Chapter 2

I huddled in the corner of the bed, tearing at my hair like a madwoman.

I banged my head against the wall over and over, until the pain became numb, until my consciousness sank completely into darkness.

The moment I closed my eyes, I was transported back eight years.

In that cramped room, Ashton stood between me and my abusive father, shielding me with his body.

His back was a bloody mess. I screamed for them to stop.

When the police sirens finally wailed, he smiled at me with a missing tooth:

"Don't be afraid, Nora. No one will ever hurt you again."

Later, we stayed in homeless shelters, collected recyclables. His thin back was my bed.

Eventually, he worked construction sites, did sales jobs, until he finally earned enough for a tiny studio apartment.

He held me tight and said:

"Nora, we have a home now."

Those memories were too beautiful. I drowned in them in my dreams for too long.

When I opened my eyes again, I'd been woken up by my best friend Jessica bombing me with SnapChat messages.

"Nora! It has to be fake news! Ashton loves you so much! It can't be true!"

I numbly clicked on the link she sent.

One glance made my whole body freeze.

Ashton caught with his mistress having sex at a rooftop restaurant, witnessed by hundreds of people.

It was trending everywhere.

My hands shaking, I called him to demand answers.

His voice was hoarse:

"Oh, that. We just got carried away. I didn't want you to see it. The news is hard to suppress. If you really can't handle it, deal with it yourself?"

Like a walking corpse, using the last of my strength, I went to the address he'd sent me.

In a daze, I remembered when he was just starting his business. A real estate mogul's daughter and an import-export tycoon's heiress both pursued him.

The whole city was betting on which wealthy family he'd marry into.

But Ashton surprised everyone. He contacted hundreds of media outlets to publish just one sentence:

"I have a girlfriend. I love her very much. Only death can separate us."

From that day on, the whole world knew Ashton loved me.

That's why today, his betrayal felt so shocking to everyone.

I found Ashton's second home, but ran into his assistant Richard at the door first.

The way he looked at me, full of pity, made my breathing stop.

I pushed open the door. Clothes were tangled all over the floor.

Ashton was lounging on the sofa with a woman. Hearing the noise, he patted her back:

"Get dressed. My wife is here. Show some manners."

The woman slowly pulled on her dress, acting cute as she asked him to zip up the back. Then she stuck her tongue out at me:

"Sorry, I didn't think Ashton would really leave you to celebrate my birthday. I got too excited and we got carried away."

She blinked, as if suddenly remembering something, and gasped:

"I think we didn't use protection. But I'll take the morning-after pill, so don't be mad, okay?"

I covered my mouth as my stomach churned violently, bending over in painful dry heaves.

Ashton's expression changed. He immediately got up to support me:

"Nora? What's wrong? Are you okay? I'll take you to the hospital!"

I pushed away his hands as he tried to hold me. Tears and vomit came out together in a pathetic mess.

Ashton's face darkened as he barked at the woman:

"Get out!"

The woman stamped her foot and whined.

Ashton frowned but still went over to kiss her lips, coaxing softly:

"Don't pout. I'll have Richard buy you the pill later. Tonight I'm still yours, okay?"

Only then was she satisfied. She deliberately draped her lacy underwear over his shoulder and shot me a provocative glance before leaving.

Ashton casually tossed the scrap of fabric onto the sofa, then turned back with concern in his voice, gently rubbing my back:

"Nora, feeling better? I know this is hard for you to accept. I understand. So if you want a divorce, I won't blame you."

I wiped the filth from my mouth and looked up, staring at him with red, swollen eyes.

"Ashton, I'm not divorcing you."

I didn't even know what I was thinking.

Maybe it was disgust, anger, but mostly it was unwillingness to let go.

I didn't want to cut my losses. I was like a gambler who'd lost everything, desperately clutching at the chips that said he still loved me.

I cried, I screamed, I even held a knife to my own throat as a threat.

Ashton finally gave in and promised he'd end things with that woman completely.

See? He still cared about me.

As long as he loved me, maybe everything could still go back to how it was.

But I never expected the slap in the face to come so quickly.