Chapter 1

Men and women who were elegantly and lavishly dressed mingled in Seyfried Manor, where a grand banquet was held.

Ingrid Bacon raised her hand and showed the bracelet that symbolized her current status on her wrist to the socialites around her. Gasps of amazement came from the crowd, followed by mocking glances directed at me as I stood quietly in the corner.

Wayne Seyfried sat at the head of the table, his gaze sweeping toward me from time to time.

After she'd had enough of basking in everyone's praise, Ingrid carried a glass of champagne and walked over to me. Her gaze fell on my neck, where an extremely rare pink diamond necklace hung.

Three years ago, Wayne had spent eight million dollars at Sorrell Auctions to buy it for me on my birthday.

Ingrid let out a soft laugh and deliberately leaned close to my ear. "Hillary, since you've already handed over the bracelet, isn't it inappropriate for you to keep wearing the necklace meant for the lady of the house?"

She reached out, intending to touch the necklace.

I took a step back.

Ingrid tilted the champagne glass in her hand in tandem with my reactionary motion. The pale golden liquid spilled all over my silk evening gown. Following a crisp crack, the champagne flute that fell to the floor shattered into countless pieces.

Ingrid immediately covered the back of her hand. Her eyes reddened instantly, and large tears began rolling down her cheeks.

She said in an aggrieved tone, "I just thought the necklace was pretty and wanted a closer look. It's fine if you didn't want me to take a look. But why did you push me?"

The music in the hall stopped abruptly. Everyone's attention turned toward us.

Over the past seven years, any woman who had tried to get close to Wayne or provoke me had been thrown out without mercy.

One time, I had shoved the face of an actress trying to seduce him straight into a cake in front of the entire elite circle of Saphira.

Wayne strode over and pulled Ingrid behind him protectively.

Lowering his head, he looked at the tiny red mark on the back of her hand. Right away, he frowned hard.

He scolded, "Hillary Waldram, why are you causing a scene now? Ingie just returned to the country. Why are you giving her a hard time?"

Wayne's tone was filled with undisguised favoritism and reproach.

I looked at the face of the man I had once loved with all my heart, and a dull ache rose from deep within my chest.

Taking a deep breath, I forced back the tears that came to my eyes. I neither explained nor lost my temper. I raised my hand, reached behind my neck, and unclasped the pink diamond necklace.

Under the shocked gazes of everyone present, I held it out to Ingrid.

I said, "If you like it, it's yours. I just lost my footing earlier. Sorry."

Wayne's entire body stiffened. A flash of profound astonishment flitted across his eyes, and his frown deepened even more.

Ingrid froze as well. She even forgot to keep crying.

I took out a handkerchief and wiped the champagne from my hands before crouching down. Barehanded, I picked up the shards of glass from the floor one by one and threw them into a nearby trash bin.

After I was done, I stood up and looked at Wayne. "My clothes are dirty. I'm going upstairs to change."

I turned and walked toward the second floor, my back perfectly straight. Wayne's gaze remained fixed on my retreating figure.

After returning to my room and closing the door, I leaned against it and shut my eyes.

Seven years of obsession came to a complete end today.

The phone on the nightstand lit up. I just received an encrypted message from my older brother, Micah Lachlan.

He wrote, "Hillary, the flight route approval has gone through. The Lachlan family's convoy will arrive in Saphira in three days. Whatever the Seyfried family owes you, I'll make them pay it back to you a hundred times over."

As I read the message, tears welled up in my eyes.

Suddenly, someone pushed open the bedroom door from the outside.

Wayne strode in, and his sharp gaze locked onto the phone in my hand. He walked straight over and snatched it away.

At that exact moment, the screen went dark. He didn't attempt to unlock it. He just casually tossed the phone onto the soft carpet.

Then, he reached out and gripped my chin to force me to look up at him.