Chapter 1

My husband, James Harper, had one rule that he never shared anything about his personal life online.

On our wedding day, all he posted was a work update. Nobody outside our family and friends knew we were married. He never wore his wedding ring.

I, noticed one of his subordinates had a thing for him, so I kept pestering him about it for a whole month. All I got in return was his voice, more annoyed than ever. "Emma, can you stop being so childish?"

But right now, a girl's photo had popped up on his social media feed. I recognized her instantly. She was his newly hired assistant and, more importantly, his first love.

I stared at my solo wedding photo in the living room. I tapped the like button.

The pregnancy confirmation I'd gotten in the afternoon was torn up and tossed straight into the trash.

Then I scheduled the abortion for five days later. I wanted nothing to do with him or anything about him anymore.

*****

As the system confirmed my appointment, I heard the front door unlock. The clock's hands pointed silently to midnight.

James walked in, saw me curled up on the couch, and frowned. "Are you jealous again?"

I froze for a couple of seconds, then shook my head. "No."

He looked away and walked straight into the bathroom. Then, as if something occurred to him, he suddenly stopped. "Didn't you text me earlier, asking me to come home early? What did you want to talk about?"

I looked down at my phone, the time, 00:08, on the screen stinging my eyes. "Nothing."

James let out a cold snort. "I knew you were playing your little tricks again." The bathroom door was forcefully slammed shut.

Lying in bed, I opened his social media feed out of habit. At some point, that post had become the only one he pinned to the top.

I stared blankly at the ceiling. We'd been together for three years and married for two. A single strand of my hair had never appeared on his social media.

Tears slipped from the corners of my eyes before I realized it. All I could hear was his heavy breathing.

The next morning, James was packing up his breakfast.

I noticed he hadn't spread peanut butter on his toast like he usually did. I grabbed the jar of peanut butter and set it down in front of him. "You forgot to put peanut butter on your toast."

James paused, his eyes softening. "She doesn't like it."

My hand froze in midair. I fell silent for a moment. "Take care."

He didn't respond. The only thing left was the sound of the front door closing.

After breakfast, I sat down at my computer. My phone pinged. Another reminder popped up, telling me to post an update.

James never let me share anything about his life, so I could only write about our love under a pen name.

I scrolled through my old posts for a long time, but still couldn't reach the end. Without realizing it, there was already a two-month gap. In the end, the account was set to private.

It felt like the huge, heavy stone pressing on my heart had finally been lifted.

Then, something else came to mind. I called up my friend, Rachel Taylor. "You mentioned a really good divorce lawyer. Send me their contact."

A call came in from a restaurant downtown. "Mrs. Harper, five months ago you booked a birthday dinner for tomorrow night at seven. This is a reminder. Please be on time."

I was quiet for a couple of seconds before I spoke. "Can I cancel it?"

"Yes, Mrs. Harper, but the deposit isn't refundable."

The restaurant had just opened early this year. To surprise James on his birthday, I went there in person countless times to grab a reservation. Then I remembered the deposit would take half my secret savings. "I'll be there."

After hanging up, I let out a heavy sigh. I would treat it as my last gift to him.