Chapter 1
I strode out of the conference room on the top floor of Greene Enterprises. The floor-to-ceiling windows offered a view of the entire city’s twinkling lights.
The pen I’d used to sign the divorce papers was still warm in my hand, the ink barely dry.
Ethan sat at the far end of the long table, his long fingers drumming restlessly on the surface as he frowned.
“Are you sure about this?” he asked in a low voice, with a hint of hesitation I’d never heard before.
I calmly closed the folder, my fingertips trailing over the embossed cover.
In my past life, I had knelt right here, begging him for another chance. All I got in return was his look of disgust and the cold words, “Stop embarrassing yourself.”
“Absolutely certain,” I said, rising to my feet with a smile. My heels clicked sharply against the marble floor. “Isn’t this what you’ve always wanted, Mr. Greene? For me to disappear?”
His pupils constricted as he gripped the armrests of his chair.
I turned towards the door, but just as I grasped the handle, I heard a chair topple over behind me.
“Wait!”
Ethan rushed over, his breathing ragged. He reached out as if to grab my wrist, but froze mid-motion.
This man, who in my past life wouldn’t even let me touch his sleeve without recoiling, now had a hint of panic in his eyes.
“Where…” he swallowed hard. “Where are you going?”
I tilted my head, studying him. Suddenly, I found it amusing.
In my previous life, he never spared a glance for the dinners I carefully prepared each night. Now he cared about my whereabouts?
“To register my own company,” I replied cheerfully. “I’m going to be Greene Enterprises’ newest competitor.”
The color drained from his face.
I took the opportunity to pull open the conference room door. The secretaries outside immediately lowered their heads, pretending to be busy.
Only my assistant Emma hurried over, handing me a file folder.
“Ms. Carter, Mr. Zhang from Prosperity Investments has scheduled a meeting with you tomorrow at 10 AM,” she announced loudly. “He says he’s very interested in our new renewable energy project.”
I caught Ethan’s head snapping around in my peripheral vision. Feeling pleased, I patted Emma’s shoulder. “Well done.”
As the elevator doors closed, I glimpsed Ethan rushing out. His tie was askew and his hair disheveled, a far cry from his usual polished executive look.
In my past life, I had loved him so much I was willing to die for him. Now I only felt a bitter irony.
In the basement parking garage, my new car was already waiting.
A flashy red sports car, completely different from the old sedan he had complained was “too ostentatious” in my previous life.
“Take me to Blue Water Bay,” I instructed the driver. It was a villa I had purchased just last week, in a location Ethan knew nothing about.
As we pulled out of the underground garage, my phone started buzzing incessantly.
Ethan’s name flashed on the screen over and over. I simply turned the device off.
Under the night sky, the city’s neon lights streamed past the car windows like flowing water.
I opened the window, letting the night breeze blow away the stuffiness in my chest.
The scene from my deathbed in my previous life flashed before my eyes again.
The harsh white hospital lights, the shrill beeping of the monitors.
And Ethan’s smile as he held Sophia, saying “Finally free” with a smirk.
My phone suddenly lit up again with a text from an unknown number: “Since when did you start drinking black coffee?”
I stared at the seemingly random message, a chill running down my spine.
In my past life, I had always pretended to like lattes just like Ethan did, to please him.
In this life, I had been drinking only black coffee since the day I was reborn.
And the only person who knew about this habit was…
Another text popped up: “Last night I dreamed you died.”
My fingers trembled uncontrollably.
In the distance, the lights on the top floor of Greene Tower were still blazing, like a watchful eye.