Chapter 2

After all, ever since Ashley became Ethan's assistant, there had been an endless string of incidents.

She threw important gift boxes in the trash but mailed actual trash to my house.

When she was in charge of promotions, she uploaded my unedited, high-definition close-up photos to the company website.

Every time she made a mistake, Ethan would yell at her mercilessly.

The irony was that Ethan was known in the LA business world as a notoriously easygoing boss.

In our five years together, I had never seen him angry with anyone else.

But with Ashley, he seemed to wish he could humiliate her with the most vicious and demeaning words in existence.

At an outdoor dinner, he'd mock her for not checking the weather forecast, then turn around and drape the blanket I'd prepared over her shoulders.

During company team-building, he'd scold her for being clumsy, then impatiently stand at the grill, meticulously cooking every skewer for her.

Even every time he threatened to fire her, nothing ever came of it.

And today, seeing the can pull-tab in the ring box, Ethan actually laughed out loud.

"This ring is quite unique, different from everyone else's."

He had completely forgotten that during the hardest times of his startup, we were so busy we couldn't even stand straight, resting on the company rooftop.

He held my hand and promised, "Sam, someday I'll buy you a big, sparkling ring."

In the city hall, seeing my serious expression,

Ethan still had the nerve to joke with me.

"Are you that bothered? You're not actually going to break up with me just because there's no million-dollar diamond ring, are you?"

A million dollars was just the cost of one of my casual bags.

But I still nodded. "Yes, if there's no ring, we're over."

Ethan finally panicked. He immediately sent people to search for the ring along the way, even promising to get me a ten-million-dollar diamond ring as compensation.

With his current wealth, spending ten million on a diamond ring was nothing.

But it was all too late.

I was genuinely tired of his entanglement with Ashley.

Watching his Maybach drive off with Ashley, disappearing in the distance.

I dialed my father. "Dad, I was wrong. I'll be home in a week."

Breaking up with Ethan was destined to be a complicated process.

Five years of a relationship had already intertwined our lives inextricably.

I drove to The Solaris Estate, one of the most exclusive mansion communities in Los Angeles.

Back then, to build our dream marital home with Ethan, I didn't hesitate to drain my savings and buy this villa.

Now, it had become the burden I most wanted to shed.

I never thought my first serious visit here would be to sell the house.

As my car entered the community gate, a security guard stopped me.

"Ma'am, the system doesn't have your facial recognition information. I can't let you in."

When we bought the house, Ethan had solemnly promised, "Since you're covering the cost, I'll make sure to put in all the legwork."

During renovations, whenever I suggested a style I liked, he personally oversaw all the large and small projects.

Yet, in the end, I didn't even have access to get inside.

I called Ethan five or six times, but all I got was a busy signal.

Ashley had just posted an update on Twitter.

The doctor easily removed the ring from her hand using some cooking oil.

Ethan, while calling her stupid, ran to every convenience store near the hospital, just to buy her favorite strawberry ice cream to soothe her swollen finger.

Meanwhile, in the five years Ethan and I were together, even when I had a fever of 104 degrees Fahrenheit, he only ever rushed the housekeeper to bring me medicine.

Love or not, it was so clear.

Finally, I used the property deed to get into the community.

Ethan had always said he wanted to keep the marital home a surprise until after we were married.

The moment I pushed open the door, my breath hitched.