Chapter 2

2

Perhaps sensing the icy finality in my tone, Hayden paused for a second before his voice softened slightly:

"Rowena, you are overthinking this. Clara was devastated, and I was terrified she might do something reckless. I only stayed to cheer her up."

"We can reschedule the wedding anytime."

"Whatever you want for the ceremony, we will do it your way, alright?"

"As for the photo, I already took it down. It was just a picture. I am the baby's godfather, so taking a family portrait isn't a crime."

"Rowena, why can't you show an ounce of empathy?"

Clara was Hayden's childhood sweetheart and his first love when he was sixteen.

Her hypocritical voice chimed in through the phone again:

"Rowena, it is all my fault. Hayden only did it for me."

"If it makes you feel better, I will get on my knees and crawl to your doorstep to apologize."

Crawl on her knees?

She certainly knew how to put on a theatrical show.

I let out a cold sneer:

"Great. Pick a time and start crawling."

"You better hurry up though. The divorce papers will be finalized by this afternoon."

The line instantly went dead silent.

Clara had only said it for dramatic effect, never expecting me to call her bluff.

As she stammered, Hayden snatched the phone back and roared:

"Rowena! Why are you acting like such a vicious shrew? Clara was just trying to ease the tension, and you actually want her on her knees?"

"If anyone needs to apologize, it is you! What gave you the right to leave that toxic comment under my post?"

"Because of your petty comment, dozens of people have been blowing up our phones! Clara was already fragile, and you pushed her over the edge!"

"And now you have the nerve to bring up divorce? Fine! Let's get divorced! Don't you dare come crawling back crying!"

He hurled the insults like venom and slammed the phone down before I could reply.

Listening to the flat dial tone, a sharp pang pierced through my chest.

Seven years. Over two thousand days and nights.

How could my wasted youth and devotion not hurt?

At the end of the day, Hayden's monstrous ego was something I had enabled myself.

I first met him at our freshman college mixer.

Back then, he was radiant, charismatic, and bright.

Countless girls fell for him, and I was no exception.

I fell in love at first sight, kicking off three years of chasing him relentlessly.

Rain or shine, I bought him breakfast every morning.

I moved mountains to solve every problem he faced and bent over backward to register for every single class he took.

Over three years, his admirers came and went, but I remained by his side.

Yet he constantly blew hot and cold, keeping me in perpetual uncertainty.

Right before graduation, I finally decided to end this one-sided humiliation.

The very next morning after I stopped bringing him breakfast, Hayden appeared outside my dorm for the first time.

He held a paper bag with hot coffee and pastries, scowling at me:

"Rowena, I never said we were over. Who gave you permission to quit?"

That day marked our first official day together.

It also completely derailed the life my family had mapped out for me.

I refused to return to New York. I turned down the chance to inherit my father's empire.

Instead, I willingly followed Hayden to his rundown, industrial hometown in the Midwest.

Because he claimed he could never leave his aging parents, I moved into a cramped six-hundred-square-foot apartment without a single complaint.

The four of us lived crammed inside that tiny space for seven long years.