Chapter 3

It was a photo.

A custom-made anklet.

A tiny, delicate bell hung from the chain, along with a small charm engraved with the letter J.

'Jess, I know anklets are your favorite.'

'I had this one custom-made by an artisan in Italy and paid extra to have it rushed.'

'Today is my third wedding anniversary with her.'

'And it’ll be our last.'

'My lawyer has already finished drafting the divorce agreement.'

'Jess, I can’t take this anymore. Can we please meet?'

'I want to put the anklet on you myself.'

I stared at the anklet he had chosen so carefully.

Then I looked at the thoughtless necklace sitting in my drawer.

I took a deep breath.

And finally made up my mind.

If he wanted to meet me that badly, then fine.

We would meet.

I picked up the phone and calmly typed one word.

'Okay.'

Ethan chose a discreet, upscale private restaurant for our meeting.

It was one of the hardest places in the city to get into.

You had to meet strict membership requirements, and reservations were normally booked months in advance.

But Ethan was so eager to meet the woman he considered his soulmate for the first time that less than ten minutes after I agreed, he sent me confirmation that he had reserved the entire restaurant.

At two that afternoon, I stood across the street from the restaurant.

Through the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows, I could see Ethan clearly.

He had dressed especially for the occasion in a tailored black suit.

On the table in front of him sat a gorgeous bouquet of lilies.

Beside it was the velvet box containing the anklet.

Every minute or so, he checked his watch.

I had known Ethan for years.

I had never seen him this impatient for anything.

He looked almost like a teenage boy waiting to see his first love.

And at that moment, I finally understood.

Ethan truly loved Jess.

Every bit of tenderness he had.

Every ounce of patience.

Every spark of excitement, anticipation, and affection.

He had given all of it to a woman who didn’t even exist.

It wasn’t that Ethan didn’t know how to love someone.

He simply didn’t love me.

The cold wind made even my fingertips tremble.

After standing there for a long time, I took out my other phone and typed another message.

'I’m sorry. Something urgent came up, and I can’t make it today.'

'Since you’ve already decided to get divorced, I think you should finish dealing with everything at home first.'

'We can meet after that.'

I hit send.

Across the street, I watched Ethan pick up his phone.

The light in his eyes disappeared almost instantly.

His fingers tightened around the phone until his knuckles turned white.

Then he sank back into his chair.

He stared at the empty seat across from him, disappointment written all over his face.

Ethan didn’t come home until ten that night.

He reeked of alcohol.

His expression was dark, and the tension surrounding him made it clear he wanted to be left alone.

He changed his shoes and walked into the living room.

Then he saw me placing neatly folded clothes into a suitcase.

“What are you doing?”

I straightened and looked at him calmly.

“Packing.”

“Are you planning to divorce me?”

Ethan froze.

Clearly, he hadn’t expected me to know.

But after a brief flash of surprise, his expression quickly returned to its usual coldness.

He walked over to the couch, sat down, and pulled a document from his briefcase.

Then he tossed it onto the coffee table.

“Since you already know, there’s no point pretending otherwise.

“This is the divorce agreement. I’ve already signed it.

“You know as well as I do that there was never much of an emotional foundation between us. We’ve been married for three years, and we’ve always been more like polite strangers than husband and wife.

“But now I’ve found the person I want to spend the rest of my life with.

“As compensation, you can keep this house. I’ll also transfer another one and a half million dollars to you.

“Sign it, Joanna.

“Let’s end this while we can still do it with some dignity.”

Dignity?

So three years of coldness, criticism, and being treated as though I barely existed still counted as dignity to him.

I walked over and picked up a pen.

I didn’t even read the terms.

I simply flipped to the last page and signed my name.

No tears.

No argument.

No hesitation.

When I was done, I pushed the agreement back toward him.

“I signed it.

“But I don’t want your house or your money.

“Let’s go to family court tomorrow and file for divorce.”

Ethan frowned at how quickly I had signed.

His eyes lingered on my face for a long moment, as if he were searching for some sign that I was bluffing or trying to manipulate him.

There was nothing for him to find.

I picked up my suitcase and turned toward the guest room.

“Joanna.”

Ethan’s low voice stopped me.

“You don’t need to play hard to get.

“It won’t change my mind.”

I stopped.

But I didn’t turn around.

“Ethan, you think far too highly of yourself.”

Early the next morning, I moved out of the house.

We went to family court together and filed the final paperwork.

The moment we stepped outside, Ethan pulled out his phone.

His fingers flew across the screen.

I didn’t even have to look to know who he was messaging.

Sure enough, a second later, the phone in my bag vibrated.

'Jess, it’s done.'

'I’m finally free.'

'I’m coming to see you right now.'

I watched him stare at his screen with barely contained excitement.

Suddenly, the whole thing seemed almost absurd.

My ex-husband was standing right in front of me, completely consumed by his love for another version of me.

“Ethan.”

I called his name softly.

He looked up.

Only then did he seem to remember I was still standing beside him.

A flicker of impatience crossed his face.

“What is it?”

I looked at him and smiled.

“Nothing.”

“I just wanted to say I hope you finally get everything you wanted.”

Ethan paused.

Something complicated flashed through his eyes.

Then he gave me a faint nod.

“You too.”

With that, he turned and walked away.

A moment later, his car disappeared down the street.

I stood where I was and took out the phone connected to my alt account.

I deleted the account.

Then I removed the SIM card and snapped it in half.

Jess was gone.

And Joanna was finally free too.