Chapter 2

Claire couldn't even remember how she got home. The first thing she did was change the lock code as soon as she walked in.

She had no clue how she ended up in bed; her head felt like it was splitting open.

She drifted off without realizing it, and there, in her dream, James was waiting for her.

James hugged her tightly, pouring all his affection into the embrace.

But right in front of her, her face started to distort, twisting until it morphed into Lily's. James didn't even notice; he just kept holding Lily, kissing her like nothing was out of the ordinary.

Claire, terrified, tried to pull them apart, but they shoved her away with mocking laughter. "Idiot! So what if you call yourself a strong woman? We've been playing you like a puppet. The man you love and your best friend have both ditched you."

Left behind, Claire was sweating and frantic, chasing after them, but they never even glanced back.

She ran faster and faster, almost grabbing the hem of their clothes, but suddenly her foot missed the ground and she was falling fast; just as she was about to hit the floor.

Claire jerked awake, drenched in sweat. She was about to wipe her face, but then realized her hand was locked in someone else's grip.

"Did you have a nightmare? You kept calling my name in your sleep. It's okay, I'm right here," James said softly, concern written all over his face as he held her hand tight.

Claire didn't respond. She pulled her hand away with force, her voice rough and shaky. "How did you get in here? Pretty sure I changed the door code."

James ignored her question and instead gently pressed a glass of water to her lips. "Your throat sounds terrible. Here, drink some water."

Claire turned her face away from him, keeping her distance.

James looked at his empty hand, a bit embarrassed, and said with a sigh, "I have all the access to the door lock. I know you're upset, so I let you change the code. Does that make you feel any better?"

That made sense.

With her head splitting, Claire had forgotten that James, as the CEO of a top AI company, had all the smart devices at home from his own brand. All the permissions were in his hands, so he could easily unlock anything whenever he wanted.

James watched Claire's expression closely, then handed her a beautifully wrapped gift box. "I picked this especially for you, for our seventh anniversary.

"Honey, I always remember our special day. I just got busy with the industry summit, so I came home a bit late. Come on, don't be upset."

Claire felt a wave of bitterness wash over her. He was the one who betrayed their love, yet now he was blaming her for being upset.

She wanted nothing more to do with him. "I need to talk to you about the wedding next month."

Just then, James's phone rang.

Claire glanced at the screen; it was Lily calling.

James brushed Claire off, not even letting her finish, and rushed out to take the call.

When he came back, he barely gave Claire a chance to speak. "There's an emergency at the office. I gotta go right now. We'll talk about the wedding some other time."

He left without so much as a glance back, just like in Claire's nightmare.

Claire looked up at the moonlight streaming through the window. She didn't lower her head until no more tears threatened to fall.

But sleep was out of the question now. She pulled out her phone, mindlessly scrolling through her feed, when a new post suddenly popped up.

It was Lily's latest post.

[I just told him I accidentally got scratched by the necklace, and he dropped everything to come find me. The gift you gave me is beautiful. Thank you, my love.]

The photo showed Lily's neck, with a huge diamond necklace hanging there, glinting coldly in the moonlight.

Claire opened the gift box James had just given her. The moment she saw what was inside, her heart sank and she slammed it shut in disgust. There it was, the exact same diamond necklace.

James was basically handing out their seventh-anniversary gifts wholesale.

Lily's post was racking up likes fast. Claire used to be the first to hit like, always joking with Lily about her secret boyfriend; she showed off her romance every day but never let Claire meet the guy.

Lily would always blush and say, "When the time's right, I'll bring him out for you to meet."

Now, Claire finally knew who Lily's secret boyfriend was. But instead of feeling any joy for her friend, all she felt was the humiliation of being betrayed.

She glanced around at her home's decor. Tomorrow, she'd change it all, just like she was determined to get rid of James and move on.