Chapter 1

Zackery pursued me passionately during college.

It became a widely discussed story.

Eight years later, I woke up one morning and found an engagement ring in his suit pocket.

I remembered that when we first got together, he had said, "I want to get married by the age of twenty-six."

Today happened to be his twenty-sixth birthday.

I was overjoyed and dressed up meticulously.

I left work early, carrying a birthday cake to his birthday party.

But just outside the private room, I overheard Zackery scoff, "Yvonne? Please, I'm just having some fun with her. She's past her prime. No way she can compete with the young girls."

I threw the birthday cake away and turned to leave.

After disappearing from Shanievlle for a month, I showed up all dressed up with another man.

Zackery went mad.

*****

Today was Zackery Quinn's twenty-sixth birthday.

I left work an hour early to pick up the birthday cake I'd ordered for him. I couldn't wait to get to his birthday party and be by his side as soon as possible.

But as I stood outside the private room, I overheard Zackery laughing loudly with his friends.

"Yvonne? Please, I'm just having some fun with her. She's past her prime. No way she can compete with the young girls," Zackery bragged.

"Zackery, keep it down. Better not let Yvonne hear you, or you'll be in trouble," one of his buddies warned.

"Relax. She's got a meeting tonight and won't get out of work till late," Zackery replied. "And honestly, it's just the truth. If she hears it, she'll throw a fit for a few days, but she'll cry and beg me to take her back."

Zackery took a big gulp of his drink. His face was dismissive.

His buddy clinked glasses with him and said, "You never know how to cherish girls. Guess you've just seen too many hot young things lately.

"Seriously, Yvonne was a total knockout back in the day. Even now, she's still a stunner—body and looks both top-notch, a real bombshell.

"If you're tired of her, we wouldn't mind making a move."

Zackery smirked. "Suit yourselves. But honestly, if I'm done with her, what makes you think she's worth your time?"

The guys burst out laughing in the private room, their voices mixing with the chaotic clinking of glasses.

I dumped the birthday cake in the trash and walked away.

I had been with Zackery for eight years.

I knew Zackery loved parties and all the excitement. Every year for his birthday, I'd start planning half a month ahead—booking the private room, inviting his friends, ordering the cake, and picking out the perfect gift.

I'd carefully set everything up, just to give him a lively and joyful birthday.

I never thought I'd overhear those awful things from him.

Early that morning, I fixed him breakfast and got him out of bed.

While he was eating, I picked out a suit for him and got ready to iron it.

Later that morning, he had a big project meeting to attend.

When I reached into the pocket of his custom-tailored light gray suit, I felt something bulky inside.

It was a luxurious box. Inside the box was an extravagant diamond engagement ring.

I was over the moon.

I'd kept his words close to my heart all these years.

He once told me he'd marry at twenty-six.

Every day since then, I'd been counting down the days, dreaming we'd finally end up together.

I naively believed that the engagement ring meant he was finally going to keep his promise and propose to me that day.

During those eight years with Zackery, I let his cheating slide time and again.

As Shanievlle's golden boy, he was always surrounded by all kinds of women. I just told myself he wasn't ready to settle down yet, that he still wanted to play around.

When he splurged on female streamers online and sent them messages that totally crossed the line, I acted like I didn't see it, convincing myself it was just a bit of excitement for him.

When he got way too close to his secretary at work, I looked the other way, thinking it was just a temporary thing.

I thought that if I just held onto our love and gave him my whole heart, he'd eventually realize what truly mattered and finally come back to my side.

After all, I was the only one who stuck by his side through those darkest days when he lost his parents.

When his family's company was teetering on the edge of bankruptcy and takeover, I was the one who went out drinking with those big-shot investors. I drank until I gave myself a stomach ulcer just to pull him back from the brink.

When he was chasing after me, he booked out the biggest billboard in the busiest part of Shanievlle for an entire month.

The billboard read: [Yvonne, you're my forever.]

He even once knelt down in the snow, in the dead of winter, wearing nothing but a T-shirt and shorts, begging me to forgive him after he pissed me off.

We really did love each other.

But people could be fickle, and sometimes, they were stubborn as hell.

Someone who couldn't settle down was always restless, always chasing after something else.

Real life was like a magic mirror, exposing all our flaws and cravings.

Time ground down every vow and every bit of love, until all that was left was a gleaming, merciless blade.

I couldn't tell when it started—or maybe I just didn't want to admit it—but somewhere along the way, Zackery had gotten fed up with me.

That made me think back to our last big fight, when I was the one begging him for us to get back together.

After we patched things up, Zackery half-joked, saying, "You're such an annoying leech, stuck to me no matter what I do."

I knew maybe it was finally time for me to let go.