As expected, Elaine came to smooth things over afterward, solemnly handing Irene an equity agreement.

It transferred twelve percent of the shares under her name to Irene.

"What Sophie said isn't entirely untrue. We were close to her parents back then. The two of them grew up together, so it's natural their bond runs deeper than most."

She gently patted the back of Irene's hand, studying her noticeably thinner face with a hint of reluctance.

"When Ethan remembers everything, he'll make it right with you. For now, listen to me. Don't hold this against him."

Without a word, Irene withdrew her hand, her long lashes lowering to conceal what stirred beneath her eyes.

"If we really can't go on, would you take these shares back?" Irene asked.

"Of course not. This is your security." Elaine answered without hesitation, but Irene caught every flicker of avoidance in her eyes.

She knew Elaine didn't truly believe she and Ethan would ever sever ties completely.

So she accepted the agreement without objection.

Over the next few days, she secured an apartment overseas while beginning to sort out her personal assets back home.

Gordon had heard the news early and called relentlessly, frantic and desperate. She ignored every single call.

His messages swung between feigned humility and outright threats.

"Irene, listen to me. You need to know your place. Endure what you must. Without Ethan, you're nothing."

"So many projects are underway. The cash flow can't break now. Don't do anything stupid."

Each message that came in was deleted without a glance.

When Irene was twenty, after Gordon discovered she wasn't his biological daughter, he cut off all financial support overnight.

She remembered standing awkwardly outside the academic office, clutching her design drafts, helpless over tuition that amounted to only a few thousand dollars.

Back then, Gordon had done exactly what she was doing now, no replies, no answered calls.

If not for that man's appearance, her life would have veered onto an entirely different path.

That day had been drenched in heavy rain as well. Soaked through, Irene ended the final call and stood penniless at the end of the corridor.

From the far end, the man walked toward her, removed his wool coat still warm with body heat, and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"You're Irene? We've met before."

Her teeth chattered uncontrollably as he guided her inside. She watched, almost numb, as he signed with effortless ease.

"From now on, her tuition and living expenses will be covered by this card."

As he gave instructions to his assistant, he frowned slightly and reached out to tuck her disheveled hair behind her ear.

That night, she developed a high fever, the kind that strikes after days of strain finally give way.

Irene murmured weakly, "Why are you helping me?"

The man's hand rested against her forehead. "I promised your mother that if I ever could, I would take good care of you."

In the years that followed, she consulted him on every major decision.

The one thing she never told him was her decision to marry Ethan.

After the wedding, he disappeared from her life entirely, while Gordon came crawling back instead.

Ethan, unaware of the truth, fawned over Gordon as his father-in-law. Irene didn't bother to expose it.

In the blink of an eye, several years passed, and every relationship seemed to circle back to where it began.

"Valemont…"

Irene checked the distance between her apartment and his on the digital map. It was far, far enough to feel like their lives would never intersect again.

After successfully proposing, Ethan had once asked smugly, "Irene, was I the one who chased you the hardest?"

Irene gave a noncommittal nod.

In truth, he wasn't.

Long before him, Adrian Wells had already set a standard none of Ethan's efforts could surpass.

The difference was that Adrian never confessed, yet he always appeared after every storm, like a brilliant rainbow suspended above her moments of isolation.

After days of hesitation, she finally sent him an email. "You were right back then. I chose wrong again."

After Sophie secured the shares, the servants at the Hart residence began treating Irene with noticeable indifference.

In the days following the shareholders' meeting, the entire household buzzed with enthusiasm over preparations for Sophie's birthday party.

Ethan informed Irene in advance, mentioning that many friends they had grown up with were invited.

The unspoken message was clear. He expected Irene not to be there.

Following his instructions, the servants moved all of Irene's belongings to a room downstairs.

Agnes Hanley, who had served the family for years, spoke matter-of-factly. "Mr. Hart said Miss Lewis needs more sunlight. This room has the best exposure."

Irene heard about it over the phone. She hadn't been back for several days.

She was busy preparing her travel documents and organizing her past work to take with her.

By the time she returned, the birthday party was already underway. The house was brightly decorated, packed with guests.

Entering through a side door, she caught sight of Ethan and Miles Carter smoking near the entrance.

She instinctively stepped aside, only to hear her own name mentioned.

Miles, who had once served as a witness at their wedding, suddenly spoke with agitation.

"Are you out of your mind? You're really planning to divorce Irene and marry Sophie?"

Ethan hurriedly lowered his voice. "Keep it down. I told you, this is just a temporary measure. Sophie refuses to go to Westoria for surgery. The only way I could reassure her was to give her what she wants, a wedding."

Miles let out a cold laugh. "Have you forgotten how she disappeared without a word and left you back then? You were barely holding yourself together, and she was off traveling the world, living freely on the inheritance her parents left her. So now that she's sick, she suddenly comes back looking for you? Ethan, have you forgotten who helped you pull yourself together back then?"

Ethan said nothing, an awkward look settling on his face.

Irene leaned quietly against the wall as memories surged through her mind.

Back then, she had just established herself in Harborhaven's design scene, her first solo exhibition opening successfully at the International Center.

As one of the investors, Ethan attended every show, always sitting in the audience, watching the spectacle with a quiet, lonely expression.

At her thank-you banquet later on, he approached her on his own, as if discovering a point where their lives intersected. The dullness in his eyes slowly gave way to light.

When Ethan fell in love, he never hid it, acting as though the whole world needed proof of his devotion.

Irene had once been the lifeline he clung to at his lowest point. Now, she was the one he chose to let go.

"It's just a wedding. Once her surgery goes well, I'll go get Irene back immediately."

It sounded more like he was convincing himself, his tone firm, his gaze as unwavering as when he once pursued her.

Miles scoffed softly. "I don't think Irene would come back to you if she knew the truth. Ethan, she's not dependent on you."

"No. That was who she was five years ago," Ethan said with faint contempt. "Now she can't live without me. For the past five years, she abandoned her design dreams and revolved entirely around me. To the outside world, she was just Mrs. Hart. Who even remembers the young designer Irene Shaw anymore?"

His confidence crawled over Irene's body and mind like something foul and invasive.

"She clipped her own wings for me. Loving me is all she has left."

Irene loosened the fist she hadn't realized she'd clenched and turned toward the room.

But barely fifteen minutes later, she stormed back into the hall, her face dark, heading straight for Ethan.

"Where are my design drafts?"

Ethan swirled the wine in his glass, one arm still wrapped around Sophie's waist.

"I've thrown them out. Why keep something that's been collecting dust?" He frowned at the glances coming from the guests, his expression darkening. "Didn't I tell you to stay away tonight?"

Sophie's face hardened as she bit down on her lower lip. "Irene, did you really have to come and ruin things for me today?"

Irene raised her hand and slapped her hard. The sharp sound cut through the air, bringing the gentle music to an abrupt stop.

"What the hell are you doing?"

Furious, Ethan grabbed her wrist and dragged her toward the exit without giving her a chance to resist.

Irene yanked herself free. It wasn't until they reached the doors that she finally caught her breath.

Ethan was still raging. "How could you hit her? Do you know how long it took me to convince Sophie to let me celebrate her birthday? Her parents died in a plane crash on her birthday. She hasn't celebrated it in years…"

"I've already signed it, Ethan. We're getting divorced."

The words were spoken lightly, yet they stopped Ethan cold.

He stared at her in disbelief. "What did you say?"

She pulled the agreement from her bag and slapped it against his face.

"Isn't this what you wanted? I've agreed. But I don't have time to waste on you. We do it now."

Ethan's eyes widened, his hands trembling at his sides. A moment later, he forced himself to calm down.

He made a call, and a faint smile even crept onto his face.

"No need to go through all that trouble. I'll have someone come handle it. Irene… I didn't expect you to come around."

He called Agnes over and told her to retrieve the design drafts that had been thrown into the trash and give them back to Irene.

Throughout the entire process, he was calculating time. The surgery date was less than a month away, and he still needed to hold a private wedding to reassure Sophie.

Once Sophie obediently went into surgery, the dress he'd ordered for Irene would arrive as well. By then, he'd need to figure out how to suddenly "remember" Irene.

When the staff arrived to handle the paperwork and reminded them to sign, he couldn't help glancing at Irene quickly.

Irene's eyes didn't redden. She signed without hesitation.

"The divorce decree will take some time to process," the staff member said.

She wrote down an address, handed it over, then stood up, lifted the box of design drafts, and turned to leave.

A sudden hollowness hit Ethan. He stood and followed her. "Where are you going? I'll have the driver take you."

The moment his fingers touched her arm, she flung his hand away.

"Get away from me."

Ethan relaxed. Irene had always been like this. If she could still lash out at him, it meant she still cared.

With that thought, his indifference returned. "Suit yourself. We're done anyway. This marriage was a mistake to begin with."

Sophie rushed out from the hall, clearly having already heard about their divorce.

Her eyes brimmed with tears as she waved at him like she used to as a child. A ring he'd ordered not long ago gleamed on her ring finger.

Ethan felt an inexplicable irritation. When he looked up, Irene was already walking away, dragging the box behind her.

As he held Sophie's hand to cut the cake, his hand suddenly trembled. A large chunk of frosting slid off and splattered onto the floor.

The guests offered hollow congratulations. "Congratulations to Ethan and Sophie on reuniting. True lovers always find their way back, no matter how much time passes."

Ethan responded absentmindedly, letting Sophie clasp his fingers tightly, her eyes shining with joy.

Leaning against his chest, she murmured softly, "Let's have the wedding tomorrow. I know you've already prepared everything."

Ethan nodded, instinctively reaching for the wedding ring pressed deep in his pocket.

He comforted himself that life was lived only once and he shouldn't owe himself any regrets. When he was young, he had imagined what a wedding with Sophie would be like.

He told himself this was simply fulfilling a youthful dream. Once it ended, he would return to where he truly belonged.

That night, he got drunk for the first time in ages, throwing an arm around Miles's shoulder and slurring out his truth.

"I never really imagined Mrs. Hart being anyone other than Irene. But come on, when a man's first love shows up, how many can actually resist?"

As he said this, Irene had just passed through boarding. She stepped onto the plane without looking back.

As she took her seat, a new message came in from Ethan.

This time, she didn't open it. She removed the SIM card and dropped it straight into the airsickness bag.

Along with a marriage fractured by five years of cracks, she left it all behind.