It was our seventh anniversary, Valentine's Day, and I was dining alone at a Michelin-star restaurant in New York.
My husband, Jake, CEO of the company I helped build, was a no-show.
The phone rang, his voice sharp: "PR crisis."
But a younger, female voice giggled in the background, "He means our PR crisis, Mrs. Shen."
His intern, Chloe, mocked me, revealing they somehow had matching dresses, and the one meant for me arrived visibly damaged, just like her public flaunting of their affair.
The next morning, Jake demanded I create a "united front" at a press conference, simultaneously gaslighting me about the "misunderstanding" and publicly humiliating me for my past.
He called me bitter, aging, and dramatic when I recalled his cruel dismissal of my health, even our miscarriage.
I dedicated my entire inheritance, my career, my life to him, only to be reduced to "Mrs. Apex CEO," a brand extension.
How could the man I built an empire with betray me so brazenly, then have the audacity to demand my compliance?
Why did he deliberately mock me, while Chloe sent me pictures of herself in our bed?
I was no longer weeping or shaking.
The raw sting of his deceit had finally given way to a chilling clarity.
My stomach didn't drop, my hands didn't shake.
Not anymore.
I made one call to my lawyer, initiating divorce proceedings for half of everything.
Then I called Ethan Chen, accepting his partnership offer.
The ring came off.
My new life began now.