Chapter 3

I got into the car and gave the driver my office address.

Just as the car pulled out of the neighborhood, my phone buzzed. It was a message from Sienna.

No words, just a picture.

It was a photo of a man sleeping peacefully on his side.

In the background was a hotel's floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the city lights at night.

I locked my phone, leaned back against the seat, and closed my eyes.

A moment later, it buzzed again.

Still Sienna: "Hey Chloe, Ethan said he slept great last night. He told me to thank you for letting him go."

I didn't reply.

She sent another one: "Oh, by the way, he said he's coming over again tomorrow night. You don't mind, right?"

Still ignoring her, I deleted the chat history.

As the car moved forward, the city streets blurred past the window.

I thought about all the women who had come and gone around Ethan over the past five years.

The first was his secretary at the firm. I caught them kissing in the breakroom. He claimed she initiated it and he was too drunk to react. I believed him.

The second was a client he met on a business trip. She sent him her hotel room number late at night. He said it was just a joke and told me not to overreact. I believed him too.

Now, it was the third one, Sienna.

Every time he got caught, he would apologize, promise to change, buy me gifts, and behave for a while.

But it wouldn't be long before the next one appeared.

I used to think he genuinely loved me and was just easily tempted.

I thought that if I was good enough, patient enough, he would eventually settle down.

But now, I finally understood.

He wasn't easily tempted; he was just a cheater at heart.

Every "you're the only one I love" was a lie to me, and to himself.

I opened my eyes, looking out the window, feeling completely cold inside.

About a mile from the office, I asked the driver to pull over. I wanted to walk the rest of the way.

I was going to the office to resign.

I had chosen to work in New York only because of Ethan.

For him, I had rejected my family's trust fund, had a massive fight with my parents, and cut off contact with them for a long time.

I sat by the sidewalk for a long while before finally pulling out my phone and dialing a number I hadn't called in years.

The phone rang for a long time before my mom answered, her voice hesitant. "Chloe?"

I took a deep breath. "Mom, I've thought it over. That marriage proposal you and Dad talked about... I accept."

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds, and then my mom's voice cracked with emotion. "Good, good. I'll go tell your father right now."

I hung up, and tears finally spilled over.

The love I had fought so hard for was nothing but a joke.

I agreed to the arranged marriage and booked a flight back home to Seattle for the day after tomorrow.

As for my relationship with Ethan...

This was the end of the line.