Chapter 1
Everyone knew I had abandoned Ethan for money.
The year he loved me most, I took $2 million from his mother Evelyn and left him without a backwards glance.
He was furious at his mother’s meddling and went on a hunger strike, nearly destroying himself.
His friends, barely concealing their disgust for me, came one by one to plead Ethan’s case.
I refused to see any of them.
Later, when Ethan’s life was in danger, his mother called me as a “last resort,” begging me to talk some sense into him.
When I appeared before him, he clung to me desperately. Though he had wasted away to skin and bones, his grip was painfully tight.
“Olivia, you came back. You still love me, don’t you? I knew it—”
The joy in his voice was unmistakable.
I coldly pushed him away and played him a voice recording and showed him a text message.
The recording was of his mother asking me to see him, with me naming my price of $300,000.
The text was a bank transfer confirmation for that amount.
He stared at me in bewilderment, then violently shoved me away as realization dawned.
But he used too much force and fell out of the bed, coughing painfully.
“Olivia, get the hell out!” he spat out each word venomously as he lay crumpled on the floor.
I left without looking back, just as he asked.
Somehow, word of this incident spread.
From that day on, I became the laughingstock of our town.
Those who knew the story said I loved money more than anything, that I was heartless.
Others claimed I had never loved Ethan at all, that I had only been after his family’s wealth from the start.
No one cared about the truth…
Later, once Ethan recovered, he entered into an arranged marriage with Sophia, the pampered daughter of a wealthy business tycoon.
I received no less than ten invitations to his engagement party.
They were all from his friends, of course.
As per my “agreement” with his mother, I had completely vanished from Ethan’s life.
But over the years, I kept tabs on everything he did.
I knew he and Sophia went to study abroad together in America, even living together.
I knew he completed a dual JD/MBA program at Harvard and Kennedy School in just two years.
I knew that as soon as he joined his family’s company, he handled several extremely difficult cases brilliantly, earning the respect of even the most skeptical senior executives.
I knew that although he and Sophia hadn’t officially married yet, they were already calling each other’s parents Mom and Dad…
I didn’t go out of my way to find this information. His friends seemed to take perverse pleasure in keeping me updated on his accomplishments.
They say a good ex should fade quietly into the background like they’re dead. But Ethan’s friends seemed determined to keep dragging me into the spotlight.
As if proving how successful Ethan had become would somehow prove how foolish I had been.
This high school reunion was the first time I had seen Ethan face-to-face in the three years since we broke up.
Tomorrow I would be starting a new chapter of my life, far away from here.
From now on, he would remain in his lofty world of wealth and status, while I retreated to my humble life in obscurity.
Before coming here tonight, I had called his mother to make a final request.
“You can go, but remember what you should and shouldn’t say or do,” was her curt response.
I had agreed.
Officially, I was here as Alex’s date to the reunion.
But in reality, I had come hoping to verify some medical records with an old classmate who specialized in nephrology.
There were some things I needed to know before I could find closure…
I had anticipated Ethan’s scorn and cold shoulder. I had braced myself for the taunts and mockery of our former classmates.
What I hadn’t expected was for Ethan to turn this reunion into a pre-wedding celebration.
As the center of attention, he and Sophia played drinking games and flaunted their affection, completely at ease.
The atmosphere was festive. No one was tactless enough to bring up the past.
I managed to get the answers I needed from my classmate.
Alex got held up chatting with some old friends, so I waited a bit longer than planned.
Who would have thought that in the brief moment it took to snap a photo and type out a text, Ethan would materialize in front of me out of nowhere.
Dragging me into the harsh spotlight of everyone’s scrutiny.