Chapter 3

3.

Lucian Reed was my best friend Lydia's younger brother.

Ever since Gareth started keeping mistresses, I stopped staying home. I'd go out with my girls, traveling and partying to escape that empty house.

Lucian happened to go to the local university, and Lydia would bring him along sometimes.

After a few outings, we became friends.

Our relationship shifted the day Gareth first asked for a divorce because of Lila.

Back then, he was just starting his pursuit of her. Every night, he'd wait outside the bistro where she worked to drive her home.

One night, a customer was getting handsy with her.

Gareth had swooped in, pulled Lila into his arms, and kissed her passionately in front of everyone.

I was sitting at a nearby table, watching the whole thing. In a fit of rage, I leaned into Lucian's chest and started clapping mockingly.

I wanted to see Gareth get angry. I wanted him to feel the sting of seeing me with another man.

But Gareth just gave me a bored look before leading a blushing Lila out the door.

That night, Gareth came home and handed me a divorce agreement.

He said Lila had agreed to be with him, but only if he was single.

Seeing the look on my face, he quickly added that it was just a fake agreement to keep her happy.

His words hit me like a physical blow.

In the past, his flings were kept in the shadows. He never brought the drama to my face.

I could still lie to myself and say I was the only one who mattered.

But now, our sacred marriage had become nothing more than a toy to appease a mistress.

My heart began to fracture that night.

But I wasn't ready to let go yet.

Twenty-five years of shared history. How could he just stomp on it like trash？

I fought with him for three days, but he wouldn't budge.

Instead, he looked at me with total indifference.

"Nora, if you feel it's unfair, go find someone for yourself."

"That kid at the restaurant... you hired him to piss me off, right？ Don't worry, I'm not mad. I won't stop you from seeing other men."

"If you like him, keep him. I don't care."

In that second, the memory of the boy who held me in the rain crumbled into dust.

The twenty-five-year-old Gareth Huxley had become the very monster the sixteen-year-old version of him hated.

I stood amidst the wreckage of our home, and it took a long time for my voice to return.

"Fine."

After Gareth left, my phone buzzed.

It was a text from Lucian.

"Hey, did your husband get mad？ I feel like we weren't convincing enough tonight. Should I keep playing the boyfriend role for a while to test him？"

I didn't reply.

For days, I drowned my sorrows in a high-end bar downtown.

When Lucian finally found me, I could barely stand.

He drove me home and even stopped to buy me some hangover meds.

"You should have your husband make you some honey water tomorrow morning. It'll help your stomach."

The boy's bright eyes only held my reflection.

Gareth's words from that night echoed in my head.

As Lucian reached over to unbuckle my seatbelt, I grabbed his hand.

"My husband isn't coming home tonight."