Chapter 3

Justin didn't even bother to glance at it.

He kicked the bracelet aside, using the toe of his shoe to rummage through the scattered items on the floor.

When his eyes landed on a key, he leaned down and snatched it up.

"Looking for this. Just so you can’t bring another squad of cops kicking down my door!"

"Here, take your damn bag!"

He hurled my empty purse right at my chest.

The heavy leather struck me, but I didn't flinch. I bent down, picked up the counterfeit bracelet, and looked straight into his eyes.

"You bought this jade bracelet at an auction. You said it was our engagement gift."

"Justin, why is it fake?"

His eyes flickered with guilt. To cover it up, he barked at me:

"Evelyn, look at the time! Your sister was humiliated because of you, you haven't said a single word of apology, and you're still obsessing over a stupid piece of jewelry?!"

I pressed my lips together, refusing to look away.

"It wasn't a stupid piece of jewelry. It was supposed to be our engagement token."

"Justin. Tell me. Why is it fake?"

Under my piercing gaze, Justin finally caved.

He averted his eyes, muttering defensively:

"Chloe loved it, so I gave it to her. I didn't want you throwing a fit, so I had a replica made for you."

"Big deal! I’ll just... I’ll buy you a better one in a couple of days!"

He reached out, grabbing my wrist again.

"Enough about the stupid bracelet. Get up and come apologize to Chloe!"

"She's still crying in the bedroom! Can't you hear her?!"

I ripped my hand out of his grip.

Without another word, I knelt down and gathered my belongings off the floor, slipping them back into my bag.

Justin’s voice continued to drill into my ears from above:

"Evelyn, apologize."

"You screwed up, so you need to apologize! Get up and say you're sorry!"

I finished packing, zipped my bag shut, and stood up to face him.

"I did nothing wrong. The ones who owe an apology are you and Chloe."

Right in front of his face, I tossed the fake jade bracelet into the trash can, turned around, and walked toward the door.

Justin was seething. He bellowed after me:

"Evelyn Vance, get back here right now!"

"Apologize!"

I didn't slow down for a second. I left without looking back.

Over the next few days, I ignored every single one of his calls.

So, he bombarded my phone with text messages:

[Apologize!]

[Get over to the townhouse and apologize to Chloe right now!]

[Evelyn, say you're sorry! Because of you, she's too traumatized to even go home!]

Go home?

Chloe was nothing more than an imposter who had clawed her way into my family's orbit. What home did she even have to go to?

Out of respect for Justin’s parents, I ignored the texts and focused on booking a private coastal resort to clear my head.

When he realized I wasn't responding, he showed up directly outside my office tower.

I tried to walk around him, but he blocked my path.

"Have dinner with me."

"My parents will be there too. Just do it out of respect for them."

Reluctantly, I agreed and followed him to the rooftop restaurant.

The moment the private dining room door opened, a rancid stench hit me like a wall.

Fermented stinky noodles, durian, stinky tofu, canned herring, blue cheese... the entire table was piled high with the foulest-smelling food on earth.

My stomach heaved instantly.

Sitting at the table wasn't Justin’s parents.

It was Chloe.

She gave me a triumphant smirk, then looked at Justin:

"Justin, you really got Evelyn here to apologize to me?"

I froze, turning my head toward Justin.

He gave an awkward, placating smile and shoved me down into a chair by my shoulders.

"Since you're here, just apologize to Chloe."

"She ordered all of this especially for you. She said once you get used to the smell, you won't throw up anymore."