Celeste Rodriguez and Trevor Fleming have been married for seven years. He treats her coldly throughout the marriage, but she faces it with a smile because she loves him deeply. She also believes she can melt his heart one day.

However, all she gets is the news of him falling for another woman at first sight. He gives her all his care and concern, but Celeste stands strong.

On her birthday, she flies abroad to be with Trevor and their daughter, Jordyn Fleming. To her devastation, Trevor brings Jordyn to meet his true love. They leave Celeste to spend the day alone.

She finally gives up on him. She's also no longer hurt when Jordyn wants the woman to replace her as her mother.

Celeste prepares a divorce agreement and gives up her custody rights. She leaves without another look back, cutting Trevor and Jordyn out of her life. All she needs to do now is wait for the divorce to be finalized.

After giving up on her family and returning to the workplace, she easily makes a fortune. She shows the people who once looked down on her that she's better than they think.

Celeste waits for her divorce certificate to arrive, but it never comes. She also notices that Trevor starts coming home more often when he's always refused in the past. He clings to her, too.

When he learns that she wants a divorce, he drops his usual aloofness and pins her to the wall. "A divorce? That's not happening."

When Celeste Rodriguez arrived at the airport in Andostan, it was already past 9:00 pm.

It was her birthday that day. Therefore, she received a bunch of birthday wishes from her colleagues and friends when she turned on her phone.

However, there was no message from her husband, Trevor Fleming, at all.

Celeste's smile faded.

By the time she reached the villa, it was already past 10:00 pm.

Hannah Lynd, the housekeeper, was startled when she saw her. "Oh, Mrs. Fleming… Why have you come here?"

"Where are Trevor and Jo?" Celeste asked.

"Mr. Fleming hasn't returned yet, and Ms. Fleming is in her room, playing," Hannah replied.

Celeste handed her luggage to Hannah. When she went upstairs, she found Jordyn wearing a pair of pajamas and sitting at her table, fiddling with something. She was so focused that she didn't even notice anyone entering the room.

"Jo?" Celeste called out.

Jordyn turned her head when she heard her. In a happy tone, she greeted, "Mom!"

Then, she turned back to her task.

Celeste walked over and pulled Jordyn into her arms. She had just given Jordyn a kiss on the cheek before the little one pushed her away.

"Mom, I'm busy right now."

It had been two months since Celeste last saw Jordyn. She missed her so much that no amount of kisses felt enough. She wanted to talk to Jordyn.

But upon seeing how focused Jordyn was, Celeste felt like she shouldn't disrupt her enthusiasm. "Jo, are you making a seashell necklace?"

"Mm-hm!" When Celeste asked about that, Jordyn perked up visibly. "Wynn's birthday is in a week. This is the birthday gift Dad and I are preparing for her. We carefully polished these shells with tools. Aren't they pretty?"

Celeste's throat tightened. Before she could say anything, she heard Jordyn, with her back still turned, happily say, "Dad even had a customized gift prepared for Wynn. Tomorrow—"

Celeste felt a pang in her chest and couldn't hold back anymore. "Jo… Do you remember it's my birthday today?"

"Huh? What?" Jordyn glanced up at her, then quickly looked back down at the string of beads in her hands. She complained, "Mom, don't talk to me. You're messing up the bead order—"

Celeste released her hold on Jordyn and said nothing more. She stood there for a long time, but Jordyn didn't look up at her even once. Finally, Celeste pursed her lips and left the room without a word.

When Hannah saw her, she said, "I just called Mr. Fleming. He said he has something to do tonight and told you to rest first."

"I see." Celeste acknowledged her words softly.

As she thought about what Jordyn had just said, she paused for a bit and called Trevor.

It took a long while before he answered, his tone was indifferent as usual. "I'm busy. Let's talk tomorrow—"

"Trevor, who's calling you so late?" It was Wynn's voice.

Celeste tightened her grip on her phone.

"It's nothing important," Trevor responded to Wynn's question.

Before Celeste could say anything, Trevor had already hung up.

The two of them hadn't seen each other in two or three months, and she had finally made it to Andostan. Not only did he not rush home to see her, but he also didn't even have the patience to finish one phone call with her.

After so many years of marriage, he had always been like this—cold, distant, and impatient.

Celeste had gotten used to it.

In the past, she would have called him again. Then, she would patiently ask where he was and whether he could come home. Perhaps she was too tired tonight. So, she suddenly didn't feel like doing so.

The next morning, Celeste thought it over and decided to call Trevor again.

There was a time difference of about 17 or 18 hours between Andostan and their home country. In Andostan, today was her actual birthday.

She didn't come to Andostan just to see Jordyn and Trevor. She hoped their family of three could spend this special day together by having a meal.

This was her birthday wish for the year.

Yet, Trevor didn't answer her call.

A long time later, he sent a message: "What's up?"

Celeste wrote: "Do you have time at noon? Let's bring Jo along and have lunch together as a family."

Trevor replied: "Okay. Let me know the address when it's decided."

Celeste texted back: "Alright."

After that, there was no further message from him. He hadn't remembered it was her birthday at all. Although Celeste was mentally prepared, she couldn't help feeling a pang of disappointment.

She was about to head downstairs after washing up when she overheard Jordyn and Hannah talking.

"Aren't you happy that Mrs. Fleming is here, Ms. Fleming?" Hannah asked.

Jordyn said, "Dad and I already promised to take Wynn to the beach tomorrow. If Mom comes along, it'll be so awkward. And Mom is so mean. She's always unkind to Wynn—"

"Ms. Fleming, Mrs. Fleming is your mother. You shouldn't say such things. You'll hurt her feelings, you know?"

"I know, but Dad and I like Wynn more. Can't Wynn be my mom instead?"

Hannah didn't know what to say to that.

Whatever she said afterward, Celeste couldn't hear it anymore.

She had raised Jordyn herself. But over the past two years, the more time Jordyn spent with Trevor, the more attached she became to him. When Trevor came to Andostan to expand his business last year, Jordyn had insisted on coming along.

Celeste was reluctant and had hoped Jordyn would stay by her side. But she couldn't bear to see Jordyn upset, so she agreed.

She hadn't expected this.

Celeste stood frozen in place, her face pale. She was unable to move for a long time. To think that she had pushed aside her work to come to Andostan with the intention of spending more time with Jordyn.

Now, it seemed unnecessary.

She returned to her room. Then, she repacked the gifts she had brought from home and put them back into her suitcase.

Later, Hannah called to say she had taken Jordyn out to play and to contact her if anything came up.

Celeste sat on the bed, feeling hollow and lost inside. She had abandoned her work and made this trip, only to find no one wanted her here.

Her arrival was nothing but a joke.

After a long while, she left the villa. Aimlessly, she wandered through this foreign yet familiar country.

By noon, she remembered she had planned to have lunch with Trevor and Jordyn. As she recalled what she had overheard in the morning, she hesitated about whether to go home and pick up Jordyn.

Then, she suddenly received a message from Trevor that read: "Something came up at noon. Lunch is canceled."

Celeste stared at the message, unsurprised.

She was used to this. In Trevor's world, work, friends, and everything else were more important than her, his wife. Plans made with her were always canceled at his whim without consideration for her feelings.

Was she disappointed? Perhaps she would have been in the past. Now, she just felt numb and couldn't feel anything anymore.

Celeste was at an utter loss. She had come all this way excitedly only to be met with indifference from both Trevor and Jordyn.

Before she realized it, she had driven to a restaurant she and Trevor used to frequent. Just as she was about to go in, she saw Trevor, Wynn, and Jordyn sitting together inside.

Wynn sat close to Jordyn on the same side. She chatted with Trevor while interacting with Jordyn playfully. Jordyn, with her legs swinging around happily, played with Wynn and even leaned in to eat the pastries Wynn had taken a bite out of.

Trevor smiled as he served food to both of them. His gaze never left Wynn as if she were the only one he could see in his eyes.

So, this was what Trevor meant when he said that something had come up. This was the daughter she had carried in her womb for ten months and nearly lost her life to bring into this world.

Celeste laughed humorlessly. She stood there watching for a long time. Finally, she turned away and left.

Back at the villa, Celeste prepared a divorce agreement.

Trevor had been her teenage dream, but he had never truly seen or paid attention to her.

If not for that accidental night and the pressure from his grandfather, Arnold Fleming, Trevor wouldn't have married her.

In the past, she had naïvely believed that if she worked hard enough, he would eventually acknowledge and see her.

Unfortunately, the reality was harsh and dealt a cruel blow to her.

Almost seven years had passed, so it was time to wake up.

After placing the divorce agreement in an envelope and instructing Hannah to hand it to Trevor, Celeste dragged her suitcase to the car and said to the driver, "To the airport."

At around 9:00 pm, Trevor and Jordyn returned home.

Jordyn clung to the hem of Trevor's coat and got out of the car sluggishly. Because Celeste was at home, she was reluctant to return that night.

But Wynn had said that Celeste came specifically to be with her and Trevor, and if they didn't return, she would be sad. Trevor also said that if they didn't go home that night, Celeste would definitely insist on joining them on their outing to the sea the next day.

Reluctantly, Jordyn agreed to come home.

Still worried, she muttered gloomily, "Dad, what if Mom insists on tagging along with us tomorrow?"

"She won't," Trevor replied confidently.

In all the years they'd been married, Celeste had always tried to find ways to spend more time with him. But she was also sensible. As long as he made his stance clear, she wouldn't dare make him upset.

In Jordyn's memory, Celeste always listened to Trevor. Since he said she wouldn't, she felt reassured. As a result, her mood lifted. She made her way into the villa cheerfully and told Hannah she wanted to take a bath.

"Sure, sure," Hannah replied to Jordyn. Then, she remembered Celeste's instructions and handed an envelope to Trevor. "Mr. Fleming, this is from Mrs. Fleming. She asked me to give it to you."

Trevor took the envelope and asked casually, "Where is she?"

"Mrs. Fleming packed up and went back to the country this afternoon. Didn't you know?" Hannah responded.

Trevor paused mid-step as he was heading upstairs. He turned back, feeling a little surprised. "Has she gone back?"

"Yes."

Why had Celeste suddenly come to Andostan? Trevor hadn't given her a chance to tell him about it. He hadn't cared to ask either. Upon learning she'd left, he didn't dwell on it.

Jordyn was a little surprised too. When she heard the news, she felt a small twinge of disappointment. She'd been thinking that even if Celeste didn't join them for the outing tomorrow, it might be nice to have her around at home in the evening.

Polishing the seashells made her hands hurt—she had been counting on Celeste's help in finishing the necklace.

Though it had been months since Trevor and Celeste had seen each other, she had made the effort to visit but only to leave without seeing him in person. Hannah recalled Celeste's grim expression as she left and thought that things felt a little off.

She couldn't help but say, "Mr. Fleming, Mrs. Fleming looked upset when she left. She seemed angry."

Hannah had assumed Celeste's sudden departure was due to an urgent matter. Upon realizing Trevor hadn't known she'd left, she began to feel something was amiss.

"Angry?" Trevor repeated in his mind.

In his presence, Celeste had always been patient and accommodating. So, she could get angry too? This was new.

Trevor smiled faintly and responded to Hannah perfunctorily before heading upstairs.

Back in the bedroom, he was about to open the envelope Celeste had left when Wynn called. After answering the call, he tossed the envelope aside and walked out the door.

A short while later, the envelope slipped off the bed onto the floor.

That night, Trevor didn't return home.

The next day, Hannah noticed the envelope on the floor when she was cleaning. Recognizing it as the one Celeste had asked her to hand over, she assumed Trevor had already seen it and placed it in a nearby drawer.

…

Right after getting off the plane, Celeste went home and began packing her belongings. She had accumulated quite a few things in the house since she'd been living there for six years, after all. But she only took a few sets of clothes, two sets of daily necessities, and some books that were related to her field of study back in college.

After their marriage, Trevor had been depositing money for her and Jordyn into two separate accounts every month. One account was hers, and the other was Jordyn's.

However, Celeste was used to spending her own money only. She had never touched the money in Jordyn's account. Because she loved Trevor, whenever she went shopping and saw clothes, shoes, cufflinks, or ties that suited him, she couldn't help but buy them.

In contrast, she didn't have many expenses on a daily basis because all she did was go to work. Her heart and mind were always focused on Trevor and Jordyn. She wanted to give them the best of everything.

Most of the money Trevor deposited into her bank account was spent on him and Jordyn.

Given this spending pattern, there shouldn't have been much money left in Celeste's account. But over the past year, her opportunities to buy things for Trevor and Jordyn had decreased significantly because they were in Andostan.

Now, there were over three million dollars in her account. That amount might not matter to Trevor, but to her, it was no small sum. And since it was her money, Celeste didn't hesitate to transfer it out.

She left both cards behind, dragged her suitcase out the door, and didn't look back.

Celeste had an apartment near her workplace, which was a little over 1,100 square feet. She'd bought it four years ago to support a friend who had been struggling to meet their sales targets. She had never lived there before.

Now, the apartment came in handy. She had it cleaned regularly, so it wasn't dirty. After a quick tidy-up, it was ready to move in.

After a long day, Celeste washed up and went to bed around 10:00 pm.

…

The shrill sound of an alarm jolted Celeste awake. Startled, her mind went blank for a moment.

When she came to her senses, she realized that while it was 1:00 am here, it was 7:00 am in Andostan, where Trevor and Jordyn were. This was their usual breakfast time.

Ever since Jordyn had gone to live with Trevor in Andostan, Celeste had developed the habit of calling her at this time every day. As she was always exhausted from work and was used to going to bed early, she had set this alarm to ensure she wouldn't miss the call.

At first, Jordyn hadn't adapted well to living in Andostan and had missed her terribly. She had called Celeste constantly. But as time went on, the calls that used to be full of yearning and dependence had grown perfunctory and impatient.

The alarm was no longer necessary. She just hadn't been able to let go.

Smiling bitterly, Celeste deleted the alarm and turned off her phone before going back to sleep.

…

Meanwhile, Trevor and Jordyn were nearly done with breakfast. Though he knew Celeste usually called Jordyn at this time, he wasn't always home and hadn't paid much attention to the routine.

He noticed that Celeste hadn't called that day. The fact registered in his mind, but he didn't care. After finishing breakfast, he went upstairs to change.

Jordyn, finding Celeste increasingly annoying, had grown less fond of their calls. Upon realizing that Celeste hadn't called yet, she figured something must have come up.

She grabbed her backpack and bolted for the door.

Hannah hurried after her. "Ms. Fleming, it's still early. There's no rush!"

Jordyn ignored her and ran to the car happily. She was thrilled that Celeste hadn't called on time that day. If she stayed home, she might still have to talk to Celeste later. Well, she didn't want that!

…

After getting married to Trevor, Celeste had joined Fleming Group for his sake. Now that she was planning to divorce him, she saw no reason to stay.

The next morning, Celeste handed her resignation letter to Zeke Jackson after arriving at the office.

Zeke was one of Trevor's personal secretaries. When he saw Celeste's resignation letter, he was extremely surprised.

He was one of the few in the company who knew about the relationship between Celeste and Trevor.

Anyone familiar with Trevor knew that he didn't love Celeste. So, he had been cold to her and rarely went home after their marriage.

To get closer to and win over Trevor, Celeste had chosen to work at Fleming Group.

Her initial goal was to become his personal secretary, but Trevor refused vehemently. Even when Arnold stepped in, he couldn't get Trevor to agree. In the end, Celeste had to settle for a position in the secretarial team, becoming one of Trevor's many ordinary secretaries.

At first, Zeke had worried that Celeste's presence in the secretarial team would create chaos. But to his surprise, she didn't bring them any trouble. Although Celeste used her position to get closer to Trevor, she was mindful of her timing and never overstepped her boundaries.

On the contrary, she worked diligently and performed exceptionally well, hoping to gain Trevor's respect. Whether during her pregnancy, childbirth, or any other time, she strictly adhered to company policies and never sought special treatment.

Over the years, Celeste rose to become the head of the secretarial team. Zeke had observed her feelings for Trevor from the sidelines all the while. To be honest, he had never imagined she would resign one day. He felt skeptical about her willingly giving up her position.

Something must have happened between Celeste and Trevor for her to resign now. Zeke understood that this was something he wasn't privy to—it must be something significant enough for Trevor to have ordered her to resign.

While he found it a pity, Zeke maintained a professional tone. "I acknowledge that I've received your resignation letter. I'll arrange for someone to take over your duties as soon as possible."

"Alright." Celeste nodded and returned to her workstation.

After working for a while, Zeke started an online meeting with Trevor to report on company matters. As the conversation neared its end, he suddenly remembered Celeste's resignation.

"Oh, Mr. Fleming, there's one more thing—"

Although Zeke had told Celeste he would quickly arrange for someone to take over her position, he wanted to gauge Trevor's thoughts on the matter first. If Trevor wanted Celeste out immediately, he would make the arrangements right away.

But as the words left his mouth, he remembered that when Celeste first joined the company, Trevor had explicitly stated that all matters regarding her employment should be handled per company regulations. He made it clear that there was no need to report anything to him since he wouldn't concern himself with her.

And indeed, over the years, Trevor had never actively inquired about Celeste's work at the company.

Even when he encountered her at work, he treated her like she was a complete stranger.

When Celeste was set to be promoted a couple of years ago, the team had hesitated. Everyone was aware of Trevor's dislike for her. They had even brought it up with him to gauge his opinion back then.

Trevor had frowned in annoyance and reiterated that he wouldn't interfere and that they should handle it according to company policy. He had emphasized that they shouldn't bring up Celeste's matters with him again.

Seeing Zeke's hesitation, Trevor frowned. "What is it?"

Zeke snapped out of his thoughts and quickly replied, "Oh, it's nothing."

Since Trevor was already aware of Celeste's resignation but hadn't brought it up, it was clear that this matter wasn't important to him. So, Zeke decided to proceed as usual and handle the matter according to company regulations.

With that resolved, Trevor ended the call.

…

"What are you thinking about?" At noon, a colleague patted Celeste on the shoulder.

Celeste came back to her senses and smiled, shaking her head. "Nothing."

"Don't you need to call your daughter today?"

"No, not today."

Typically, she called Jordyn twice a day—once at 1:00 am and once at around 12:00 pm.

Her colleagues at work were aware of this habit. What they didn't know was her daughter was the child she had with the company's CEO.

After work, Celeste went to the supermarket. She bought some groceries and a few potted plants before heading home.

After dinner, she browsed online for information about the upcoming technology exhibition.

After that, she made a call. "Please reserve a ticket for next month's tech exhibition for me."

"Are you sure?" the person on the other end replied coolly. "The last two times you asked me to reserve tickets, you didn't show up. Do you know how many people's lifelong dream is to get one of those tickets? You wasted them thoughtlessly."

The annual tech exhibition was a major event in the industry, and tickets were not easily obtainable.

Their company had a limited number of slots, and many IT elites working for them eagerly vied for the opportunity to attend it.

"If I don't show up to the exhibition this time, I will never ask you to reserve a ticket for me ever again," Celeste promised.

There was silence on the other end before the line disconnected.

Celeste knew that he'd agreed. The corners of her mouth tugged upward into a smile. What she hadn't said was that she wanted to return to the company.

Though she was one of the partners of her tech firm, she had stepped back during its early days to focus on marriage and family. Her decision had disrupted their development plans and cost them many opportunities.

Her colleagues had been both angry and frustrated with her. Over the years, they had rarely been in contact.

While Celeste was eager to return, she knew she had been out of the industry for too long. If she went back unprepared, she was worried she wouldn't be able to keep up with the company's current pace.

So, she planned to spend some time familiarizing herself with the industry's latest developments before making a concrete decision.

For the next few days, Celeste focused on her work during office hours and spent her evenings tending to her own matters. She didn't reach out to Jordyn or Trevor, and they didn't contact her either.

Celeste wasn't surprised. For over half a year, her communication with them had been one-sided. They had only passively responded to her efforts.

…

Meanwhile, in Andostan, Jordyn had developed the habit of calling Wynn first thing every morning.

That day, she called Wynn right after waking up as usual. However, the call didn't last long before she burst into tears.

Wynn had told her some bad news. "I'm going back to the country soon."

Devastated, Jordyn finished the call and immediately phoned Trevor. "Dad, did you know about this?"

At his office, Trevor flipped through some documents. "Yes."

"When did you find out?"

"It's been a while."

"Dad, you're so mean…" Jordyn hugged her pink stuffed pig and cried loudly. "I don't want Wynn to leave. If she's not here, I don't want to go to school here anymore. I want to go back too!"

Trevor's tone remained even. "It's already being arranged."

Jordyn didn't understand. "W-What do you mean?"

"We're going back next week."