Chapter 3

All these years, I had stubbornly held on, desperate to prove to my parents that I had made the right choice.

But only now, after Caitlin had hurt me so deeply and left my heart bleeding, did I finally understand that although my parents' actions back then had been extreme, they had only been looking out for me.

It was just that in my youthful arrogance, I had refused to listen.

I had already pulled up my father's number—Morgan Archer—and was struggling with whether to make the call and swallow my pride to apologize when, a second later, his name flashed across the screen. He was calling me.

"Valerie is returning to the country tomorrow evening and will be having dinner at our house," he said icily. "I wasn't planning on inviting you, but I didn't want to be discourteous."

I knew he was just putting on a tough front. Valerie Durham, my childhood friend, had her own family, so why would she randomly come to my house for dinner? She was undoubtedly the reinforcement Dad had brought in to give me an excuse to go home.

I nodded and agreed, saying I would definitely be there. Only then did Dad hang up, satisfied.

I put my phone away. Just as I unlocked the door and stepped into the house, Caitlin called.

"Zane, I have a last-minute business dinner. Go ahead and eat out by yourself tonight," she said apologetically.

However, I could clearly hear the background music of a murder mystery game on her end of the line. Since when did client meetings involve such trendy, youthful activities?

Not long after, Bryan's voice drifted through the speaker.

"Caitlin, stop chatting. The game's about to start. Zane, sorry for cutting into your time together. I'll treat you to a meal next time to make it up to you."

Caitlin laughed. "Why are you apologizing? Zane understands I'm doing all this for our future. Zane, for your sake, I don't mind working a little harder.

"Don't worry. I'm not going to drink tonight. When I get home, I'll buy you a gift to make it up to you."

The people around her laughed, commenting on how lucky I was to have a woman who could earn money and support the family.

I ended the call.

Caitlin was clearly out on a date, yet she still claimed it was all for me. I was sick and tired of hearing excuses like that.

I sat on the couch and looked around our home. It had once held our laughter and joy, but now all that remained was cold emptiness.

I gathered up our photos and all the couple's items we had bought as a pair, then threw them straight into the trash. There seemed to be an endless amount of things to discard, but the warmth between us had vanished long ago.

As I was tidying up, my ex-coworker, Francis Stone, called in a panic.

"Zaane, this is bad. Mr. Eaton says he's canceling the partnership. You need to get to the office right now."

I shook my head and refused. "I've already resigned. Go find Caitlin and Bryan."

I wanted to see how they planned to fix this.

"But we can't get through to either of their phones!"

I laughed. And Caitlin said she was at a business dinner? She and Bryan must have been having so much fun that work had completely slipped their minds.

I told Francis there was nothing I could do and hung up.

Once I finished cleaning up, my friend, Wendell Haywood, messaged me, asking to hang out.

In the past, to give Caitlin a sense of security, I had never once gone to these kinds of drinking parties.

But now, I agreed to go.

Wendell had only invited me as a dare after losing a game; he never actually thought I would take him up on his invitation. Immediately, he sent over the location.

"Bail on me and you're a coward."

"I'll be there soon."

I took a cab to the bar. Just as I paid the fare, a luxury car pulled up right beside me. Caitlin stepped out, laughing and chatting with Bryan, who was in the driver's seat.

When he spotted me, Bryan leaned out of the window and planted a kiss on the back of Caitlin's hand. She turned away shyly, about to say something, when she suddenly came face-to-face with me.

She froze instantly. "What are you doing at a bar?"

Bryan got out of the car and stood beside her, quipping, "Looks like Zane got worried about you and followed you here."

Caitlin instantly frowned with displeasure. "I was just at a business dinner. Calling and texting me every day wasn't enough for you, and now you've taken up stalking me too? Do you really trust me that little?"

I looked at her, speechless.