“Alora, you have to marry Westley Hall—the Hall family’s comatose heir. This is the debt you owe us!” her adoptive mother insisted.

“I’ll marry him,” Alora said.

Her adoptive mother froze, disbelief flickering across her face. “What did you just say?”

Alora understood her shock. In a city like New York, everyone knew she was crazy about Rafael Holmes—crazy enough to sacrifice her career and her dignity for him.

She’d turned down her adoptive mother’s demands more times than she could count, all for Rafael’s sake. So of course her mother hadn’t expected her to agree this time—least of all to marry a man she’d never met.

Alora repeated, calm as still water, “I’ll marry him.”

Once it was clear Alora truly meant it, her adoptive mother relaxed—but her tone turned stern. “A month from now, on December 18th—the date the Hall family chose—you’ll marry Westley Hall.”

“Someone will come for you and take you to the Hall estate. They’ve already paid us for the arrangement—the money settles the debt you owe this family, and I’m not giving it back.”

“If you dare back out or cause trouble, don’t expect me to forgive you.”

“I won’t back out,” Alora cut in. “The Hall family is loaded. I’m sure they paid generously. You adopted me from the orphanage sixteen years ago. Now I’ll repay that by marrying into the Hall family in your real daughter’s place. My debt to your family is settled.”

“From now on, we owe each other nothing. We’re done.”

With that, Alora hung up.

Sitting alone at the dining table, Alora couldn’t help checking the news she’d seen earlier. The internet was buzzing with viral videos of Rafael Holmes and Tessa Guzman’s wedding.

In the clips, Rafael and Tessa vowed to spend forever together, their friends gathered around as witnesses.

The whole internet was congratulating the couple on their reunion, wishing them a happy family.

Only Alora couldn’t bring herself to wish them well, because Rafael was the man she loved with everything she had.

Four years ago, Rafael had been paralyzed in a car accident. His family abandoned him, and Tessa left him to marry someone overseas.

Once, when Alora was being bullied, Rafael had stood up for her.

She’d secretly harbored feelings for him. On a snowy night, when he’d lost all hope, she brought him home.

She did everything she could for him—nursing him, encouraging him, pulling him out of his depression.

When she heard about a hospital overseas that might heal his legs, she grew desperate to raise the money. She sold her belongings, took grueling jobs from wealthy clients, and endured every hardship.

Through sheer grit, she finally raised enough money two years ago.

The surgery was a success. He could stand again. He promised he’d spend forever making it up to her, that he’d never let her down.

She believed the worst was behind them, that their future was finally bright.

Then Tessa came back from abroad, and everything changed.

They said she was gravely ill, with only six months to live, and her last wish was to marry Rafael.

Moved by pity for his old flame, Rafael gave Tessa the wedding Alora had spent half a year planning down to the last detail.

The wedding dress Alora had sewn with her own hands was worn by Tessa.

The diamond ring Rafael had custom-made for Alora was slipped onto Tessa’s left hand.

Through a blur of tears, Alora noticed the locket around Tessa’s neck.

She recognized it instantly—the keepsake her parents had left her, the one she’d lost while trying to help Rafael.

Rafael had promised to give it back to her on her birthday once he found it.

But just because Tessa liked it, he’d given it to her instead.

In that moment, Alora realized her love for Rafael had meant absolutely nothing.

She didn’t call him to demand it back.

Instead, she lit the candles on her cake and watched them burn down. She watched the buttercream melt into an unrecognizable mess—just like the heart that had loved Rafael, burned out overnight and lost all its warmth.

Rafael came home at dawn.

He found her sitting at the table, eyes red, clearly without a wink of sleep. His brows drew together.

“Why are you still awake?”

Alora ignored the question and said flatly, “Rafael, let’s break up. Make sure Tessa gives me back my parents’ keepsake.”

Rafael knew she must have seen the wedding news. That was why she was upset.

He didn’t care for pointless jealousy, but breaking up with her had never crossed his mind. So he softened his voice. “Don’t be upset. I haven’t forgotten your birthday. I got you a gift.”

He opened an ornate wine-red velvet jewelry box in front of her.

Inside lay a pink diamond necklace.

It sparkled under the light, expensive and dazzling, the pendant set with an enormous pink diamond.

It was worth more than the locket her parents had left her. But it wasn’t what she wanted.

Just as she no longer wanted him.

Rafael knew exactly how much Alora loved him, how she couldn’t bear to leave him.

Seeing her silence, he assumed she no longer had it in her to fight.

He lifted the necklace from the box, meaning to put it around her neck.

“I don’t want that necklace! I only want my parents’ keepsake!”

Alora slapped the necklace out of his hand, stubborn and unyielding. “That locket was the only thing my parents left me. Why did you give it to Tessa? I only want that locket!”

She was still arguing.

Rafael’s patience snapped.

His striking face turned icy, radiating a sharp, suffocating pressure.

“Tessa really likes that locket. She’s dying. How long is she really going to borrow it for? Why are you picking a fight with a dying woman? Alora, when did you become so selfish and heartless?”

Alora Moore had been called selfish. Cold-hearted. She’d been accused of picking a fight with a woman who was practically at death’s door. But what was so wrong with wanting back the pendant her parents had left her? Did she really deserve to be humiliated? To sacrifice everything for someone who’d already let her go? Alora Moore was not that pathetic.

Before she could get the words out, Rafael Holmes’s phone cut through the room with a sharp ring. Tessa Guzman. Her voice came through thin, threaded with pain. “Rafael, I just coughed up blood. I feel awful. Can you come be with me?”

Rafael hesitated. He hadn’t smoothed things over with Alora yet. But he knew she’d never really leave him—and Tessa was gravely ill. So he chose Tessa. “Don’t cry, Tessa. I’m on my way.”

At the sound of Tessa’s sobs, Rafael didn’t bother explaining himself to Alora. He turned and rushed out of the living room without a backward glance. As the door clicked shut, Alora smiled bitterly and kicked the pendant into the corner.

In the month since Tessa had come back, every time she was upset or unwell, Rafael was at her side in an instant—no matter the hour, no matter the weather. It was as if his promises of forever had been nothing but a dream Alora once dreamed.

But soon, it would all be over. In a month, she’d marry Westley Hall. Rafael wouldn’t have to worry about her anymore. He could live happily ever after with his first love. How perfect.

Ironic, really. December 18th—the date of Alora’s wedding—was also Rafael’s birthday. On that day, he’d be celebrating his birthday, and she’d be getting married. What a strange coincidence.

As far as Alora was concerned, once she and Rafael had broken up, he was no longer her boyfriend. And she sure as hell wasn’t going to keep living in his massive manor. So that Sunday, she spent the whole day packing up her things. What she could sell, she sold. What she couldn’t, she tossed.

She called the city’s top luxury consignment shop. They came out to appraise and buy the collection of second-hand bags and jewelry she’d accumulated, and she walked away with a tidy two million dollars. She didn’t transfer a cent to Rafael; she kept it in her account. It was her right.

Night fell. After she cut up the last scarf she’d painstakingly knitted for Rafael and threw it in the trash, she went back to her room. Just as she was about to leave with her suitcase, her gaze landed on the photograph on the nightstand.

In the photo, she was leaning against Rafael’s shoulder, her smile bright and adoring. He was looking at her with something that almost passed for tenderness. Rafael had always hated having his picture taken. This one was a rare exception—taken on her birthday last year, after she’d talked him into it.

It was the only picture they had together, and she’d once treasured it. It had its place on her nightstand. She used to stare at it, even carry it with her on business trips. But now, all it did was leave a bitter taste in her mouth. Without hesitating, she smashed the frame and dumped it in the trash.

By the time Rafael got back, it was late. After pulling his car up in front of the main house, he noticed the living room was dark. The unwelcoming blackness settled uneasily in his chest.

Before, no matter how late work kept him, Alora always left a light on for him. On snowy nights, that single glow guided him home. Since Tessa came back, those little comforts had vanished.

Rafael figured Alora was still mad at him. Knowing her, she was probably curled up on the sofa, stewing, waiting for him to apologize. “Alora,” he called as he flipped on the lights—and found the living room strangely wide and empty.

He couldn’t put his finger on what was missing, but the room felt stripped bare. “Mr. Holmes, you’re back,” Mrs. Wilson, the housekeeper, said, hurrying out of her room. “You’ve been drinking, haven’t you? I’ll make you some coffee.”

“No need,” Rafael said curtly. He wanted to see Alora—coffee was the last thing on his mind. He headed upstairs to find her.

But she wasn’t in her room either. It was noticeably empty. The potted plants she kept by the window were gone, along with her pillows and blankets.

Her room—once warm and cozy, full of plush toys, delicate lace curtains, and cute wall stickers—had been stripped down to cold black and white. The stark contrast grated on him. He turned to Mrs. Wilson, who had followed him upstairs. “Where’s Alora?”

The ice in Rafael’s voice made her skin prickle. Under his intense stare, Mrs. Wilson shivered before she could stop herself. She drew a deep breath and told him the truth. “Miss Alora said the two of you have broken up. She also said... she won’t be coming back.”

Rafael almost laughed at the nonsense Alora had fed Mrs. Wilson. She was being ridiculous. Running away from home? She was getting bolder by the day.

“Mrs. Wilson, you can go,” Rafael said. Once he was alone, he called his assistant, Jay Swift, and told him to find out which hotel Alora was staying at.

In a city where she had no one, and with how fast she’d left, there was no way she’d rented a place. Her only choice in a fit of pique was a hotel.

Jay, efficient as ever, tracked her down in no time: the city’s premier hotel.

“Alora, how long are you going to keep this up?” Rafael typed into his messages, but he didn’t send it. He deleted the text when he noticed the missing photo frame on the nightstand.

He knew better than anyone how much Alora cherished that photo. Even if she was running away, she would want it with her. So this wasn’t really goodbye.

No need to text her. Four years ago, her family had disowned her. Her biological parents had died when she was six. She had no real home to go back to. If not to him, where else would she go?

Since Tessa came back, they’d argued constantly. But every time, Alora was the first to apologize, the first to make amends. It wouldn’t be long before she did it again.

In the month since Tessa returned, Alora had been drowning in misery, unable to get one peaceful night’s sleep. Now, free of him, she slept straight through the night. Surprisingly so.

The exhaustion from the day before had caught up with her. Her calves ached, and she didn’t want to leave the bed. But she knew it was a workday—and she needed to resign from her job at Holmes Corp. So she forced herself up.

For years with Rafael, she had built her whole life around him. When he was at his lowest, she worked herself to the bone to help him recover. When he rebuilt his fortune, she became his personal assistant, managing every part of his life. Now that she’d left him, there was no way she’d keep working for him.

She wanted to chase the dream she’d had since she was a kid: becoming a renowned voice actor.

“Alora, my stomach really hurts all of a sudden!” Sarah, a young assistant, pleaded the moment Alora walked into the office.

Sarah looked at her with pained eyes. “Mr. Holmes needs this document urgently. Could you please take it up to the CEO’s office for me?”

It was obvious Sarah was in real distress. Before Alora could even nod, she waddled off toward the restroom as fast as she could.

Alora didn’t want to see Rafael, but she liked Sarah, and she didn’t want the poor assistant to get chewed out. So she decided to deliver the document to the CEO’s office herself.

The office door was slightly ajar. Just as Alora raised her hand to knock, she heard Tessa’s playful voice. “Rafael, my ankle suddenly hurts!”

Alora’s hand froze in midair. The light touch was enough to push the door open a crack.

Through the gap, she saw Tessa’s body go limp as she tumbled onto Rafael’s lap. “Tessa...” Rafael caught her instinctively, his hand moving to her waist.

Even after she steadied herself, Tessa didn’t bother getting off his lap. Instead, she looped her arms around his neck, bright and blooming as a rose. “Rafael, what if I suddenly want to kiss you?” she teased, her lips drawing closer to his. He didn’t move away.

“Alora…”

Jackie—who worked closely with Rafael Holmes—stepped into the CEO’s office to deliver his latest project report. Unlike most people at Holmes Corp., Jackie knew all about Rafael and Alora Moore’s history. When he spotted Alora just outside the door, he gave her a small nod.

But before he could actually greet her, he caught the scene inside the office and clamped a hand over his mouth. The glance he shot Alora’s way said more than he ever could: pity, sympathy, and a quiet kind of dread.

“I’m sorry, Tess,” Rafael said, looking rattled.

For a second, he’d drifted somewhere far off, standing frozen for several long beats before gently pulling away from Tessa Guzman.

“It’s okay,” Tessa said, a playful blush creeping into her cheeks. “It was just my shoelace.”

At the doorway, Alora’s gaze dropped to Tessa’s shoes—sleek designer sneakers, paired with a crisp white blouse and a soft pink pleated skirt. She looked like the kind of girl who could still be crowned campus queen.

Rafael didn’t say another word. He didn’t need to. His actions said it all. He lifted Tessa onto the desk with careful hands, bent down, and began tying her shoelaces like it was something sacred.

Watching him tend to Tessa’s shoelaces with that kind of devotion, Alora couldn’t stop the memory from hitting her.

Back when they were still tender with each other, Rafael had told her, “Meeting you was the happiest thing in my life. I’ll cherish you and protect you. I’ll never let you suffer or be wronged. I will never betray you.”

Her heart had soared. She’d foolishly believed she was the luckiest girl alive. One Thanksgiving, they’d walked through a park, fingers laced together, when they passed a young couple. The girl had whimsically asked her boyfriend to tie her shoelaces. Alora, half teasing, had asked Rafael if he would do the same for her.

His answer had been dismissive: “There’s no point comparing us to other couples. It’s childish.”

The message had been clear—he wouldn’t. She’d told herself it was just his nature, that men like him didn’t bother with silly little gestures. As long as he cared, she’d been fine.

But now, watching Rafael be so gentle with Tessa, Alora finally understood. Even the coldest men—men like the snow-capped Alps—would bow to tie the shoelaces of the girl they loved. Even the iciest frost would melt for the one they cherished.

Every line he’d drawn with her, every principle he’d claimed to hold, had only existed because he didn’t truly love her.

Maybe this was for the best. They’d both move on. Start new Chapters. Yes. It was for the best.

Alora stood there, still as stone, and watched Rafael finish tying Tessa’s shoelaces. Then he began gently massaging her ankle, their eyes locked in everything neither of them said. The boy she’d once loved had faded into a mere shadow in her heart.

When Tessa threw her arms around Rafael in a playful hug, Alora knew there was nothing left to see. She turned and headed for the stairwell.

“Miss Alora!”

Jackie called after her, worry sharp in his voice. He’d watched Alora give Rafael years of her life.

Alora paused. She heard the sincerity in Jackie’s voice, but she didn’t want to talk about it. Not now.

“I’ve already broken up with Rafael,” she said.

She saw the shock flicker through Jackie’s eyes, but she kept going. “He loves me, does he? Is that why he married Tessa on my birthday? He loves me, does he? Is that why he’s still tangled up with Tessa and can’t let go? His kind of love—I can’t bear it.”

“Miss Alora,” Jackie tried carefully, “is your resignation letter ready? I’ll need to sign off on it for you.”

Jackie, head of the secretarial department, had the authority to sign off on her resignation—not Rafael.

“Are you sure about this? Does Mr. Holmes know?” Jackie asked. He was loyal to Rafael, but even he couldn’t pretend the whole Tessa situation had been fair to Alora.

After leaving Rafael, Alora wanted nothing more to do with Holmes Corp. Over the next few days, she stayed firm. She avoided anything that reminded her of Rafael and poured herself into her voice-over work, which had recently started bringing her unexpected success.

Her mind was made up. Alora was ready to step into her new beginning and leave the shadows of lost love behind.