Chapter 2

Jonathan refused to believe that I, the woman who had loved him enough to give up everything for him, could possibly have fallen for someone else.

But when he followed me downstairs and saw the Rolls-Royce waiting outside, he couldn't help crying out in disbelief, "N-No way!"

I rolled my eyes. "You really need to get out more."

Then, under everyone's astonished gaze, I climbed into the passenger seat, and the car drove away.

Jonathan's face darkened with anger.

"Honestly, Mikayla really went overboard this time," Isabelle lamented. "I know she wants to make you jealous, but did she have to spend so much money hiring someone to pretend to be her boyfriend?

"And renting a Rolls-Royce must cost a fortune! She has no idea how hard you work to earn your money, Jonathan…"

Jonathan immediately seized on her explanation. He nodded and shook his head with a resigned expression.

"She's always been too obsessed with appearances. That's one of the reasons I've been so unhappy with her lately. But whatever. A husband has to be patient with his wife, right? We're getting married, after all."

Yet, instead of praising his generosity as they usually would, our classmates made excuses and began to leave.

After all, who would respect a man who abandoned the woman who had stood by him when he had nothing, then had the nerve to parade his mistress around in public?

…

I was at home sorting through my belongings when Jonathan suddenly kicked the door open, reeking of alcohol.

"Mikayla Matthews! What the hell are you trying to pull?"

The unexpected shout startled me. I whipped around and glared at him.

"What's wrong with you? Why are you back all of a sudden? Weren't you supposed to be spending the night at Isabelle's?"

Ever since Peter Holt died, Jonathan had been living with his widow under the excuse of looking after her. His sudden return couldn't possibly mean anything good.

Sure enough, he slammed his fist against the wall.

"What, am I interrupting your date with your new boyfriend? Tell me! Who was that guy who drove you home today? Where did you find that actor?"

I sneered. "Are you deaf? I told you he's my boyfriend. What part of that don't you understand?"

Jonathan froze for a moment before his eyes shifted.

"Do you seriously think I can't see what you're doing? You're just mad that I haven't been paying enough attention to you lately, so you decided to embarrass me in front of everyone at the reunion! Isabelle already figured out your little scheme, so quit pretending!"

I couldn't help laughing in sheer disbelief.

"You're both insane."

When I paid him no mind, Jonathan grew even more frustrated and came over to confront me.

"Mikayla, can't you show a little compassion? Isabelle's been through so much lately, and I'm the only person she has left to depend on. If I abandon her too, what's she supposed to do?"

I stopped what I was doing and looked at him seriously.

"And what about me? Do my feelings mean nothing to you? Have you ever stopped to think about how I feel when you keep parading her around in public?"

My questions caught him off guard for a moment, but he quickly looked away.

"You're making a big deal out of nothing. It's not like I'm refusing to marry you…"

What the hell was going through his head?

After everything he'd done, he still had the nerve to expect me to marry him.

It was then I decided I wasn't going to waste another word on him and simply held out my hand.

"Give me your keys."

He frowned. "Don't you have your own?"

I slammed the house deed onto the table.

"See for yourself. My parents paid for this house, and now that we're breaking up, you don't get to keep living here."

Jonathan lost his temper too and threw his keys on the floor.

"I knew your family never thought I was good enough for you! Let me tell you something, Mikayla. You can act all high and mighty now, but it won't be long before you're on your knees, begging me to come back!"

I picked up the keys and pointed toward the door.

"Get out. If you don't leave right now, I'm calling the cops."

Jonathan's face flushed with anger. He stormed out, slamming the door so hard that the entire house shook.