Chapter 2

2

Before I could say another word, Summer’s phone rang loudly.

A cheerful custom ringtone echoed through the room: “Hubby is calling! Answer the phone!”

My body froze.

That was the couple ringtone I had made specifically for her years ago.

She had always refused to use it, claiming a celebrity couldn’t risk people hearing something so personal.

So she had never set it for me.

I smiled faintly. It turned out she was never against using it; she just hadn’t wanted to use it for me.

She answered the call, and Shawn’s soft, needy voice came through clearly.

“Summer, I think I caught a cold tonight. I have a slight fever right now.

“Can you please come over and take care of me?”

Worry instantly washed over Summer’s face as she held the phone and hurried to put on her shoes.

“Hold on, I’m on my way!”

I reached out and grabbed her wrist. “If he has a fever, he should call a doctor. What good does it do for you to go?”

Summer scowled and snapped at me in annoyance.

“What is wrong with you? Where is your basic empathy?”

She ripped her arm out of my grip and rushed out the door without looking back.

I stared down at my empty hand. What was I still hoping for?

I took my house key out of my pocket, placed it on the entryway table, and took one last look at the apartment we had shared.

It was time to end this farce.

I pulled out my phone and sent Summer a clear breakup text.

Shortly after, Shawn posted a new update on his social media feed.

In the photo, Summer was admiring a diamond ring on her finger with pure joy.

His caption read: “She said YES! Save the date, everyone!”

A bitter memory flashed through my mind from last winter when I had a high fever.

Summer had spent the entire day trying on outfits for a photoshoot, refusing to even pour me a single glass of water.

When my throat burned so badly I could barely speak, I rasped and begged her for a drink.

And how did she respond back then?

She scoffed, “I’m not your maid. Why should I wait on you?”

She had stopped loving me a very long time ago.

My fingers brushed against the velvet box in my pocket.

Over the past two years, I had brought up marriage multiple times.

Every single time, she made up an excuse to delay it.

She said we had to wait until she got famous, until I could afford a luxury home, until her premiere was over...

Two years slipped by. She became a household name, and I earned enough on my own to buy a property, yet she still refused to acknowledge our relationship.

Shawn was merely a rising rookie with no major achievements to his name.

Yet she had agreed to his proposal without a second thought.

A publicity stunt? What a joke.

I walked out into the cool night air and never looked back.

I was sick of playing the humble assistant catering to an ungrateful diva.

It was time to go home and claim my rightful inheritance.