Chapter 3

Annika had called, saying she was out drinking. My husband, husband in name only, worried she might drink too much and hurt herself, so he rushed off to keep her company.

Her voice over the phone was soft, spoiled, and delicate, something I could never imitate. "Emmett... Catalina... are you mad at me? This is all my fault. You were supposed to enjoy your trip, and I ruined it.

"I really didn't mean to. Could you please talk to her for me and ask her to forgive me?"

Emmett had already been irritated. Hearing that only made him angrier at me.

"Why are you apologizing?" he said. "I chose to go keep you company. It has nothing to do with you. Catalina just doesn't appreciate what you do for her. She's really not worth all this concern."

He stood right outside my door, speaking loudly, as if he wanted every word to reach me.

My heart had already been shattered beyond repair. I felt no jealousy, only exhaustion.

When I didn't respond, Emmett slammed the door so hard the walls shook.

I finally felt a wave of relief. Dealing with a walking time bomb every day had me so wound up, I was on the verge of a breakdown.

Now that he was gone, I could finally pack up in peace.

I called a moving company, fired the nanny, and with Lisa by my side, I got in the car and headed back to my hometown.

Lisa was giggling in my arms, like she somehow knew her mom was the one who loved her most. Watching her, my heart just melted.

I'd already signed the divorce papers and put them back on the coffee table.

I tried to text Emmett, only to find out he'd blocked me.

'Doesn't matter,' I thought. 'From now on, I'm living for myself.'

I told my parents the whole story about me and Emmett , not leaving out a single detail.

When they heard everything, they just couldn't stop sighing.

"Don't worry, Catalina. He just didn't know how lucky he was," my dad said.

"That's right, honey. We've got plenty to support you and Lisa. You don't need to stress about anything, just take care of yourself," my mom chimed in.

Emmett and I had been together since our college days, and my parents always thought highly of him.

He was smart and driven, starting his own company at a young age and becoming the boss.

I truly believed we'd have a lifetime of happiness together.

Everything changed the moment Annika came into our lives.

That was when it hit me that everything I had was just whatever Annika didn't bother to take.

Back when we were dating, Emmett used to tease me, saying, "That fiery little temper of yours reminds me so much of a girl I knew back in the day. Girls like you are impossible to handle."

Annika was his everything, the precious one he kept close to his heart.

And me? I was just the consolation prize, the stand-in for the girl he could never have when he was young.

Thinking about it, I just shook my head at myself, feeling a little ridiculous.

I used to be so naive, thinking that just being there for him was the deepest kind of love. I believed that even if he'd liked someone else when he was younger, as long as I stayed by his side, I'd eventually become the one who mattered most to him.

But I was wrong. I underestimated the hold a long-cherished first love could have over a person's life.

The day Annika came back to Eldarland, Emmett shut himself away in his office, no food, no water, ignoring every call.

I was waiting outside his company, desperate and in tears. But all he did was give me a cold look and say, "Don't you feel ashamed? If you're gonna cry, do it at home."

From that moment, I started to get this nagging feeling in my gut.

There was always something missing between Emmett and me. We just didn't have that kind of fate.

If someone was really my soulmate, would they ever ditch me over something so trivial?

As if in answer to my mood, the rain came down without warning.

The rain pounded on the windows, soaking everyone outside to the bone.

I was lost in thought when a familiar car pulled up in front of my place.

And then, someone I could never mistake stepped out.

It was Emmett.

He stood outside the villa's gate, hitting the doorbell again and again, but nobody let him in no matter how many times he tried.

He just wouldn't give up. Even with the rain pouring so hard he could barely keep his eyes open, he stubbornly waited outside, drenched and blinking through the downpour.

I could just make out Emmett shouting, "Catalina! Catalina!"

Like that would change anything.

Back when I was shivering on Tenth Street in Eldarland, freezing my butt off, where was he?

Funny how the tables have turned.

I called Emmett, not because I felt sorry for him, but because he was really making a fool of himself out there. If anything happened, he'd probably make it our problem, so I figured I'd give him a heads-up.

Emmett picked up almost instantly, his voice full of desperation, like he was begging me.