"He doesn't like hangover remedies either. He's so picky, he'll only drink honey water if I make it myself. Honestly, even taking care of a relative's child was never this troublesome …"

Fearing that I might misunderstand, Nolan quickly cut her off. "Morgan, do you remember this lake downstairs? I proposed to you here when my business succeeded."

I gazed at the snow-covered lake below, momentarily lost in thought. It turned out that so many years had already passed.

Six years ago, when his startup was beginning to show results, he proposed to me. It was also winter and during the first snowfall like this.

Because I loved watching Korean dramas, I would always whisper in his ear, "If a couple watches the first snow together, they'll never be separated for life. You science guy wouldn't understand romance! This is what passionate love looks like!"

Though said unintentionally, those words were etched into his mind.

The day he proposed, the lakeside was crowded with people taking pictures. I thought it was just an ordinary date until he pulled out the carefully chosen diamond ring from his pocket and knelt on one knee before me.

At that moment, I had my back to him, still trying to find the best angle for a photo. "Nolan, did you take it yet? Hurry up, it's so cold here."

The next second, a burst of applause and cheers erupted from the passersby behind us. "Marry him! Marry him!"

Turning around, I was caught off guard and met his eyes filled with love.

Suddenly, fireworks lit up the sky behind us, mingled with the first snowflakes falling.

From then on, love in my heart was defined by Nolan.

We married smoothly and I quit my job to become his devoted wife, focusing on caring for the family.

For a year, his startup kept him away constantly and he would come home late at night every night. I would wait and wait until I fell asleep on the sofa. But the next day, I would miraculously wake up in bed.

I knew there was no such thing as magic in the world. Still, I had my own magician, Nolan Spencer.

To ease his burden, I volunteered to join his company without pay.

That day, Josie had just graduated and joined the company at the same time as me. We were best friends who shared everything and she was the only person in the company who knew about my relationship with Nolan.

Everything changed at that business dinner.

That night, Josie, Nolan and I attended together. Then, a business partner jokingly teased him, saying that bosses and secretaries often have shady dealings.

Nolan laughed at that moment, but he didn't deny it.

When the partner tried to make Josie drink, he blocked it all, saying that the girl was allergic to alcohol and he would drink in her place. But when the other party turned their attention and asked me to drink, Nolan merely nodded.

I looked at him in disbelief, but he just said lightly, "I know you can drink, don't make things difficult for me."

After three rounds, my consciousness blurred and the business partner finally agreed to sign the contract.

Before leaving, the middle-aged man in the lead handed Nolan a room key. His eyes lewdly suggested that he could use this chance to hook up with Josie.

What completely broke me was that Nolan tacitly accepted the offer and took Josie into the elevator.

Perhaps it was the alcohol, or maybe the long-term insecurity, that finally shattered me. I rushed into the elevator regardless of the consequences, demanding to know why Nolan had changed like this.

If he had chosen Josie, then what was I?

In that moment, Josie, who clearly wasn't drunk, pretended to faint and collapsed into his arms.

Nolan quickly pushed me away, saying, "Everyone does this. If I want to climb higher, I can't be the exception."

"They're still watching outside, Morgan, don't embarrass me."

I was pushed out of the elevator as Nolan shoved Josie's briefcase into my hands.

I waited in the lobby downstairs until dawn, but no explanation from him ever came. Instead, I got the news that the documents had been leaked.

As the only person who had handled the briefcase, I became the target of public condemnation.

My colleagues scorned me and business people in the industry disparaged me.

When Nolan and Josie finally emerged from the hotel, Josie turned to me, looking super disappointed and accusing me. "You're my best friend. Why would you do this to me? You knew this plan was something I'd worked on for half a year, so why did you leak it to a competitor?"

Nolan stood by, watching me being utterly humiliated by Josie.

My eyes reddened as I begged him to speak up for me and testify, but he coldly brushed me aside. "Just because I brought Josie into my room last night, you're taking revenge on us like this? Morgan, I've worked hard to get where I am today. Everything I've done was for our future! You've disappointed me so much!"

I could bear the accusations of others, but not those of Nolan. Burning with anger, I slapped him across the face.

"Is that how you see me? Nolan, we're husband and wife! I've been with you all this way, what reason do I have to harm you!" I yelled.

Nolan immediately retorted, "It's because you're jealous of Josie! It's because you've constantly sabotaged her at the company! Do you think I know nothing about it? Josie told me everything last night! You almost forced her to resign!"

In that moment, my world utterly collapsed. Nolan didn't spare me another glance and left the hotel with Josie.

I didn't go to the office because he had already announced my dismissal in the company chat group.

I naively thought that as long as the misunderstanding was cleared up, we could go back to the way things were. However, Nolan didn't come home that night. The only person who came was the lawyer he had hired.

The lawyer handed me two agreements: one was a confession, the other a divorce agreement.

He also relayed Nolan's message. "The company was at a critical stage for its public listing and it could not afford any scandals. If our marriage were exposed, all the company's efforts would be wasted."

I frantically called Nolan, bombarding him with messages. Yet no reply came and I suffered terribly all night.

At dawn, he finally replied. [Sign it. I promise we will remarry once you are out. Morgan, the truth no longer matters; what's important is the company's reputation.]

Right after that, Josie posted an update on her social media, flaunting that she had been with Nolan the night before and had stayed at the same hotel as last time.

Staring at the picture of Nolan's wedding ring removed from his finger, I knew we were finished.

I used to wonder why drama characters didn't just explain their misunderstandings. Only when I faced it myself did I understand how powerless words can be.

Some things weren't left unspoken because you didn't want to say them, but because you couldn't. And later, there's no point saying them anymore.

Luckily, I survived.

Now, I no longer hate and need him.

"Morgan, we started here before and this time, let's start again here."

Nolan's words pulled me back to reality. I pretended not to hear and just kept my head down, eating my meal.

"I have to say, food outside really does taste better than prison food. Miss Simmons has excellent taste."

Honestly, I couldn't taste anything during that meal. As soon as dinner was over, Nolan hurriedly used company business as an excuse to send Josie away.

Coming back home after five years away, I felt like a guest in my own house.

That night, Nolan tried to enter my bedroom, but I coldly refused him. He ended up drowning his sorrows in alcohol and passed out for the whole night.

As dawn broke, the story repeated itself once again.

Josie unlocked the door with her fingerprint and went straight to Nolan's bedroom. "Mr. Spencer, it's terrible! The finalized proposal was suddenly deleted overnight! The records of our previous company projects are gone too! The internal network has crashed!"

Nolan's drunkenness evaporated instantly. "What did you say? How is that possible?"

Josie's face was deathly pale. "Did anyone touch your laptop? Did you take it to the restaurant yesterday? Could it be the waiter … "

At this point, she glanced at me cautiously, her meaning clear.

Nolan's face instantly turned cold. "No, the laptop was in the car the whole time. I drank too much last night, so I left it on the sofa."

"Oh? If it was at home, then wasn't Morgan the only one here … " Josie didn't finish her sentence, but Nolan was already looking at me with a cold stare. "Morgan, what did you do? Tell me and I promise I won't blame you this time."

Even though Nolan, who suffered the heaviest loss from the missing project plan, hadn't yet spoken a word, Josie was the first to break down in tears. "Morgan, I thought you realized your mistake five years ago. You just got out, how could you … "

"Do you know how important those things were to the company? That was the result of five years of hard work by all the company's employees!"

I sneered, only looking at Nolan. "You think it was me?"

He replied almost instantly, "Who else could it be besides you? No one else had any motive. Morgan, if you blame me, just say so. There's no need to make another mistake! This time the loss is even greater. If you go to jail, you'll never get out for the rest of your life!"

I ignored his words. I simply nodded, then walked into the bedroom to grab my ID. "Fine. Think whatever you want. If this home doesn't welcome me, I'll move out. If you want a lawyer, I'm available anytime."

"What kind of attitude is that! I never said I was going to sue you!" Nolan shouted, but the only reply he received was the sharp slam of the door.

As I walked down the stairs, I took deep breaths of the cold air outside. People truly should never have expectations.

My phone popped up with a message from Nolan.

[Morgan, I don't mean to blame you. I just don't want you to make any more mistakes.]

[If you're really angry, stay out for a few days to calm down. I'll pick you up after I finish my work at the company.]

The old me would have probably struggled desperately to prove my innocence, but not this time. From the moment I stepped into the house, my phone was already recording video, monitoring my every move.

Later, I sent him the entire night's footage.

Nolan quickly called to apologize, but after I rejected the call, he bombarded me with messages. Even after five hours had passed with no reply from me, he still seemed to think I was giving him the silent treatment.

I didn't reply, deleted the message and took a taxi to a hotel near the prison. My man would be out in three days and I didn't want to be affected by my past troubles.

Three days quickly passed and Nolan, surprisingly, hadn't harassed me. Instead, he had hired a private investigator to tail me.

When I stood at the prison gate and our eyes met, I saw nothing but anger in his gaze. "What are you doing here? Do you really want to go back in? Come home with me!"

Nolan stepped forward to grab me, but I shoved his hand away. "Mr. Spencer, please keep your distance. We have nothing to do with each other now."

"Also, I'm only here to pick up my fiancé. Please leave immediately. I don't want him to get the wrong idea."

My words instantly ignited his rage, his eyes turning blood-red. "Fiancé? A felon? Have you lost your mind?"