Chapter 1
When I spotted that glaring marriage certificate tucked inside my boyfriend's briefcase, I didn't cry. I didn't make a scene.
The woman in the photo was beaming with joy. And I, his girlfriend of five years, was nothing but a punchline.
I quietly closed the briefcase. The next day, I booked a flight to Sunshore Coast and turned off my phone.
Two weeks later, he finally reached me through a text message, his tone urgent and entitled: [My father needs emergency surgery. You still have money in your account, don't you? Hurry up and pay the bill.]
I gazed out at the blue sky and turquoise sea, and calmly replied: "Ask your new wife."
*****
After sending that text, I immediately blocked Jason's number.
My phone finally fell silent.
I flipped my phone face down on the armrest of the beach chair, blocking out all the noise from that other life.
The salty sea breeze brushed against my cheeks, bringing with it that signature sticky heat of Azure Bay.
In the distance, the endless blue ocean rolled with white waves, stretching as far as the eye could see.
But my world had been shattered in an instant by that tiny red marriage certificate.
My phone buzzed through the armrest, stubbornly sending the vibration right to my fingertips.
I didn't even need to look to know it was him.
Since he couldn't get through on the phone, he started bombarding me with texts.
The first one was an accusation. "Seriously, Laurie? You blocked me?"
The second one was pure rage. "Don't forget everything my dad did for you. Now he's stuck in the hospital, and you're off enjoying yourself. Do you even have a heart?"
The third one softened, with a hint of barely concealed panic. "Laurie, please, stop this. My dad really needs the money. I'm asking you, okay?"
I picked up my phone and unlocked it, the screen's light stinging my eyes.
As I stared at those neatly lined-up messages, memories from the past five years crashed over me like a tidal wave, threatening to drown me.
I remembered when we first graduated, squeezed into a tiny ten-square-meter apartment in a run-down neighborhood. I spent my first paycheck buying him a suit for his job interview.
He hugged me tight, his eyes sparkling like stars, promising that one day he'd give me the best home.
Later, we really did move into a new place, a three-bedroom apartment with spacious living and dining areas, in a prime location.
The down payment was 500,000 dollars. I put in all my savings from three years of work, 120,000 dollars, while his family scraped together 50,000 dollars.
The deed had both our names on it, and he said it was our home together.
But that so-called home was now his wedding nest with another woman.
I also remembered how I'd been supporting his younger brother through college, covering his tuition and living expenses all these years.
His mother, Lily, would always praise me for being so thoughtful, saying the Grant family was blessed to have someone like me as a daughter-in-law.
Now, each word felt like a slap in the face.
I was never really a future daughter-in-law.
I was just a diligent workhorse, always bleeding myself dry for his entire family.
The perfect teammate for their family hustle.
The fool who helped them escape poverty and guarantee their retirement.
It felt like someone had gouged a hole right through my chest, and now the cold wind was just pouring in.
I took a deep breath and dialed up my bestie, Sophie Bright.
She picked up in a heartbeat, her voice as loud and dramatic as ever. "Well, well, Senior Financial Advisor Winters, you finally decided to turn your phone back on?
"I was starting to think some hot guy in Sunshore Coast had whisked you away."
My voice was so calm, it almost felt like it belonged to a stranger. "Sophie, Jason got married."
The line went dead silent, like all the air had been sucked out of the room.
After what felt like half a minute, Sophie exploded, her shout nearly blowing out my eardrums. "What did you just say? That bastard got married? Who did he marry? And what about you? What are you gonna do?"
"The bride wasn't me." I quickly filled her in, from finding the marriage certificate to getting his text demanding money for his dad's surgery.
Sophie was so furious she was practically spitting out curses, mixing national and local swear words like a pro. "That damn butcher. That overgrown man-child. He sucked you dry for five years, and now he wants you to bankroll his dad's life? Where does he get the nerve?
"Laurie, I'm telling you, get your ass back here right now. I'll send someone to the hospital and rip out his dad's oxygen tube myself."
Listening to her energetic rant, the heaviness in my chest started to fade a little.
"Don't do anything crazy," I said, trying to calm her down. "I'm not just going to let this go.
"So what's your plan? Don't go soft, Laurie. Being nice to someone like him is just being cruel to yourself."
I stared out at the ocean, the sunset turning it gold, and felt my gaze grow colder by the second. "Relax, I'm not stupid.
"Five years isn't something you can just erase with a single sentence."
After hanging up, I went back to my hotel room and pulled my laptop out of my suitcase.
I opened an encrypted Excel file.
The file was titled "Shared Living Expenses."
As a financial advisor, it was just my habit to keep track of every major expense.
Every single dollar I spent on Jason and his family over the past five years was meticulously recorded in that file.
I covered two-thirds of the mortgage payments.
His brother's tuition was 7,000 dollars a year.
I put in 18,000 dollars for his parents' house renovation back home.
Over five years, the gifts I gave his family for holidays and special occasions added up to more than 30,000 dollars.
And there were countless other daily expenses, filling the entire screen.
Calmly, I typed a line at the very bottom of the spreadsheet: [Total: 474,500 dollars.]
The numbers were like a sharp knife, stinging my eyes.
So, my love was only worth a little over a million dollars.
No. It was worthless.
I closed my laptop and stepped out onto the balcony, letting the sea breeze blow through my hair.
It was time to settle the score for my dead love.
After I blocked Jason, his text bombardment finally died down.
I bet he was convinced I was just mad for a bit, and once I cooled off, I'd go right back to being his obedient little helper, handling everything for him like always.
He was so used to me always being there for him.
He got so comfortable, he started treating everything I did as if it was just his right.
Too bad for him, he totally miscalculated.
The next morning, right after I finished an exhilarating dive, an unknown number called me.
The caller ID showed it was from our city.
I picked up, but didn't say a word.
On the other end, a familiar yet sharp voice came through, tinged with tears. "Laurie, it's me, Lily."
It was Jason's mom, Lily.
Her voice sounded tired and put-upon, like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. "Laurie, why won't you answer your phone? Don't you know Jason's dad is sick? How could you be so cold?"
She jumped straight into blaming me, not even bothering to ask what happened.
She didn't even care why I wasn't picking up.
She slapped a guilty verdict on me right away.
I could see her clutching her chest, giving me that classic "I'm only thinking of you" lecture, playing the moral judge.
I'd heard it all too many times over the past five years.
"Laurie, Jason's busy with work, so you'll just have to be more understanding."
"Laurie, men have to focus on their careers, so the home is up to you."
"Laurie, Jason is so lucky to have you."
Now, hearing it all again, it just sounded so ironic.
I didn't get mad. I held the phone, listening to her dramatic sobbing and accusations.
She said, "Did you and Jason have a fight? Why can't you two talk it out instead of you running off? Do you even know how worried he is?
"His dad's lying in the hospital right now, waiting for money for surgery, and you're off having fun by yourself.
"You need to come back right now and pay for the surgery. If you have any grievances, I'll stand up for you."
Every word she said was like a poisoned needle, stabbing right into the softest part of me.
But now, that place had turned hard as steel.
I waited until she'd cried herself out and run out of steam, then finally spoke up, my voice light as a feather.
My voice was soft, but it was loud enough for her to hear every word. "Lily, did you know Jason got married?"
On the other end, Lily's sobs came to an abrupt halt.
She went silent, like a duck with its neck wrung.
I could clearly hear her gasp, then nothing but dead silence.
I didn't give her a chance to react. I kept talking, my tone calm and steady. "His wife isn't me."
That line was like dropping a grenade, total chaos on the other end.
After a long pause, Lily finally found her voice again, but it was dry and sharp. "What nonsense are you spouting? Which shameless vixen has been gossiping to you?"
She didn't believe me.
Or rather, she couldn't bring herself to believe it.
Her first reaction wasn't to question her son, but to go after me, the one who was just "spreading rumors."
Honestly, it was laughable.
I said, "If you think I'm making it up, go ask your darling son yourself.
"I saw the marriage certificate. The girl in the photo is way prettier than me.
"What you should be worrying about isn't whether I, some outsider, will come back and pay your bill.
"It's whether your brand-new daughter-in-law is willing to cough up the cash for your family."
Once I finished, I didn't give her a chance to say another word.
I hung up.
My phone screen went dark, reflecting my blank, expressionless face.
I could imagine how shocked and furious Lily must be right now.
She'd probably call Jason right away to confront him.
A family storm was about to break out.
And all I had to do was sit here, let the sea breeze mess up my hair, and wait for the drama to unfold.
Jason, this was just the beginning.
Everything you owed me, I was coming for it, down to the last cent, with interest.
My dignity and my money? Not a single dollar missing.