Chapter 3

But today, I didn't want to.

My thin reflection smiled back at me from the glass kitchen door.

"Mr. Lundberg, what can I do for you?"

"Yara." His voice was tight with anger. "Get back to work. Now."

"I'm a free woman."

I laughed. I probably looked happy.

"Your orders don't mean anything to me anymore."

I still had three months to spend however I wanted.

Soon enough, another woman would be by his side.

I was just a breeze through his life. I stayed awhile, but left no mark.

His life would keep blooming.

Why would he remember someone like me?

***

Johan never called again.

Then again, someone as proud as him wouldn't worry about an ordinary little flower.

But the pain never left.

The colorful pills barely helped. They only made the nausea worse until I could barely swallow.

After thinking it over, I went back to the hospital.

I'd watched my parents reach the end of this disease. I knew what cancer patients went through.

So I refused chemo.

I only asked for pain meds and sleeping pills.

I loved my long black hair.

I couldn't stand the thought of watching it fall out.

Even if I was dying, I wanted to go with dignity.

I didn't expect to see Johan at the hospital.

He was in the OB waiting area with Lily Cheek—the woman he never got over.

So that was why he was tired of me.

The woman he loved was back.

Time for his secret lover to go.

From a distance, I watched the softness in Johan's eyes.

I didn't know what Lily said, but they smiled at each other, wrapped in quiet warmth.

Bitterness rose in my chest.

Seven years of memories squeezed my heart.

When I lost my parents, he stood with me in the rain without a word.

When my cramps got bad, he'd hand me chamomile tea.

Anything I looked at twice showed up on my desk the next day.

In return, I knew everything about him.

What he liked to eat.

How he took his coffee.

Even what underwear he preferred.

I knew him better than he knew himself.

But he'd never looked at me with that kind of tenderness.

Johan was always cold and controlled with me.

Only in bed did he say my name, his voice almost soft.

Sometimes, it made me think I had a small place in his heart.

But only sometimes.

I chose this arrangement because my parents were sick.

It was always a simple deal.

Money for sex.

We both agreed to it.

No one else was to blame.

***

I swung by Johan's mansion while he was at work.

Weekday morning, which meant he was probably posted up in some conference room, listening to his execs drone on with that dead-eyed poker face.

One tiny frown from him, and everyone under him lost their minds.

Seven years by his side—

Seven years in his bed—

And I still couldn't read him.

The staff knew me.

Last time I packed, they'd watched from a distance, looking confused. Nobody asked why. They knew better.

I'd lived in this mansion for seven years without ever officially being Johan's girlfriend.

How could they not get it?

"These are Mr. Lundberg's favorite dishes. Just follow the recipes."

I'd collected them over the years to keep Johan happy.

I gave the cook the recipes, then handed the butler my notes on Johan's daily routine.