When Sylvia got home, she started packing her things.

Halfway through, Nathaniel walked in.

“Sylvia, as soon as I finished up at work, I came straight back. Did you miss me?”

He held out a large bouquet of red roses with a bright smile.

“I got these just for you. I’m sorry I couldn’t stay with you till the end at the bridal shop earlier. Let me make it up to my sweetheart, alright?”

Looking at the slightly wilted roses, clearly suffering from lack of water, Sylvia almost laughed out loud in anger.

It was obvious that this was the same bouquet he had used at the proposal. He must have casually grabbed it on his way out.

So, in his eyes, she was only worth these discarded props from his grand display for someone else?

“What’s so funny?” Nathaniel asked, uneasy at the sight of her faint smile.

“Nothing.”

Sylvia took the bouquet, but her eyes caught a glimpse of something under the moonlight—bright red lipstick smudged on his collar.

It was glaringly obvious.

She raised her hand and pointed at his collar. “Your shirt’s dirty.”

Nathaniel glanced down and immediately noticed the lipstick stain, left behind when Vivian kissed him. His heart skipped a beat as he tried to explain.

“Oh, uh, I must have accidentally brushed up against something.”

“Hmm.” Sylvia didn’t call him out on it. “Take it off. I’ll wash it for you.”

“There’s no need. We have maids for that. I couldn’t possibly let you do it yourself.”

“They’re too careless. Let me take care of it.”

Thinking he’d dodged another bullet, Nathaniel leaned in and planted a quick kiss on her cheek.

“You’re the best, Sylvia.”

Sylvia took the shirt from him, her eyes lingering on the lipstick stain as she chuckled softly.

The best? No, he just thought she was the easiest to fool.

Perhaps she scrubbed too hard while washing it, and Nathaniel’s shirt ended up torn.

Nathaniel didn’t mind in the slightest. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her and said softly, “It’s fine. If it’s ruined, just toss it. You can buy me a new one.”

He changed into another shirt, but the lingering scent of perfume on him was impossible to ignore.

Sylvia allowed a faint smile to curl her lips. “Don’t some things get better with age?”

“That’s true,” Nathaniel replied with a nod. “This shirt was actually really comfortable. Too bad you ruined it in the wash. I could’ve worn it a few more times. You know, I’m a very loyal man.”

A loyal man—loyal enough to hold on to the woman he loved five years ago, even after all that time apart.

But what about her? What did the five years she gave him mean?

Sylvia had never lacked admirers. From childhood through adulthood, she was always pursued by suitors.

After graduating from college, she applied for a job at Nathaniel’s company. The moment she laid eyes on him, he stole her heart.

But she was proud and stubborn, unwilling to take the initiative to chase after him.

Somehow, Nathaniel ended up falling for her, pursuing her with relentless determination. However, Sylvia played it cool at first, refusing to give him a straight answer.

Until one day, a fire broke out at the office.

As the alarm blared, everyone scrambled to escape.

Sylvia, frozen in fear, couldn’t move an inch.

It was Nathaniel who turned back and carried her out of the flames.

At that moment, Sylvia made up her mind to stay with Nathaniel forever.

For five whole years, she remembered every detail of the day they became a couple.

Nathaniel had sworn with absolute conviction, “Sylvia, I promise, you’re the only woman I’ll ever love in this lifetime.”

Looking at his solemn expression, Sylvia had wept as she warned him, “Nathaniel Sinclair, you’d better remember what you said today. Because if you ever betray me, I’ll marry another man and make you regret it for the rest of your life!”

Those vows still echoed in her ears, yet the man’s heart had already changed.

No, perhaps his heart had never belonged to her in the first place.

A stinging ache rose in her chest as Sylvia gripped the shirt tightly. She couldn’t hold back her tears any longer, and they spilled over.

“What’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

Seeing her tears, Nathaniel panicked, hurriedly pulling out a tissue to wipe her face.

“I’m fine.”

Nathaniel had betrayed her first. Now, she would keep her word and marry another man.

After finally calming her down, Nathaniel, as he always did, leaned in to kiss the corner of Sylvia’s lips.

This time, she pushed him away.

He cleared his throat awkwardly and released her. Then, as if nothing had happened, he reached out with a grin. “By the way, where’s my gift? You promised me something.”

“Wait here,” Sylvia said, heading upstairs.

In her room, she retrieved the wedding invitations they had picked out together and pulled out a pen.

She crossed out the original names of the bride and groom and wrote in her own name alongside Bennett Cooper’s. Then, she carefully placed the altered invitations back into the box and sealed it with tape.

When she came back downstairs, she handed the box to Nathaniel.

“What’s this?” he asked curiously, reaching to open it, but Sylvia stopped him.

“Don’t open it until the first of next month.”

Hearing that date, Nathaniel’s hands froze for a moment. Wasn’t that the day he was supposed to marry Vivian?

“Why?”

“Because the first of next month was supposed to be our big day,” she replied with a smile, sealing the box with tape. “Now that the wedding is postponed, I wanted to give you something special. It’ll be a big surprise.”

“Great, you know I love surprises,” Nathaniel said, tapping her nose playfully before pulling her into his arms.

“Sylvia, you’ve made me so happy today.”

Happy?

The light in Sylvia’s eyes dimmed, fading like the withering roses on the windowsill.

But Nathaniel didn’t notice.

What exactly made him so happy? Probably the thought of proposing to another woman while believing Sylvia was blissfully ignorant.

Later that night, as Nathaniel headed to the shower, Sylvia sat on the couch scrolling through her phone.

By chance, she stumbled upon a post from one of Nathaniel’s friends.

The video in the post showed Nathaniel on one knee, proposing to Vivian.

The caption on the post read: "A love I once envied has finally found its happy ending. Let’s celebrate tonight at the usual spot."

Sylvia froze, her finger hovering over the video, ready to click, when a comment popped up below.

"Are you crazy for posting this? Did you block Sylvia from seeing it?"

The reply came quickly: "Do you think I’m that stupid? Of course, I blocked her."

Sylvia stared at the comments, her lips curling into a cold, mocking smile.

She thought back to when she and Nathaniel had first started dating. He had proudly introduced her to his closest friends.

Back then, they had called her "the future Mrs. Sinclair" with unwavering enthusiasm.

One of them had said, “If Nathaniel ever bullies you, just let me know. I’ll make sure he pays for it!”

Another chimed in, “That’s right, Mrs. Sinclair. Don’t worry, we’ll keep an eye on him. He won’t dare mess around behind your back. And if he ever does, we’ll be the first to tell you.”

And yet now?

Every single one of them was helping Nathaniel cover up the fact that he was about to marry someone else.

The post disappeared within seconds, quickly deleted.

Moments later, Nathaniel came rushing out of the bathroom. His hair was still dripping wet, and he looked flustered.

“Sylvia, you—”

“What’s wrong?” she asked, her face expressionless as she glanced up at him, pretending not to have seen anything.

Seeing her lack of reaction, Nathaniel breathed a sigh of relief. “Nothing, I just wanted to let you know I’m done showering.”

“Okay.”

Sylvia stood, walked to the doorway, and paused when she heard Nathaniel on the phone with one of his friends.

“Are you out of your mind? Delete that post right now! What if Sylvia saw it? I’ve told you, under no circumstances can she find out about this. Are you trying to ruin everything?”

“It’s already deleted,” the friend replied. “There’s no way she saw it. By the way, shouldn’t you be here by now? Vivian’s already arrived.”

Nathaniel was still hesitating when Sylvia suddenly walked in. “Who are you on the phone with?”

“Oh, just Charles and the guys. They’re asking me to join them for a few drinks.”

“Is that so? It’s been a while since I’ve seen them. I’ll come too. I could use a drink.”

She was curious just how well they could keep their secret with her around.

Nathaniel tried to talk her out of it the entire way, but nothing worked. Frustrated, he resorted to nervously fiddling with his phone, texting his friends to prepare for her arrival.

When they arrived at the private room in the bar, Sylvia immediately spotted Nathaniel’s friends.

Four men sat rigidly, sipping their drinks in silence. Not a single waitress was in sight.

As soon as they saw Sylvia, they scrambled to their feet in unison.

“Good evening, Mrs. Sinclair. Don’t worry, there’s no one else here tonight—just us guys.”

Sylvia raised an eyebrow. “So, what you’re saying is, I don’t belong here because I’m not one of the guys?”

The group froze awkwardly. Nathaniel quickly gripped her hand and said, “That’s not what they mean. They just thought you might find it boring, that’s all.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just been a while, so I thought I’d stop by for a drink. Since it’s a guy’s night, I’ll leave after this.”

She picked up a glass from the table, downed the drink in one go, and ignored the fleeting smirks that flashed across their faces.

Then, without another word, she turned and left.

Nathaniel, pretending to be reluctant, wrapped his arms around her and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Alright, I’ll be home early. If you’re tired, don’t wait up for me.”

Sylvia walked downstairs and stopped in a hidden corner near the entrance, waiting.

Sure enough, she soon spotted Vivian strutting toward the private room, her high heels clicking loudly against the floor.

Vivian sauntered in, her hips swaying, and Sylvia positioned herself discreetly to observe the scene inside.

Vivian wasted no time. She perched herself on Nathaniel’s lap and pouted.

“Why did you even bring her here? I had to hide because of her! You owe me. I want that bag I showed you today as compensation.”

Nathaniel slipped an arm around her waist and chuckled. “I’ll get you two.”

Vivian laughed, wrapping her arms around his solid frame, and planted a kiss on his lips.

"Wow, wow, wow! You’re really making all of us jealous, Mrs. Sinclair. With you around, us poor single guys don’t stand a chance.”

"Cut it out! What’s there to be jealous of? Don’t all of you have women around? Call them over. Let’s have some fun!"

Before long, a group of women joined them. Some poured drinks, others played drinking games, and the room soon buzzed with lively chatter.

They kicked off a round of Truth or Dare, and as luck would have it, Nathaniel was the first to lose.

One of his friends grinned mischievously and asked, "Nathaniel, between Vivian and Sylvia, who do you like more?"

Hearing the question, Vivian didn’t seem angry.

Instead, she looked at him with a playful smile. "You better tell the truth. And don’t use my illness as an excuse."

"Sylvia," Nathaniel replied without hesitation.

Vivian’s smile stiffened. "I’m sitting right here, you know!"

Nathaniel shrugged, utterly unconcerned. "I like you too, but that’s in the past. You were the one who ended things so decisively back then. Marrying you now is just about granting your last wish. The one I’ll grow old with is Sylvia. We’ve already agreed on this."

Turning to his friends, he added casually, "And don’t let this kind of situation happen again. Just make sure Sylvia doesn’t find out."

Sylvia didn’t tolerate ambiguity. If she found out he was being affectionate with another woman, she’d probably demand a breakup.

But he couldn’t ignore Vivian either. She got gravely ill after returning from abroad, and her dying wish was to marry him. He couldn’t turn her away because she was someone he had once loved deeply.

As long as he kept Sylvia in the dark, he could wait until Vivian passed away and then marry Sylvia, taking care of her for the rest of his life.

This way, no one would get hurt.

It was a perfect plan.

Vivian buried her head in his chest, biting her lip, and pretended to remain calm. "It doesn’t bother me. I was the one who left you first. Just having this time with you now makes me happy."

She looked around the room and added sweetly, "I love Nathaniel, and I’d never want to hurt his girlfriend. So, you all have to help keep this a secret, okay?"

Outside the door, Sylvia stood frozen, her face drained of all color.

Their words cut through her like knives, each one slicing deeper than the last.

The pain was unbearable, leaving her feeling as if her very soul had been gutted, her insides drenched in blood. Hearing Nathaniel’s choice made her stomach churn with disgust.

She wanted to vomit.

She couldn’t believe that the man she had loved wholeheartedly for five years was rotten to the core.

Sylvia leaned against the wall, her entire body trembling uncontrollably as waves of pain wracked her.

Her strength drained away, leaving her weak and powerless. She slowly slid down to the floor, her mind a chaotic blur. She didn’t know how long she sat there before finally pulling herself together.

With hollow eyes, she pushed herself up and started making her way downstairs.

She hadn’t gone far before her legs gave out beneath her.

Unable to steady herself, Sylvia collapsed and tumbled down the staircase.