Chapter 3

A wave of emotion surged through me, thick as fog, swallowing me whole.

I could barely breathe.

I stayed silent for a long time before finally managing a hoarse response.

…

Late at night, Pierse called my name softly.

“Eva, are you asleep?”

His voice was gentle, as if making sure I was deep in sleep before he carefully got up and stepped onto the balcony to make a call.

“You saw my wife today?”

“Doll, divorce isn’t as simple as you think.”

“You’ve always been good, don’t start making a fuss now, okay?”

Just a few steps away, separated only by a glass door, my husband was soothing his young lover.

“Of course, I love you. I love you the most.”

His voice was soft, affectionate, laced with tenderness.

A faint curl of smoke rose from between his fingers.

I stared at him, frozen.

Then, as if sensing something, Pierse turned his head.

Through the glass, our eyes met.

He stiffened on the spot. “…Eva.”

I closed my eyes for a moment before rasping, “Pierse, who are you talking to?”

“No one special. There’s an issue with the new proposal. Tommy and the team needed my input.”

He put away his phone and walked toward me.

His tone was effortless, as if he had used the same hollow excuse countless times before.

I caught the lingering scent of smoke on him and coughed twice.

He immediately reached out and pressed his palm to my forehead in concern.

“You’re not running a fever, are you? It’s been raining all night, the temperature’s dropped. I’ll grab an extra blanket for you in a bit.”

As he spoke, his gaze flickered over my face, subtle but assessing.

He was trying to see if I had overheard his conversation just now.

I pulled my robe a little tighter around me and softly responded, “Alright.”

My voice was as calm and steady as always.

Pierse visibly relaxed.

“Go back to sleep.”

…

Back in bed, he dozed off quickly.

He had tucked the blankets snugly around me, yet I lay there staring at the dark ceiling, wide awake.

The moment I closed my eyes, memories flooded in.

I was twelve when Pierse and his mother moved to town while she recovered from an illness. That was when we met.

Back then, I was always hungry.

Whenever my parents fought, my mother would punish me by making me stand outside in the yard for hours.

My little brother grinned smugly, gnawing on a drumstick right in front of me.

"Hey, worthless girl. Mom said you’ll only ever get my leftovers."

Pierse would march right in, grab my wrist in front of both my mom and brother, and drag me away to his house for dinner.

My mother, still seething from her latest fight with my father, couldn’t take her anger out on me.

Instead, she shouted after us, furious,

"If you like her so much, why don’t you just marry her?"

Pierse suddenly stopped, turned back, and smiled.

"That’s fine by me. It’s much better than letting her starve in your house."

…

After high school, my parents finally ended their toxic marriage.

My father walked away without looking back.

My mother, on the other hand, made it clear.

"Eva, you’re eighteen now. An adult. I have no obligation to support you anymore. Don’t expect another cent from me."

I scraped my way through four years of college, surviving on student loans and scholarships.

Meanwhile, Pierse worked himself to the bone, saving up every dollar until he finally had enough to start his own business.

In our senior year, he missed my birthday because of a business dinner.

But late that night, he still showed up outside my dorm, out of breath, clutching a bouquet of flowers.

He shoved them into my arms and pulled me into a tight hug.

"Eva, I’m going to give you the best life."

…

As time went on, our lives only got better.

On our wedding day, Pierse held my hand and made a solemn vow.

"In a world where everything changes, my love for you never will. Eva, I will love you forever. I will never waver, never betray you."

And I believed him wholeheartedly until I discovered Dolly.

Before that, I had always thought I was his one and only.