Chapter 1

On Christmas Eve, Vivian, my husband's best friend, made a wish for me. "Hope Jerome gets his memory back soon, so Delia won't have to suffer her lonely nights anymore."

Vivian's hand casually brushed against his ass, like she wasn't even trying to hide it.

When Jerome saw the look on my face, he rushed to explain. "Delia, Vivian's just trying to help me remember things. Please try to understand."

I understood, alright. I understood he was just pretending to have amnesia so he could hook up with Vivian every single night.

I called my bestie and said yes to join her for a volunteer teaching gig out in a remote village.

Four days after Christmas, Jerome had a birthday surprise all set up and was finally ready to come clean, but I was already long gone.

*****

My bestie kept asking, "Delia, are you for real? You, the spoiled city girl, think you can rough it out in the remote village?"

Before I could answer, my husband, Jerome Lopez, came from behind me. "You're going to the remote area?"

I hung up right away. "You got it wrong. It's she who wants to go out there."

Jerome still looked suspicious, but then Vivian Sexton suddenly screamed, "Jerome, help me!"

She was tottering on a ladder in her high heels, the candle she was holding swinging all over the place, and she looked like she could fall any second.

Jerome rushed over, and just as he got there, Vivian toppled backward, falling straight into his arms like it was meant to happen.

As she fell, the candle slipped from her hand and dropped right along with her.

The lit candle dropped onto my arm and nearly made me stumble. I bit down on my lip, stifling a groan. It hurt.

"Dee, are you okay?" Jerome called me by my nickname without even thinking.

Whenever things got passionate between us, he'd always say my name like that, his voice all husky and tender.

I put on a look of surprise and stared at Jerome. "Jerome, you got your memory back, didn't you?"

This was my last chance for him to come clean.

Jerome stopped in his tracks.

Vivian's sobs snapped him out of it. "Jerome, my foot hurts so bad. Am I gonna be lame forever?" she cried, clutching her ankle.

Jerome looked uncomfortable; he just brushed past me and picked Vivian up bridal style.

"Delia, now's not the time for this. Vivian hurt her foot. I need to get her to the hospital," he said.

His eyes were full of concern.

After he carried Vivian away, I pushed up my sleeve and saw my arm was all red and swollen.

Jerome, I gave you your last chance, but you didn't even care.

My heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand. I called my lawyer friend, my voice thick with tears. "Can you draw up a divorce agreement for me? I'm filing for divorce."

Jerome was the heir to a rich family. He was handsome, loaded, and he swapped girlfriends frequently.

He had supported me financially back in college. After he was diagnosed with stomach cancer, I came into his life as his bucket list planner to help him fulfill his last wishes.

He had three wishes. The first was for me to be his girlfriend and actually date him for real.

When his female friends found out about his cancer, they all left without looking back. Jerome just wanted to prove that someone could truly care about him.

His second wish was to see the Northern Lights. I made that happen for him, too.

When it came time for his third wish, we found out his stomach cancer had been a misdiagnosis. Jerome said he'd never wanted to live so much before.

At sunset on the beach, he set up the kind of proposal I'd only see in a TV drama. Roses were everywhere, with candles spelling out "Delia, I love you."

He spent hundreds of millions to buy a globally limited-edition Sunflower Ring, and slipped it onto my finger during a nationwide live-stream.

"Delia, you're my sun; you light up my whole world." Jerome promised he'd love me forever.

For more than ten years after we got married, he never strayed and always treated me with real, heartfelt love.

Then, during a road trip, we got into a car crash. He shoved me out of harm's way, but took a blow to the back of his head and ended up with amnesia.

His mind rewound to ten years ago.

Back then, Jerome couldn't stand being around women, because his first love ditched him and moved overseas. Vivian was the only girl he'd let anywhere near him.

The doctors said he needed a bit of a shock to help him regain his memory.

Feeling guilty, I agreed to let Vivian help Jerome try to get his memory back.

One day, I found a condom in Jerome's pocket.

Following the clues, I tracked him down to the hotel where he was hooking up.

"Jerome, you really want your memory back now? Delia's such a cold fish. She could never satisfy you," Vivian teased.

Jerome's voice was low and hungry. "Vivian, you little vixen. Let's have some more fun."

I crouched outside the door, tears streaming down my face. My husband was faking amnesia just so he could openly cheat on me.