Chapter 2

The photo didn't show their faces, so Nina probably thought I didn't know it was her.

"Julian, what are you spacing out for? If you don't like this one, we can just pick something else."

I ignored her. My mind was back at our engagement party.

Winning Nina's heart had been like trying to catch a star.

It took me seven years to turn the impossible into a possibility.

I had told everyone. Every media outlet in the city knew the Croft Corporation was planning a wedding.

And then, in the middle of all my joyful preparations, she vanished, turning me into a city-wide laughingstock.

All for Kai Steele. No one knew where they went.

If I hadn't traveled the world, if I hadn't seen her with him with my own two eyes...

I might have been stupid enough to wait for her.

"Nina, I'm getting married soon. The bride is..."

Before I could say Elara's name, her phone rang.

The name on the screen made the color drain from her face.

"Sorry, Julian, something's come up. We'll have to pick out wedding things another time."

I just snorted. "No problem. I'm sure it's something to do with Kai. You should go."

She froze, surprised that I wasn't trying to stop her. She opened her mouth, then closed it again, unable to find the words.

"It's fine. Don't worry about me."

At my words, she grabbed her bag and ran out of the store.

Of course I knew it was Kai on the phone.

He was the only one who could make her lose her composure like that.

The old me would have started a huge fight.

But now, I couldn't care less about her and Kai.

Nina was an actress signed to my family's company, Croft Entertainment. She started when she was eighteen.

And Kai... he was a childhood friend. His family was incredibly wealthy, and he had already reached superstar status.

I had been recruiting at a local arts college when I first saw her. She was so pure, so innocent.

It was pouring rain that day. Everyone else was hoarding their umbrellas, worried about messing up their hair and makeup.

But I had a history of pneumonia. Getting caught in the rain could be dangerous for me.

Only Nina offered to share her umbrella.

Naturally, she got the contract.

I poured all my resources into making her a star.

Everyone in the industry could see how I felt about her.

I even introduced her to Kai, thinking it would boost her career.

I was so naive. I thought even the most untouchable flower would eventually bloom for me.

I was wrong. The moment she met Kai, she was completely obsessed with him.

She would ditch her own work to drive across town and buy him his favorite pastries.

She got subtle plastic surgery to look more like his type, ending up with a face that looked just a little too perfect.

She would fight with his fans online to defend him, ruining her own public image in the process.

I cleaned up so many of her messes.

I warned her, again and again, to stay away from him.

But she just soaked up my devotion while chasing after her own love.

Why did she agree to marry me?

Probably because her career was in a slump and she needed my power to make a comeback.

But at the time, I thought the goddess I had worshipped for years had finally seen my true heart.

What a fucking joke.

Kai's illness was a result of his own reckless behavior. Only a few of us knew the truth.

Viral hepatitis is contagious. But Nina, either out of ignorance or obsession, went with him anyway.

She even changed all her contact information so I couldn't find her.

All she left me was a short, cryptic message.

"Kai is very sick. He needs me."

He was sick and pitiful, and that gave her the right to abandon me in a hall full of guests, to face the shame and gossip all alone?