Chapter 6
The first year after I left. Edward and Claire's marriage became the talk of Silvergate. Everyone wished they had what they did.
They showed up at every business event together, never apart, like the perfect couple.
On camera, Edward always played the perfect, gentle husband.
He'd open the car door for Claire, step in when someone tried to make her drink, and if she looked tired, he'd pull her into his arms right there, not caring who was watching.
Everyone said Edward had finally found his true love.
Claire reveled in everything that came with being Mrs. Sterling.
She flaunted the exclusive designer bags and jewelry Edward gifted her all over social media.
Every post sparked waves of admiration and envy.
Helen treated Claire not like a daughter-in-law, but as if she were her own flesh and blood.
The two of them were always hitting the shops and pampering themselves at the spa. They were always laughing and having a good time together.
It was like I, Julia, had never even existed in the Sterling Estate.
Late at night, when everything was quiet, Edward would take out a pair of men's cufflinks from that massive walk-in closet.
The cufflinks had a unique design. He wore them once at a major financial summit.
Everyone praised the cufflinks for their ingenious design. Edward thought so, too.
He asked offhandedly, "Which brand are these from?"
Claire smiled and said she'd picked them up through a friend overseas, from an independent designer.
He didn't suspect a thing at the time.
But later, every time he asked Claire to get him more pieces from that designer, she'd always dodge the question or make excuses. And whatever she brought back always felt like it was missing something.
It was a feeling he couldn't quite put his finger on. It was that sense of just-right understanding, a special touch that spoke to him.
Edward had no idea. Those cufflinks were the result of hundreds of sketches and hours of painstaking work. I personally handcrafted and polished them.
I worked through three nights straight, rushing to finish them as a birthday gift for him.
But on his birthday, it was Claire who was by his side.
In the end, I never got the chance to give him that gift. Instead, I placed it in his closet under the guise of a brand sponsorship.
The second year after I left. Edward and Claire started having problems in their marriage.
Claire loved being around people, always chasing after the next party. Edward, though, was the kind of guy who liked things calm and quiet.
He started coming home later and more often. He buried himself in work to avoid the noisy home life.
Helen started pushing them to have a baby.
But Claire always said she was still young, her career had just started, and she wanted to give it a couple more years.
Because of that, Helen and Claire kept clashing, getting into plenty of arguments.
Edward was stuck in the middle, totally exhausted.
He started losing sleep. He'd often stay up all night alone in his study, sitting there until the sun came up.
Sometimes, before he even realized it, his mind would wander to Julia. She was always so quiet.
No matter how late he got home, there was always a light on in the living room, waiting for him. And there was always a plate of soup, still warm.
She never interrupted him while he was working and never made a fuss about him coming home late.
She handled everything behind the scenes, keeping his life running smoothly without a word.
It was that silent, unobtrusive care, so gentle and thorough, that he only came to treasure after she was gone.
He had people investigate what Julia was up to these days.
He wanted to know how that woman, who walked away with nothing, was living. Did she really settle for some honest guy, as Helen said?
The investigation results came back quickly. Julia left the country. She went to Lumin.
After that, it was like she vanished off the face of the earth.
She never touched any of her cards. She really didn't take a single cent from him.
Edward sat in his empty office, staring at the report.
For the first time, he felt an inexplicable frustration gnawing at him.
*****
The third year after I left. JG Jewels was quickly becoming famous.
Edward noticed it, too. Claire was absolutely obsessed with JG Jewels.
She dropped a ton of money at an auction to snag a pair of JG Jewels earrings. She wore them every single day, as if they were her most prized possession.
The moment Edward laid eyes on those earrings, he froze. He could instantly recognize the design, the subtle elegance, the unique flair. Every detail felt like déjà vu. It sent a jolt straight through his heart.
He thought of those cufflinks. And suddenly, Julia came rushing back to his mind. Back in college, she majored in jewelry design. She was the most gifted talent of her entire year.
A wild thought flashed through his mind.
JG. Julia Gonzales. Could it really be her?
He called in every favor and used all his connections, trying to dig up the real person behind JG Jewels.
But their secrecy was impenetrable. Not a single clue slipped through. He came up empty-handed.
Until he saw the cover preview for the latest issue of Time Magazine, Asoraia Edition.
In the photo, an icy, graceful Asian woman was holding the hand of a delicate little boy.
Edward instantly recognized her. It was Julia. She looked even more radiant and refined than she had three years ago.
She radiated a quiet confidence and grace that Edward had never seen in her before.
And the little boy by her side. The shape of his eyes and the way he carried himself were all so familiar. He was practically Edward's mirror image, in miniature.
Edward's hands started to tremble uncontrollably.
He stared intently at the small caption beneath the photo: [A symbol of new-generation female empowerment: the mysterious designer behind JG Jewels and her muse of inspiration]
JG. It really was her. She wasn't only back. She'd brought a kid with her, a little boy who looked like him.
The line in the divorce agreement, "Both parties confirm no children from the marriage", felt like a cruel joke, a slap in the face. It kept flashing before his eyes, over and over.
Edward's breathing grew ragged, his chest rising and falling in sharp, uneven gasps.
It felt like an invisible hand had clamped down on his heart, squeezing the life out of him. The pain was so intense that it was almost impossible to breathe.
He shot up from his chair, grabbed his coat, and bolted out the door.
He was heading straight for the airport. He needed to ask her, face to face, for an answer.