Chapter 2

2. But he couldn't even keep that promise.

At the altar, under the judgment of a hundred guests, Rhodes grabbed Lila's hand.

"I'm done with this little game. From now on, you're on your own, Shae."

I looked at him with desperation. "Rhodes, please. You can't leave now. The ceremony isn't over."

Lila leaned into his chest, her pale face streaked with fake tears. "Rhodes, it's okay. Stay with Shae. I'll be fine on my own."

As she spoke, she winced and clutched her side.

Rhodes held her tighter. "She isn't half as important as you are."

They walked out together, looking like the perfect couple, leaving the bride standing in the wreckage.

My mother stared at the empty aisle, her face twisted in confusion and disappointment.

"Shae... what's happening? Why did he leave? He..."

Before she could finish, she collapsed onto the floor.

Even the heavens seemed to weep for me as rain began to pour, soaking my hair and staining my white dress with mud.

After the funeral, I locked myself away from the world.

In my dark bedroom, it felt like the entire world had vanished, leaving only me and the shadows.

The only thing that broke the silence was a call from the clinic.

A week ago, I had been diagnosed with severe clinical depression.

The doctor's words echoed in my head: "Miss Lennox, you need to start treatment immediately."

On the phone, the receptionist sounded hesitant. "Miss Lennox, your payment for the next session was declined. There are no funds in the account."

That was impossible.

I stared at the card in my hand, my mind going blank.

That money was my last resort―the fund I had saved to try and get my mother a final, experimental treatment.

Only one other person had access to that account.

Rhodes.

Ignoring the startled looks of the office staff, I stumbled into Rhodes's corporate building, only to be stopped at the desk.

"Mr. Sterling is on vacation with his girlfriend."

The receptionist showed me her phone screen.

The headline read: "Rising Star Designer Spotted on Beach with Mystery CEO."

The girl in the photo was glowing, sitting playfully on a man's lap. She looked shyly into the camera, hiding her face in his chest.

Even with the blur, I knew them instantly.

The top comment read: "I know them! That's Lila Vance and Rhodes Sterling. They are goals!"

Another user wrote: "Rhodes Sterling from Sterling Group? Wow, they look so perfect together. Lila is so cute when she's shy."

I scrolled through the comments, feeling nothing but a dull, numbing ache.

My heart didn't even hurt anymore; it was just cold.