Chapter 2 Will You Marry Me

Evelyn's Apartment – Early Morning

The stillness of the morning was interrupted by the harsh buzz of my phone, splitting the silence like a blade. I stared at the screen for a long second, already knowing who was calling before I even touched it.

Nathaniel, With a sigh, I answered.

"Evelyn, where the hell are you?" His voice was curt, clipped-already impatient.

I rubbed my temple, exhaustion thick in my voice. "At home. Why?"

"Don't lie to me." His tone dipped lower, colder. "I'm standing in your apartment right now. You're not here."

I rolled my eyes, biting down the irritation that instantly bubbled to the surface. "Maybe I stepped out for a run. Ever consider that?"

"At this hour?" He let out a short, incredulous laugh. "You're going to be late for work."

I glanced at my bare wrist. "I didn't realize time mattered when I'm off the clock. I didn't wear my watch."

"You lost it?" The chill in his voice made me wince. "That was a custom Cartier, Evelyn. Do you even value anything I give you?"

I clenched my jaw. "Maybe I value what comes with meaning, not just a price tag." And without waiting for his rebuttal, I hung up.

The watch-his latest grand gesture-was already buried deep in the kitchen trash. A symbol of his love, now rotting with yesterday's leftovers. Just like everything else he claimed to care about.

The phone buzzed again, persistent and unwelcome. I pressed it to silent, not giving him another second of my peace.

And just as I turned to leave the room, a notification flashed on the screen. Just one message.

But it was enough.

I stared, breath stilled in my throat. My skin prickled, a strange shiver passing through me.

I blinked. Once. Twice.

No... it can't be.

I pinched my arm, expecting the fog of a dream to lift-but the pain was sharp, and the message was still there.

Last night, I had begged the universe to let everything be a dream.

But now?

I hoped to God it wasn't.

Outside Emma's Office – Late Morning

I stood outside the office door, half-hidden in the corridor. The door wasn't shut all the way-just open enough to betray its secrets.

And then I heard his voice.

Smooth. Familiar. Cruel now, in a way it had never sounded before.

"Emma, when are you going to let Evelyn go? I'm tired of pretending."

My breath caught, and my hand trembled slightly around the envelope I clutched-my resignation letter.

My Nathaniel. The same man who once promised to grow old with me, to build a future filled with laughter and lazy Sunday mornings.

Now, he was whispering another woman's name.

Emma.

I swallowed hard, pressing my body closer to the wall like a ghost. Tears welled in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Not here. Not for him.

"Patience, darling," Emma cooed. Her voice was like silk, soaked in poison. "We still need her. The Kensington deal isn't finished yet. And she's the best on the team."

"And after that?" Nathaniel's voice dipped, closer, more intimate.

"Then you can drop to one knee and propose to me right in front of her," she purred, clearly pleased with her own cruelty. "Let her walk out quietly, with her pride intact. No confrontation. No fuss. Just... gone."

A slow beat of silence. Then Nathaniel's chuckle.

"You're wicked."

"And you adore it," Emma replied, her tone rich with satisfaction.

My knees weakened. My fingers curled so tightly around the letter they crumpled the edges.

Two years. Two years of dreams whispered into pillows, of promises, of pretending he saw me.

It had all been a lie.

I should've turned and walked away.

But fate-cruel and theatrical-had different plans.

The door creaked.

And in one humiliating moment, my foot caught on the uneven carpet and I stumbled forward-spilling through the door like a forgotten secret.

Falling at their feet.