CHAPTER 01: THE FORGOTTEN ANNIVERSARY

The rain fell steadily over the glittering skyline, turning the city lights into blurred streaks of gold and silver beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Kingsley mansion.

Inside the elegant dining room, every detail had been prepared with care.

Soft candlelight flickered across the crystal glasses. A bouquet of white roses rested in the center of the table, their sweet fragrance filling the quiet room. Sophia Carter Kingsley adjusted the last plate with trembling fingers before stepping back to admire everything she had arranged.

Tonight marked her third wedding anniversary with Damian.

She glanced at the antique grandfather clock in the corner.

Eight o'clock.

"He'll be here soon," she whispered hopefully, forcing a smile.

Earlier that morning, Damian had simply nodded when she reminded him of the date.

"I'll try," he had replied in his usual calm, unreadable tone before leaving for work.

It wasn't a promise.

But Sophia had clung to those two words all day.

She wore the sapphire-blue dress Damian had once said suited her eyes. It had been nearly three years since he'd given her that compliment, yet she still remembered every word because there had been so few.

She checked her phone.

No messages.

No missed calls.

"It's okay," she murmured, trying to comfort herself. "He's probably stuck in a meeting."

She walked toward the kitchen, where the anniversary dinner she had cooked herself was slowly growing cold. Damian rarely ate home-cooked meals anymore, but tonight she had prepared all of his favorites anyway.

Braised beef.

Creamy mushroom soup.

Garlic butter asparagus.

Chocolate lava cake.

Every dish had taken hours to perfect.

Returning to the dining room, Sophia lit the final candle.

The mansion was beautiful.

It was also unbearably lonely.

Outside, thunder rumbled across the sky.

Nine o'clock.

Her smile had faded.

She dialed Damian's number.

The call rang several times before going unanswered.

She tried again.

Still nothing.

Sophia lowered her phone with a quiet sigh.

Just then, the housekeeper approached cautiously.

"Mrs. Kingsley," the older woman said gently, "Would you like me to warm the food again?"

Sophia forced another smile.

"Not yet. He'll come."

The housekeeper hesitated before nodding.

"As you wish."

The silence returned.

Sophia wandered into the living room, where dozens of framed photographs decorated the shelves.

Most of them showed Damian alone at business events.

Only one featured the two of them together.

Their wedding day.

She picked it up carefully.

Back then, Damian hadn't smiled much, but she had believed that one day he would love her.

She had married him because she loved him.

Not because of his wealth.

Not because of his status.

Only because of him.

Three years later...

She wasn't sure he had ever loved her at all.

Her phone vibrated.

Her heart leaped.

But it wasn't Damian.

It was her best friend, Lily.

"Happy anniversary!" Lily's cheerful voice echoed through the speaker. "So? Where did your handsome husband take you?"

Sophia hesitated to answer.

"We're... having dinner at home."

"Oh! That's romantic."

Sophia looked at the untouched table.

"Yes," she answered softly.

Lily laughed.

"Take lots of pictures."

"I will."

The lie slipped out before Sophia could stop herself.

After ending the call, she leaned against the wall and closed her eyes.

She hated lying.

But she hated pity even more.

Ten o'clock.

The candles had nearly burned down.

The food was cold.

The roses had begun to droop.

Sophia slowly sat at the table alone.

She picked up her fork but couldn't bring herself to eat.

The mansion felt too large.

Too quiet.

Too empty.

A sudden notification lit up her phone screen.

Her heart pounded.

It wasn't a message.

It was a news article.

Kingsley Group CEO Damian Kingsley Attends Charity Gala.

Below the headline was a photograph.

Sophia stared at it in disbelief.

Damian stood beneath dazzling chandeliers inside an extravagant ballroom, dressed in an elegant black tuxedo.

Beside him stood Vanessa Hart.

Beautiful.

Confident.

Smiling brightly as she held Damian's arm.

Another photo showed them raising champagne glasses together.

Another showed them dancing.

Sophia's breathing became uneven.

"No..."

Her fingers shook as she scrolled through hundreds of comments.

"They look perfect together."

"Future power couple!"

"Who knew Damian Kingsley had such chemistry with Vanessa?"

Not one comment mentioned that Damian already had a wife.

A tear rolled down Sophia's cheek.

She quickly wiped it away.

"No," she whispered firmly. "There has to be an explanation."

She called Damian again.

This time...

The call connected.

Relief flooded through her.

"Damian?"

Loud music echoed in the background.

Before she could say another word, his calm voice interrupted.

"I'm busy."

Sophia swallowed hard.

"Today is our anniversary."

It took them in silence. For one painful moment, she wondered if he had forgotten.

Then he spoke. "I know."

Her heart lifted slightly.

"So... when are you coming home?"

Another pause.

"I have important clients."

"I've been waiting since afternoon."

"I'll be late."

"How late?"

"I don't know."

Sophia closed her eyes tightly with heavy breath. "I made dinner," she informed him.

"You should eat." His voice is in a dismissal tone.

"I wanted to eat with you," she insisted.

But his tone remained distant.

"Don't wait for me."

The call ended.

Just like that.

Sophia lowered the phone slowly.

The room blurred through fresh tears.

She had spent the entire day hoping.

Preparing.

Believing.

Yet Damian had remembered the anniversary...

...and still chosen not to come home.

She looked around the candlelit dining room one last time.

The elegant decorations no longer felt romantic.

They only reminded her how alone she truly was.

With trembling hands, Sophia reached for her wedding ring.

She gently slid it off her finger and held it in her palm.

The diamond sparkled beneath the fading candlelight.

"So this is what our marriage has become," she whispered, her voice breaking.

Outside, lightning illuminated the dark sky.

Inside the mansion, the silence answered her.

Sophia placed the ring beside Damian's empty plate.

Then she quietly walked upstairs, unaware that this single decision would become the beginning of the end of her marriage—and the first step toward a future neither of them could have imagined.

Behind her, the forgotten anniversary dinner remained untouched as the candles slowly burned themselves out.

And miles away, Damian glanced at the dozens of missed calls on his phone.

For the first time that night...

A strange feeling of unease settled deep inside his heart.