Chapter 1

Joanne's POV

After putting my son, Theo Galloway, to sleep, I tap into my phone and book the next flight back to Cloudingham.

Unfortunately, it was peak season, and the next available flight was only in seven days.

I stared at the date on the screen and found myself blanking out.

February 14 was Valentine's Day and also the seventh anniversary of my engagement to my fiance, Nathan Galloway.

It seemed like fate played a hand in me this time.

I smiled bitterly. Maybe it was for the best. Maybe it was good that we started and ended on exactly the same day.

A thick scent of gardenia suddenly enveloped me from behind, and Nathan's gentle voice sounded from the top of my head. "What are you looking at, Jojo?"

I instinctively turned off my phone screen and said dismissively, "Just reading up some news on gemstones."

It had only been half a year, but Catherine Wilkins' signature gardenia perfume was already practically marinated into Nathan's flesh by now.

I pushed him away in disgust. "Go take a shower before talking to me."

Nathan sniffed his clothes and awkwardly loosened his arms around me.

"I'm going…

"And I'm sorry for neglecting you lately. It's my fault. I won't be going over to Cathy's anymore for a few days."

Cathy?

What an intimate nickname he had for her.

He used to still refer to her by her full name in the past, but he didn't even bother pretending anymore.

If other people didn't know better, they would think that Catherine was Nathan's actual fiancee instead of me.

The bathroom door opened just then, and Nathan walked out with just a towel slung around his waist as damp air swirled into the bedroom.

He had a lean waist and a long torso, and he looked young and handsome for his age.

I suddenly felt as though I was staring at him from seven years ago again, when he painstakingly climbed up to my bedroom window, all covered in morning dew and condensation.

Back then, he used to be full of life as he declared proudly to the world, "Jojo, you're going to be mine now, starting from today.

"Let's spend the rest of our lives together—just the two of us."

When he noticed me staring at him and blanking out, he suddenly grinned widely and pulled me right into his arms.

"I'm not going anywhere tonight, Jojo. I'm going to be staying with you all night long."

The citrusy body wash mingled with the gardenia scent, forming a weird and disgusting combo that permeated my senses. I lowered my gaze in disappointment.

He was no longer the same person who proposed to me seven years ago.

There was a sudden loud knocking on the door just then that pulled me out of my reverie.

"Mr. Galloway! Ms. Wilkins is not feeling well at home. Please come and take a look at her!"

The frustrated look on Nathan's face was immediately replaced with one of worry and anxiety as he put on some clothes and hurried out the door.

"Why isn't she feeling well? Have you called the family doctor to look at her?"

He'd just taken a few steps when he suddenly realized that something was wrong.

He immediately spun around and looked at me apologetically. I was leaning against the doorframe, looking back at him.

"Cathy's not feeling well. I need to go and see how she's doing. You know that she has no one else but me to rely on ever since Norman passed away.

"I'll be back in a while. Thanks, Jojo. You're the best for being so kind and understanding."

Kind and understanding?

He'd been using it on me for six months, and I'd put up with it 52 times already.

He was from the Narcy tribe, and they were accustomed to couples co-parenting without actually marrying or staying together. However, it could be considered a "marriage" if the person spent the night at their partner's place instead.

I called out to him nonchalantly. "Nathan Galloway."

Nathan frowned at me as words of comfort began forming in his throat. However, the words died when he was stunned by the sudden weight on his shoulders.

I'd just draped a coat over him.

"It's chilly at night. Don't forget your coat when you go out."

He clutched the coat on his body, an unreadable expression in his eyes. "Jojo, you…"

However, before he could even put a name to the bitter feeling surging in his chest, I'd already closed the guest bedroom door on him.

I only had to wait for another seven more days. And when the time came, I wasn't going to wait for Nathan to come back anymore.