Chapter 2

Trixie's POV 

The doors to the ballroom closed behind me with a soft click, muffling the applause that had crowned Levi king of a kingdom I had helped him build.

I stood in the corridor, staring at the polish marble beneath my heels like there was something worth seeing there. 

The two men that had escorted me out waited nearly, their presence was a humiliating reminder that I was no longer welcome at the celebration.

“I can find my own way out,” I told them silently, there was no need to pass my frustration on them, they did nothing wrong and were only following whoever instructed them.

The two men stepped aside, allowing me through. Just then, my phone vibrated inside my clutch. Claire's name appeared on the screen, followed by a text message.

CLAIRE: How did it go? Did he finally do it? Did he propose?

I stared blankly at her words, until the screen shuffled. 

Claire had listened to me rehearse Levi's speech when she visited the past two weeks. She had endured every anxious conversation about his father, every complaint about a difficult business deal, and every hopeful declaration that once Levi proved himself, we could finally build a life together.

How could I tell her that the man I loved had just announced his engagement to another woman?

I locked my phone and pressed the elevator button. The doors had barely opened when a hand stopped them.

Levi stood before me, his bow tie slightly crooked and his expression hard. “Get out.” He gestured to the elevator, his voice clipped and tight.

I stepped into the corridor, and the elevator doors closed behind me.

“What was that?” I asked.

He glanced toward the ballroom before turning back to me. “Not here.”

“Why? Are you afraid someone might hear you explain why you announced your engagement to another woman after spending months planning our future?”

“Keep your voice down, Trixie.” 

I laughed bitterly, my voice cracked as the words came out. “You're worried about my voice?”

“I'm trying to keep this from becoming a bigger problem than it already is.”

I stared at him, struggling to recognize the man before me.

Not once had he asked whether I was all right. He hadn't apologized or even acknowledged what he had done. His only concern was keeping the situation under control.

“Did you ever intend to marry me?” I asked the only question running wild in my head.

His jaw tightened, his eyes remained cold as they stared down at me. “Don't do this.”

“When, Levi? When did you decide I wasn't good enough?” I cracked, a small painful smile slipping out my lips.

“Things changed.”

“When?”

Levi didn't look at me, his eyes stayed fixed somewhere above my head. 

I chuckled at his silence, as they answered the question I had been too afraid to ask for years. 

I swallowed the ache in my throat, forcing my voice to remain steady “Was it before or after I secured the Halston contract? Before or after I spent three nights fixing the financial projections your board rejected? Or was it after you promised me that once your father accepted you, we would finally stop living according to his expectations?”

His expression turned cold, a light irritated scoff escaped his lips and he didn't even bother about hiding it. “I never asked you to do any of those things.”

I felt my heart shattering into a million pieces, my lips parted but nothing came out. I stared at him in confusion.

“You chose to help me, Trixie,” he continued. “You chose to put your life on hold. I never forced you to sacrifice anything.”

I felt my legs go numb as his words landed somewhere in my skull. I touched my temple,trying to squeeze out the pain I was suddenly feeling as everywhere blurred out.

This was the same man I had defended whenever his father dismissed him for years. I had reminded him of his worth whenever his brother’s achievements made him feel inferior. 

I stayed awake helping him solve problems that threatened his career.

And now? He was standing before me, calling those sacrifices my choice.

“You're right,” I whispered, my voice cracked and barely audible. 

Levi looked at me with a surprised expression, he probably expected more than the reaction I was going out.

“I chose to help you, I chose to love you. But I never chose to be humiliated by you.”

He let out a small desperate and impatient sigh, running his hands through his perfectly styled hair.

“I made a decision, Trixie. I did what I had to do for my future.”

“And what about the future you promised me?” I swallowed hard at a large lump forming somewhere in my throat.

Levi didn't respond, he looked away. 

“Did you ever intend to acknowledge my contribution at all?”

“Would that have made you happy?” he suddenly snapped, making me startled. “Standing beside me while everyone congratulated you? Is that what this was always about?”

I stared at him in disbelief.

He had taken my work, my loyalty, and my love, yet somehow he had convinced himself that I was the selfish one for expecting honesty.

“No,” I said quietly. “I wanted you to remember that you didn't build everything alone.”

“I built this company myself.”

Something inside me finally broke free.

I had spent years trying to make Levi believe he was enough. Somewhere along the way, I had forgotten that I was enough, too.

I slipped the bracelet he had given me on our third anniversary from my wrist and placed it on the table beside us.

“What are you doing?” he demanded.

“Returning something that no longer belongs to me.”

“Trixie, stop being dramatic.”

I looked him dead in the eyes. “We're done, Levi.”

His expression changed, but I no longer cared whether it was anger, disbelief, or regret, I turned and walked away.

“Trixie!” Levi’s voice called behind me but I didn't stop, I kept moving with my heels clicking hastily against the marble floors.

I had barely reached the entrance when I heard a woman's voice behind me, faint from the distance.

“Levi, darling. What are you doing out here?”

Lia's voice carried through the hallway, I paused mostly out of curiosity, watching as she approached him in her Ivory gown, her hand wrapped comfortably around his arm.

Her gaze moved towards me, and a small pause followed before she smiled.

“Everyone is waiting for us,” she murmured sweetly to him. 

There was no surprise in her expression. No confusion about why Levi had followed me into the hallway.

I couldn't help but wonder just how long she had known about us. Levi glanced in my direction, but he said nothing.

Lia gently tugged his arm. “Come on. This is your night.”

He allowed her to lead him away without looking back.

I watched them disappear through the ballroom doors before stepping into the night.

The cold air touched my face the moment I stepped out of the elevator at the other end of the hallway, but it did nothing to ease the ache in my chest. 

I walked away from the hotel where the celebration was, walked past waiting cars and guests who might have recognized me, refusing to let anyone see me cry.

My phone vibrated again, Claire was calling this time. I answered this time, knowing she wouldn't stop calling until I did.

“Trixie? How did it go?” her voice was bright, curious and scared at the same time.

I opened my mouth to talk but nothing came out. 

“Trixie, what's wrong?”

I ended the call before she could hear me break. Then I opened the ride-hailing app and entered my address. The apartment Levi and I shared.

The place where we had planned our future, where every object seemed to carry a memory of the man who had just erased me from his life.

When I finally opened the door, I stood frozen in the entrance, staring at the photographs, the furniture, and the little things we had collected together.

I had spent my entire adulthood building a life around Levi Smith.

Now I had to face the terrifying possibility that without him, I had no idea who I was. The word struck me before anything else could.

I need to leave this city.