Chapter 3

I used to be so dumb and pitiful. I wasted my own life, chasing after that so-called family love, and they never cared—not even a little.

Less than half an hour later, Melvin called me. He'd already heard from the company that I'd quit.

The first thing he said was, "What are you up to now? Isn't this mess big enough for you? Now the internet is tearing Emily apart. It was already more than she could take.

"Are you really trying to drive her over the edge? Would it make you happy to see her break down? Do you honestly think the company can't function without you?"

His voice dripped with contempt.

I used to buy into this every time. The more contempt he showed, the harder I tried to prove myself. I wanted to show him I was the best of his three kids, and if he didn't like me, that was his loss.

But no matter what I did, they never loved me.

People spend their whole lives chasing after what they couldn't get as kids.

In my previous life, I went through all the pain trying to get some familial affection, but I never got it in the end.

Now that I'd been given another shot at life, I wasn't about to let family chain me down again.

I said, "Emily brought that online hate on herself. People know what's just. As for quitting, sign it or don't—I honestly don't care. I've already handed in my resignation. In thirty days, I'm gone, with or without your approval."

Melvin froze for a second, probably not expecting me to talk back like this.

The next second, Naomi's furious voice blasted through the phone. "Delphine, how can you be so cold? Emily is seriously ill—the doctors say she won't make it past six months.

"All she wants is to spend her last days with Nathan. You won't let her have that, and now you're turning the internet against her, trying to destroy her..."

Before she could finish, I hung up and blocked the number.

I didn't answer the call just to be yelled at.

I refused to deal with anyone or anything that made me unhappy.

*****

Three days later, Nathan suddenly agreed to the divorce.

As compensation, he gave me a million dollars and a house.

I took it.

The first couple of days after I came back to life, I was obsessed with revenge. I wanted Nathan destroyed.

But I wasn't capable enough to pull that off.

I didn't want to throw my life away just to get back at him. All I wanted was to live happier than those scumbags.

As soon as I got the divorce papers, I posted them on my social media with the caption: [Divorced. Single and ready to mingle.]

For the next month, I went on a date every three days, meeting all kinds of guys—adorable younger guys with eight-pack abs, mature, charismatic CEOs, and innocent, sweet boys from university. Honestly, it was the perfect cure for my wounded soul.

Then one day, I crashed my car straight into my sworn enemy, Julian Sutton's ride.

And just like that, my good times were over.

With both his arms broken, he insisted I wait on him hand and foot, twenty-four seven.

"Did you run into me on purpose? The road's huge, but you just had to crash into me, huh?" he complained.

Julian's arms were all bandaged up and slung around his neck, making him look pretty comical.

I recalled how he always had the upper hand every time we negotiated a contract. His cocky attitude made me grit my teeth, but there was no denying that some people were just born leaders.

Still, he was actually a decent guy.

In my previous life, when some maniac tampered with my car and I nearly got into a massive wreck, Julian blocked my runaway car with his own.

I held up my hand. "I swear it wasn't on purpose. Seriously, I'm sorry."

Seeing how earnest I was, Julian snorted. "Alright, forget about compensation—just take care of me until my arms are healed."

And just like that, I found myself living at his place.

*****

A week later, I was video chatting with my best friend, Luna Brown.

As soon as she saw my dark eye circles and how exhausted I looked, she let out a dramatic gasp, waggled her eyebrows, and teased, "Girl, you're really living it up, huh?"

I rolled my eyes and filled her in on everything that had happened.

By the time I finished, she was rolling around on her bed, laughing hard.

"Is he hot? What about his figure? And his abs—feel good?" she rattled off, none of them serious.

I couldn't even be bothered to answer. But then, her cheeks suddenly flushed and she looked bashful, though her eyes glowed. "Wow! Look at those abs," she squealed.