast this morning."

Attached was a photo of a takeout container filled with clam chowder.

I hadn't eaten clams in my entire adult life due to a severe allergy, yet after all these years, my own husband still didn't have a clue. And it had taken him the entire night to finally drag himself home and realize his wife was gone.

Anyone could deduce he had spent the night in Kate's bed.

I didn't bother replying.

The next few messages were from Kate herself. It was just two photos.

The first was a shot of Julian's sleek car parked outside her apartment complex.

The second was a disgustingly intimate selfie of a shirtless Julian sound asleep on the pillow right next to her.

Only someone with no shame and a heart of stone could be such a professional homewrecker.

I didn't reply to her either. I just permanently blocked both of their numbers.

When I finally woke up, the sky was already turning a deep violet with the evening dusk. My phone had been on silent, showing over a dozen missed calls. A good chunk of them were from my childhood best friend, Natalie Parker.

Natalie exclaimed, "Sam, I am so incredibly proud of you. It's about time you dumped that absolute bastard."

Her loud, fiercely protective voice blasted through the speaker, instantly making me feel a million times more grounded.

Since we were kids, besides my parents, Natalie was the only person who constantly had my back.

Although she was married now and had become a mother two years before me, you could just tell from her glowing aura that she was thriving in a deeply happy marriage.

"How did you even find out?" I asked.

The curtains were still drawn tight against the twilight. I reached over and flicked on the bedside lamp, letting its soft, amber glow spill across the sheets.

She explained rapidly, "Julian blew up my phone all day trying to find you. I played him a little, and he ended up confessing that you guys had a massive blow-out.

"You've put up with him and that trashy little secretary for so long. I'm so glad you finally snapped out of it. Look, let's talk in person. Grab a coat. I'm bringing someone to meet you."

I was in zero mood to leave my apartment, but before I could even formulate an excuse, Natalie had already hung up on me.

I sighed. Whatever. Getting out of the house would do me some good.

At the café, Natalie and I were casually catching up, which definitely lifted my spirits. Mid-conversation, she suddenly bolted upright, waving enthusiastically at a man approaching our table.

As he walked closer, his striking features suddenly clicked in my brain. It was my high school classmate, Ethan Cole.

Back in high school, Ethan had harbored a massive crush on me for three solid years.

He had finally confessed his feelings on the day of our graduation, but I had turned him down because I was already talking to someone else.

From what Natalie had told me, Ethan immediately moved overseas for college right after graduation. He stayed abroad, launching his own tech startup from scratch.

Despite coming from an incredibly wealthy background, Ethan chose to build his own empire abroad. Today, he was a self-made multi-billionaire, operating on an elite echelon of wealth and power that Julian could only ever dream of touching.

"Samantha, long time no see. Do you still remember me?"

Ethan offered a warm, refined smile as he extended a hand. I sat there completely frozen in shock until Natalie subtly kicked me under the table.

I replied, "Of course I do. It's been forever, Ethan."

Natalie suddenly slapped her forehead. "Oh my god, my nanny just texted. My toddler is throwing a massive tantrum. You guys catch up. I have to run."

She gave me a wildly exaggerated wink and bolted out of the café, completely abandoning me to endure the awkwardness alone.

Ethan and I were left blinking at each other, the silence stretching between us.