Chapter 2

2

Even while talking to me, Felicity never took her eyes off her phone.

Her thumbs tapped rapidly against the screen, a soft smile dancing in her eyes.

A distant memory flashed through my mind.

On our first anniversary, Felicity had bought a mango-flavored cake.

Not wanting to disappoint her, I took a tiny bite.

I ended up in the emergency room with anaphylactic shock.

When I woke up, she was sobbing like a child, her hands trembling as she held mine.

"Tristan, I swear I'll never let you touch mangoes again. I'll never let you suffer like that!"

Snapping back to reality, I unzipped my bag and pulled out my discharge papers.

"I had surgery yesterday."

Only then did she bother glancing up at me.

Her tone was cold and dismissive.

"It was just one drink. Put a limit on your jealousy, Tristan. Don't fake an illness just to get attention."

To her, the agonizing pain that made me wish for death last night was just a dramatic performance fueled by jealousy.

I lowered my eyes and handed her the medical report.

"A malignant tumor. The surgery was done yesterday."

I took a quiet breath. "Our relationship ends here."

I didn't even dare use the word breakup.

Five years ago, my parents' company went bankrupt overnight.

Drowning in crushing debt, I accepted Felicity's black card.

From that day on, I became her kept man, locked in a gilded cage.

We lived together for five years.

I had everything I could ever want, except a real title.

Felicity stared at the diagnosis sheet, absolute shock washing over her face.

After a long pause, her eyes drifted to my bandaged abdomen, and she threw her arms around me.

Her voice cracked with guilt.

"Don't be sad, baby. Just rest and recover. I'll hire the best doctors in the world to cure you."

Her eyes were filled with raw tenderness as she rubbed my back.

For a brief second, it felt like we were back in the days when she truly cherished me.

Except for the heavy cedar cologne clinging to her skin―a scent that belonged exclusively to Uriah.

A wave of nausea hit my chest.

I pushed her away firmly.

"Miss Davenport, I'm being serious."

Hearing me address her with such distant formality, her face turned icy in an instant.

"Throwing another tantrum? Do you still think you're that pampered young master? Without me, who is going to pay your bills?"

She was right.

I was no longer the adored heir of a wealthy empire.

Yet I vividly remembered the nights she had kissed my neck with breathless devotion.

She used to whisper promises against my skin.

"Tristan, even if your family lost everything, you will always be my most precious prince."

I clenched my fists, my lips trembling, but I couldn't utter a single word.

Realizing she had crossed a line, a flicker of panic crossed Felicity's face.

"Don't misunderstand. What happened with Uriah was just for show. I won't abandon you."

She hastily pulled out her phone.

"I was wrong at the banquet. I'm unblocking you right now, and I promise I'll never block you again."

She then reached into her blazer pocket and pulled out an exquisite velvet box.

Inside lay an astronomically expensive luxury watch.

I stared at it in silence.

Countless times when we went shopping, I had lingered by that boutique window, admiring this exact piece.

Every single time, she had pulled me away without mercy.

She used to mock me coldly.

"Tristan, I treat you well enough. Don't get greedy."

Her message had been crystal clear: I was merely her plaything.

She could pamper me, but I would never have a real future with her.

And now…

Staring at the watch, my body stiffened.

She forcefully took my hand and fastened the watch onto my wrist.

A smug, triumphant smile spread across Felicity's face.

"See, Tristan? I told you. You can never leave me."

Before I could speak, my phone rang.

The caller ID showed an unknown number, but when I answered, Uriah's voice spilled through the speaker.

"Tristan, Felicity has such terrible taste!"

"She bought me a custom seven-million-dollar diamond ring, but the design is so tacky…"

"Honestly, that complimentary five-hundred-dollar watch she got for free looks so much better on you!"