Chapter 1

It had been 30 days since the death of Seraphine Lodge's mother, Andrea Lodge, when she finally found her newlywed husband, Clifford Johansen, in a bar's private room.

He had his arm around a woman who looked somewhat similar to her, and the devotion in his eyes was one that she'd never seen.

Seraphine recognized the woman as Clarissa Greene. She was Clifford's true love, and he had spent 100 million dollars on a wedding proposal to her. In fact, it was thanks to Clarissa that Seraphine had found her way to the bar.

Half an hour ago, Seraphine had received an Instagram follower request from Clarissa. The moment she'd approved it, the latter had sent a barrage of taunting messages.

"Your husband had me over and over again on your wedding night, Seraphine. He told me he loved me 99 times. Being abandoned by him on such a special night must feel worse than death, right? If you have even a shred of dignity left, you should get lost."

Seraphine had cared for Clifford with all her heart for five years, yet she would never have known about him being in love with someone else if not for that high-profile proposal.

Now, that someone else had shoved their affair right in her face.

Seraphine wasn't a pushover. After receiving a location from Clarissa, she followed it to the bar. She pushed open the private room's door a crack and heard one of Clifford's friends say, "You haven't been home for a month, Cliff. Will Seraphine cause a scene if she finds out you're here?

"You know how annoying she can be when she gets like that. She has to control you in every way—she doesn't give you any personal space!"

Seraphine stopped and looked at Clifford through the crack. He sat there lazily as he peeled a grape for Clarissa. He waited until after she'd eaten it to say flippantly, "Seraphine is just a stand-in for Clary. I abandoned her on our wedding night and later proposed to Clary.

"I've also ignored her calls and messages for a whole month. She should know what that means, right? She can't blame me for getting nasty if she continues to pester me."

One of his friends, Jason Lynch, said, "That makes sense. You only got together with her for her mother's R&D. I've got to give it to you—you really played her like a fiddle!"

Seraphine trembled with rage at that. She shoved the door open and strode into the room. Clifford froze in the middle of peeling another grape when he saw her. He stared at her in surprise. "Seraphine?"

"You could've just been straight about wanting my mother's R&D, Clifford. Maybe we could've worked together. Why did you lie to me and lead me on? Why did you pursue me when there wasn't any space in your heart for me?" She sounded calm, but her fists were clenched by her sides.

Over the past month, she'd learned that Clifford was nothing but a liar and a scumbag. He'd only gotten together with her for the technology that Andrea possessed. Despite knowing that, she still felt her heart twist painfully upon hearing him say it out loud.

Clifford didn't lose his composure or show any remorse over getting caught red-handed. He even pulled Clarissa closer and kissed her cheek, seemingly showing off just how much he loved and doted on her.

He smiled languidly. "Since you already heard me, there's no need for me to elaborate. It's been five years, and I'm sick of you. Clary is the one I love. I was wrong for leading you on, and I'll compensate you for that."

Just then, Clarissa extricated herself from Clifford's arms and stood up. She looked at Seraphine haughtily, acting as if she were trying to flaunt her possession of Clifford.

Jealousy filled her gaze as she eyed Seraphine, who was prettier than she was. She said, "Seraphine Lodge, right? Thanks for taking care of Clifford for me while I was abroad all these years."

Seraphine met her taunting gaze and smiled faintly. "It wasn't too hard to care for a dog, but I'm pretty nauseated after being bitten by it."

Everyone was stunned by her calling Clifford a dog. Meanwhile, Clifford's expression turned ugly.

Seraphine met his stormy gaze head-on, her pretty eyes glinting as she smirked. She could love with all her heart, but she could also walk away without hesitation. Still, she would make the scumbag pay.

Clifford's new product was set to hit the market soon, but there was no way the launch would be successful now that Andrea was gone.

Seraphine looked at him and said calmly, "Let's get divorced, Clifford. I don't want to remain married to someone who looks and acts like a human but is actually a monster. I'll have someone mail the divorce papers to your office."

Divorce?

Clifford's expression shifted slightly. Then, he said mockingly, "It's almost pathetic how deeply in love you are with me, Seraphine. Are you sure you can bear getting a divorce?"

His friends also looked at Seraphine oddly. Would she actually go through with it?

After a brief silence, Jason laughed nastily. "Seraphine, I know you're upset, but it's ridiculous that you're the one asking for a divorce. Can you even live without Cliff? Your world has revolved around him for the past five years!

"Playing hard to get isn't going to win you any brownie points now that Clary is back, you know. She's an outstanding woman—she's not someone that a housewife like you can compare to."

Clifford agreed with that. Seraphine was just bluffing—there was no way she would actually leave him. Regardless, he still had to end things with her.

"Fine, then. I'll give you a divorce if that's what you want. I'll give you a hundred million dollars as compensation for the five years you were with me," he said.

Clifford cared about his reputation. He'd used Seraphine, but he was willing to compensate her for that. Yet he was sure she wouldn't go through with the divorce—she was just doing this to catch his attention. They'd been together for five years, and he knew better than anyone just how much she loved him.

But Clarissa was back now, and he wanted to give her the best of everything.

Seraphine didn't turn down Clifford's compensation. She prided herself on being able to let go gracefully, but at that moment, her heart still ached. She'd genuinely devoted herself to him for five years, but he and his friends thought she was pathetic.

"My mother's research is worth a billion dollars, Clifford. You think 100 million dollars is enough to brush me off? Make it 200 million dollars. When will you give me the check? Make sure you indicate that the money is voluntarily given!" she said.

Silence descended upon the room at her words.

For some reason, Clifford felt a strange irritation at her demand. He couldn't believe she actually wanted the money!

Still, he pulled out a check from his bag and said indifferently, "Seraphine, these five years between us were just a 200-million-dollar transaction. Leave me alone after taking this check, and don't go around harassing Clary. She's competing in the Golden Design Awards soon."

Seraphine clenched her fists tighter. Her five years of devotion had been reduced to nothing more than a transaction. Getting only 200 million dollars for her wasted time was far from a fair trade, but it was a good exchange for being able to be rid of a jerk like Clifford.

She readily accepted his conditions, saying, "Sure!"

It just so happened that she would also be competing in the Golden Design Awards (GDA). She would show Clifford whether she really was a fool who knew nothing!