Chapter 2

2.

After moving out of the estate, I settled into the old Brooklyn apartment my parents had left me.

As usual, Dominic didn't contact me once during our so-called "cooling-off period."

Only twenty days left until I was gone.

One day, my best friend Harper and I were strolling down Fifth Avenue.

She was sipping her iced coffee while unleashing a torrent of F-bombs about Dominic. After a few minutes, she asked cautiously:

"Hey, I saw pictures of Dominic and Serena skiing in Aspen on Instagram."

I paused for a moment. I had just realized that every other time we'd separated, I would masochistically refresh their social media feeds.

Except for this time.

Seeing my silence, Harper asked with a pained expression, "Are you two... in that 'on a break' phase again?"

Harper was the only human in my circle of friends who knew the truth about my on-again, off-again nightmare with the pack leader.

"Yeah. And this time, it's over for good."

Harper sighed, muttering a string of curses as she tried to comfort me.

I smiled, about to tell her my plan to move to Europe.

But before I could speak, we ran right into Dominic outside of Cartier.

"Elena."

He called my name instinctively, his voice filled with its usual sense of control.

Serena was clinging to his arm, her blonde hair dazzling under the lights. She greeted me with a gentle smile.

"Elena, are you looking at jewelry too?"

She was beautiful, a classic American sweetheart. It was no wonder she was Dominic's unforgettable obsession.

In the past, encounters like this would make my inner wolf roar, wanting to tear her to shreds. It was a primal hatred for the intruder.

Dominic gave me a deep look, then subconsciously shifted his body, shielding Serena behind him as if I were some feral beast about to pounce.

I held back Harper, who was ready to throw her coffee at them, and replied with a smile, my posture as elegant as a true Upper East Side socialite.

"Something good happened recently. I'm buying a little something to celebrate."

Harper chimed in at the perfect moment, her tone dripping with sarcasm, "That's right! The trash finally took itself out, so of course, we have to pop some champagne, right?"

I nudged her, but I secretly wanted to give her a high-five.

Dominic's mouth opened, but seeing me and Harper joking around, he just pursed his lips and said nothing.

A sharp-eyed clerk, sensing the tension, quickly had another associate attend to us separately.

Harper whispered to me that while Dominic was browsing, he kept getting distracted. His wolf eyes were constantly glancing in our direction, even sniffing the air for my scent.

I just grunted in response. It was nothing more than an Alpha's damn possessiveness. Even if he was done with a toy, he didn't want the toy to walk away on its own.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, this style is sold out," the clerk said, showing Harper a four-leaf clover necklace on the tablet. She looked disappointed.

A thought struck me―the necklace looked incredibly familiar. It was the exact one Dominic had given me three days ago.

In the past, I would have treasured every little scrap of affection from Dominic, locking them away in a safe.

But this time, I casually pulled the box from my Hermès bag and handed it to her.

"Here, you can have mine. It's brand new."

Just then, Dominic and Serena walked past us.

Maybe it was my imagination, but I thought I saw the man's steps falter. He turned his head several times, his gaze locked on the necklace in Harper's hand. His eyes were dangerously dark, as if he were looking at a desecrated holy relic.

Harper tried to refuse, but I insisted, pushing it into her hand.

After all, it was just a "severance payment" for all the pain he had caused me.

An insignificant gift.

From an insignificant ex.