Chapter 2
Jane stumbled back home, barely holding herself together.
Her phone buzzed with a message from Edward: [Got called in to work overtime tonight. You go to bed first.]
Jane glanced at it, ready to close the screen, when a new notification flashed from Vivian.
Vivian: [Eddie, why haven't you liked my post yet?]
Jane's eyes turned icy.
The message vanished after a dozen seconds, and then Vivian sent another.
Vivian: [Oops, sorry, Jane. That was meant for someone else.]
Jane's lips curled in bitter irony as she tapped into her social media. Vivian had just posted a fresh update.
There she was, posing in a princess dress in front of some expensive ride, diamonds glittering everywhere, her smile all sweetness and carefully staged innocence.
The caption showed off: [Someone said winning big deserves a treat, so he booked me a pile of gifts in advance. Totally obsessed!]
Jane recognized them instantly. Those were the birthday gifts Edward had meant to give her.
But what really made her stomach drop was that unmistakable arm wrapped tight around Vivian's waist—Edward's, the same guy who'd just said he was working late.
He was even wearing the watch Jane had picked out for him.
Edward and Vivian had quite a few friends in common, and now their friends started leaving comments one after another.
[Whoa, Vivian's back and still got that charm from back in the day.]
[Everybody knows Vivian is Eddie's weakness—looks like that still hasn't changed.]
[Honestly, if that whole thing hadn't happened back then, Eddie and Vivian probably would've been married already.]
[Seriously, if it weren't for that awkward 'sister-in-law' situation, they'd be perfect together—both single, after all.]
Almost at the same time, Edward's name popped up in the likes.
A tangled web of pain spread through Jane's heart. She couldn't bear to look anymore and pressed her phone screen off.
She wondered why Edward insisted on marrying her in the first place if he cared so much about Vivian back then.
Jane's mind wandered back to her first encounter with Edward.
It was at a premier research summit. A foreign scholar called her out purely because she was a woman and not from his country.
But Jane fired back in flawless foreign language, dropping expert knowledge until he was too stunned to reply and had to slink off, humiliated.
As she stepped offstage, she bumped into Edward, who was just hanging around for the show.
He tossed her a business card with a laid-back grin, but his eyes were all filled with seriousness. "Never thought science had roses with thorns like you. Edward Sterling. Glad to meet you."
Nobody ever expected the famous nobleman would fall hard for the cool-headed science girl.
But that was exactly how things went down.
Edward went after Jane for two years straight, pulling countless all-nighters with her in the lab, even founding an entire semiconductor institute just to help her chase her dreams.
For the sake of her reputation, he chose to keep their marriage under wraps—so no one could ever say she made it because of him.
A sudden burst of her ringtone snapped Jane back to reality.
It was Chris Lane, Edward's closest friend.
Chris said, "Hey, Jane, do you have time to swing by Nightfall Bar? Eddie's drunk out of his mind. Could you come pick him up?"
After a moment's hesitation, Jane grabbed her coat and headed out.
The lighting in Nightfall Bar was gloomy. As Jane pushed open the door of the private room, she instantly caught sight of Edward, sagging drunkenly on the couch, face bright red from all the booze.
Chris rushed over, relief written all over his face. "Thank god you're here, Jane. Eddie's wasted and won't let anyone get close."
Jane nodded, bracing herself as she started to step inside.
But then the suit jacket on Edward shifted, and out popped Vivian's dazed, adorably clingy face. She sleepily slipped her arm around Edward's neck, looking for all the world like she belonged there.
Vivian murmured, "Come on, honey, gimme a kiss, will you?"
Jane froze right where she stood.
Chris looked totally stunned, muttering under his breath, "Wait, I swear there wasn't anyone here a second ago..."
Jane gave a bitter, self-mocking smile.
Of course. Like Edward would ever be here alone.
Ever since Vivian came back, those two had been glued to each other.
"Honey?" Edward's grin was all mischief, but his eyes held nothing but burning obsession—lit up by the bar's neon glow. "Vivian, sweetheart, any idea who I am?"
"You're... Eddie... Mmm-" Vivian barely got the words out before Edward interrupted her. He pulled her straight into his arms, claiming her lips in a fierce kiss. Her cheeks burned a deep crimson, her slender fingers gripping his collar tight.
The crowd went wild at the sight, whistles and laughter echoing as everyone egged them on.
Jane stood rooted to the spot, icy dread flooding her veins, utterly frozen with shock.
"Uh... everyone here's completely drunk. They probably mistook each other. Don't stress, Jane, I'll go call Eddie over," Chris offered, a bit awkward as he scratched his nose.
He moved to step into the room, but Jane reached out, stopping him cold.
"Don't," she said, her voice steady as ice. The emptiness in her gaze told the rest of the story—she was barely holding herself together. "Let them be. I really shouldn't have come."
Jane didn't believe that they had mistaken each other, since they called each other's names just now.
It felt like her heart was being ripped apart, but Jane couldn't deny it now—Edward was totally into Vivian. He really wasn't hers anymore.
"Don't tell him I was here," Jane said, her voice steady but hollow. With her face pale as a sheet, she hurried out the door, barely holding herself together.
Desperate to escape, Jane dove into her work inbox, rifling through old messages until she tracked down that email from abroad sent a month back. Trembling, she punched in the number attached.
"Hi, I'm calling about the three-year secret research project you mentioned last month. Do I still have a chance to join?" She asked.
After getting the confirmation, Jane clenched her phone in a death grip and dialed her next call.
It was Edward's mom on the other end.
"I agree to divorce Edward. What's the soonest we can get this over with?" Jane said.
There was a stunned silence, but the answer came fast, "A month, tops."
"Alright," Jane replied.
She didn't ever want to lay eyes on Edward again.