3

A Maybach with its hazard lights flashing was parked at the entrance of the residential complex as the rain began to let up.

My hair was damp and dripping, tucked behind my ears. I had also stepped in a puddle of mud thanks to the rain.

I had never appeared before Aiden Asher in such a sorry state.

After I got in the car, he tossed me a towel, his tone placid.

"The seats are genuine leather. Don't ruin them."

I used the towel to dry my soaking hair.

I dried it carefully, afraid of flinging water drops inside his car.

The street scene receded into the distance. It was late, and there were hardly any pedestrians on the road.

Aiden Asher's profile looked exceptionally handsome in the dim light of the car, his jawline distinct and sharp.

After a long silence, I hesitated before speaking. "Just drop me off at the cheapest hotel nearby."

Aiden Asher kept one hand on the steering wheel. "The only hotels around here are five-star international ones."

I clutched the hem of my shirt. "Then... just drop me off at that intersection."

The light turned red, and the car came to a stop.

Aiden Asher turned to meet my gaze, his deep, dark eyes holding a calm I hadn't seen in three years.

"Zia Rhodes, did you really think I could eat ten pounds of oysters all by myself?"

'I'd forgotten about that.'

He still had the ten pounds of oysters I'd bought for Chase Linden.

We lapsed into silence.

Aiden Asher is three years older than me. We started dating in college.

He came from a good family and was a hard worker, so he quickly rose to a senior executive position.

When we broke up, I had just graduated from college.

My mother was diagnosed with a rare disease that required a fortune in medical fees.

Then my dad was framed in a scandal that ruined his career.

My dad was an outstanding and kind-hearted lawyer. He and a few partners had built the well-respected "Yan Jun" law firm from the ground up.

Thanks to their exceptional expertise, the firm quickly found its footing.

They even opened branches across the country.

Until one day, an intimate photo of my dad and his female secretary was leaked, and everything came crashing down.

The once-revered senior partner of a top-tier law firm was suddenly a pariah, scorned by everyone as a heartless man who'd abandoned his wife.

Conveniently, the security cameras were broken that day, and the secretary from the photo vanished without a trace.

When a man is down, everyone gives him a kick.

But after reviewing all the available security footage, I spotted a man with a camera in a stairwell. He was wearing a Linden Group uniform.

'What kind of coincidence was that?'

My dad left the firm, entrusting the rights to its prestigious name to me.

Right around that time, my mom's illness was diagnosed.

I had fallen from the clouds straight into the mire.

Back then, Aiden Asher was studying abroad.

Faced with an impossible situation, I chose to break up with Aiden Asher.

'I knew that for someone like Aiden Asher, a major life decision like marriage wasn't his to make.'

'I was just the daughter of a disgraced lawyer, now forced to haggle over the price of groceries.'

'Aiden Asher and I were already worlds apart.'

Soft music played in the car, and my tense nerves gradually began to unwind.

The Maybach sped through the rain, the shifting, ambiguous play of light and shadow mirroring my own complicated heart.

The emotions I had suppressed for so long finally shattered the moment I saw Aiden Asher.

'Three years had passed, but I was still in love with Aiden Asher.'

4

When I arrived at Aiden Asher's place, the table was piled high with ten pounds of raw oysters.

They were heaped into a small mountain, with a plate of Virility Scramble next to them.

The apartment was very tidy. Crucially, there were no traces of a woman's presence.

Aiden Asher tossed his car keys onto the coffee table, then grabbed an ice pack from the fridge and threw it to me.

I pressed the ice pack to my face.

Aiden Asher threw me an oversized shirt from his closet.

He squatted down to look at my suitcase and frowned.

"The lock on this suitcase is broken."

"And it's only got three wheels left. It's a miracle you managed to drag it here."

"Didn't your old man even buy you a decent suitcase?"

I took the shirt, stubbornly refusing to admit the truth. "It got damaged when my old man and I went camping."

Aiden Asher chuckled. "Oh? Sounds like the old man's still got some energy."

...

I walked straight to the bathroom. I was more familiar with Aiden Asher's place than my own home.

In the mirror, I could see my white dress was soaked through. The wet fabric clearly revealed the style of my underwear beneath it.

My hair was plastered to my head in strands, and my makeup was ruined.

'I just stood in front of Aiden Asher looking like this mess.'

I blushed as I tied up my hair, my vision blurring in the hot steam.

Just then, my phone rang. I wiped my wet hands and answered.

On the other end was my father's weary voice. "Zia, your engagement party with Mr. Linden is tomorrow. Your mother is still undergoing chemotherapy... I'm so useless right now, all I can do is watch you marry someone you don't love..."

As he spoke, my dad let out a deep sigh.

I bit my lip on my end of the line. "Dad, things will get better."

"How is Mom?"

My dad's voice was heavy. "Her condition isn't too bad. If you're being treated unfairly, you have to tell me. I'll go to the Linden Family and bring you back even if it's the last thing I do."

I murmured an affirmation and hung up.

After my shower, I changed into the oversized shirt and opened the bathroom door.

Just then, I saw Aiden Asher washing his hands at the sink nearby.

From behind, the line of his waist was smooth and strong.

He turned around, and I looked up, my gaze meeting his beautiful, almond-shaped eyes.

It felt as if my heart had started beating for this man all over again.

I nonchalantly averted my gaze. "I'm going to cook the oysters."

Aiden Asher walked over to the balcony and lit a cigarette. He spoke softly through the swirling smoke.

"These past three years... have you been happy?"

Something inside me snapped.

It wasn't that he hadn't begged me to get back together back then. But during that time, I blocked him on everything, making it impossible for him to find me.

But I forgot one thing: I never deleted my food delivery address.

Before we broke up, I had put on a flawless performance of a gold digger who despised the poor and worshipped the rich.

I rolled up the shirt's sleeves and fired back, the lie coming to me effortlessly.

"Of course I've been happy. The diamond necklace my old man gave me? It's made of pink diamonds air-freighted from South Africa."

Aiden Asher stubbed out his cigarette and spoke calmly, "That's your definition of happy?"

"I thought maybe the old man went to South Africa and dug them up for you himself."

I let out a small laugh, placed the clean oysters on a sheet of tin foil, and put them in the oven.

In reality, the one around my neck was just a fake I bought off some budget shopping app.

I wouldn't be surprised if it was dismantled from some old chandelier.

While I was waiting, I happened to spot an Armani 405 lipstick on the sofa.

And it had been used.