The day I went to the New York City courthouse to collect my final divorce decree, I shed the drab sweatsuit I’d lived in for five years. In its place, I wore Chanel and a full face of flawless makeup.

When he saw me, the impatience on Nolan Vaughn’s face dissolved into shock. He was silent for a long, stunned moment. "You know," he mused with a bitter chuckle, "if you'd put this much effort in before, maybe we wouldn't be here today."

I said nothing, simply striding toward the parking lot. Decree in hand, Nolan stared after me, making no move to leave.

"If you can't make rent, you can always call me. For old times' sake, I won't let you end up on the street."

A small smile touched my lips, but I didn't reply. I knew that day would never come.

Because in half an hour, I was heading to City Hall. To marry my childhood best friend, the man who had been in love with me for the last ten years.

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1

Stepping out of the courthouse, Nolan double-clicked his key fob. A Porsche parked by the curb chirped in response. A girl in a bright pink coat, seeing the signal, ran over excitedly.

"Nolan, is it done?"

A doting smile spread across Nolan’s face as he nodded. Skylar Jones took the divorce papers from his hand, her grin stretching from ear to ear.

"Congratulations, you're finally free! Let's get Japanese tonight to celebrate!"

Noticing I hadn't moved from the courthouse steps, Nolan glanced over his shoulder. "No ride? Need a lift?"

His tone was a detached, condescending drawl, laced with the lightness of relief. He wrapped an arm around Skylar’s slim waist, his gaze narrowing as he scrutinized me. "Don't make this awkward. Just because we're divorced doesn't mean we can't be civil. Skylar isn't petty; she wouldn't mind."

Skylar clung to his arm, her look a clear declaration of ownership. "That's right, Juliet. You don't have a car now, so you might as well let Nolan give you a ride."

Her tone dripped with condescending charity. In that moment, Skylar was gloating. For a homewrecker, seeing the ex-wife walk away with nothing was the ultimate victory, and she was going to savor it.

I shook my head, my expression impassive. "No, thank you. I have plans."

My phone buzzed twice. A text from my childhood friend, Caleb Blackwood: "Five minutes out."

I tapped back, "Okay."

Skylar’s mocking laughter floated down from the steps. "Juliet, are you just going to stand here refusing to leave? You can't possibly be waiting for Nolan to change his mind, can you? I'm the one he loves. We're divorced. You need to let go."

Me, unwilling to leave? She had to be joking.

"Don't forget, I was the one who filed," I reminded her, then shot a cool glance at Nolan. "A cheater like him? If he were stranded on Fifth Avenue, I wouldn't give him a second glance. Since you're so fond of him, he's all yours. Enjoy."

Skylar didn’t believe a word. As she brushed past me, she whispered, "Juliet, there's no need to be so defensive. Look at you, all dolled up, and Nolan still divorced you. It just proves that for a loser who can't hold onto a man, a little makeup doesn't change anything. I'm different. I'll be a much better Mrs. Vaughn than you ever were. Thanks for getting out of the way."

I met the provocation in her eyes with a sarcastic smile. "You're right, you are different. There aren't many women in New York who've mastered the art of sleeping their way to the top quite like you."

The color drained from Skylar's face, her eyes instantly welling with tears. "Nolan, did you hear her? I was just trying to be nice, offering her a ride, and she humiliates me like this."

Nolan, who had been smoking nearby, scowled and ground out his cigarette. "Juliet, let me be crystal clear: Skylar is not a homewrecker. Our marriage was broken long before she came along. She's the love of my life."

The same tired, hypocritical excuse. I gave a humorless smile. "Say whatever you want. It doesn't matter anymore." I waved the decree in my hand. "Nolan, you always said I was holding you back. Well, now you're free. So why don't you get lost?"

Skylar put on her most wounded expression, looking as if she might burst into tears. "Juliet, I've always respected you. Even though you and Nolan are divorced, we could still be friends. Why do you have to make things so ugly?"

I scoffed. As the other woman, she knew better than anyone how Nolan and I ended up here, yet she had the audacity to play the innocent victim. I wasn't buying it for a second.

"Skylar, if you ever show your face in front of me again, I promise you, things will get much uglier."

Anger flared in Nolan's eyes. He slammed the car door shut in frustration. "Skylar, let's go. We're done here. If she wants to be difficult, let her. We don't have time for this."

With that, Nolan sneered, wrapped his arm around Skylar, and they sped off. I watched their car disappear, feeling a strange emptiness.

Suddenly, a voice called out from nearby.

"Juliet? Have you been crying?"

I turned to see my childhood friend of ten years, Caleb Blackwood. He’d strategically moved to Europe to expand his family’s business for the five years I was married, only reappearing now that it was all over.

"Did that bastard Nolan mess with you again? Did he lay a hand on you?" Dressed in a black trench coat, his tall, lean frame radiated a comforting strength.

"Caleb." My eyes welled up again, but I forced a smile and waved the divorce decree. "Look. I'm free." I took a deep, shuddering breath. "I should have listened to you from the start. Nolan was never right for me. If I'd just listened, I wouldn't have wasted the last five years."

Seeing the tears glistening in my eyes, Caleb pulled me into a hug, his voice thick with emotion. "Juliet, do you have any idea what these last five years have been like for me? I wanted you to be happy, but I also selfishly prayed you would lose our bet."

My gaze softened. The fight went out of me. I closed my eyes, sinking into the warmth of his embrace. Five years. I’d bet five years of my life, and I had lost spectacularly.

Nolan had no clue how much I’d fought with Caleb five years ago over my decision to marry him. Caleb had tried everything to stop me, insisting Nolan wasn’t a good man, but I was hell-bent on breaking free from what I saw as his overbearing control. Finally, an exhausted Caleb had proposed a bet.

"You say he's your true love? Fine. Let's make a bet." He'd made a pact with me: for five years after our wedding, I would wear no makeup, dress plainly, and deliberately present myself as unadorned and ordinary. It was a test to see if Nolan’s love was more than skin-deep. If, after five years, Nolan's love remained unchanged, Caleb would let me go and offer us his wholehearted blessing.

Unfortunately, we never made it. The first year, I dressed like a frumpy student. The second, I gave up my career as an illustrator to become a housewife. The third, I started living in old sweatsuits, my face always bare. As I became more ordinary each year, Nolan's affection withered.

First, he stopped calling me "baby." Then the flowers and gifts on Valentine's Day vanished. When I asked, he'd snap, "We're married. Do we really need to do all that exhausting stuff?" Soon after, he fell silent. He'd come home from work, take one look at my plain appearance, and his mood would sour. He spent most evenings shut away in his study. And finally, all he had left for me was raw impatience. He’d lie about working overtime to go to parties with friends.

I once overheard a voicemail from his friend, teasing, "Nolan, you used to be so whipped. Right after you got married, we could never drag you out. You'd brag that Juliet was a one-in-a-million goddess and that you'd found your soulmate. It's only been three years, what happened? Why are you avoiding her now?"

Nolan’s reply was laced with venom. "The way Juliet is now... I was crazy about her at first because she was gorgeous. Who knew that in just three years, she'd completely let herself go? I get sick just looking at her. And she still clings to me, begging for gifts and kisses. It makes me want to puke. And don't even get me started on sleeping with her. I haven't touched her in six months. I feel nothing."

His words were like ice in my veins. Nolan had whispered it in my ear a thousand times: "Juliet, I love your soul. It has nothing to do with your looks. Even if you get old or ugly, I'll love you forever." But the truth was, I’d only become ordinary, and he'd already shown his true colors.

But I was still a fool, thinking it was just a phase. Until the company's annual gala, when Nolan and his assistant, Skylar, vanished together. When I burst into the hotel room and found them half-undressed, I saw red and hurled a wine glass at them. Nolan’s first instinct was to shield Skylar. Then he glared at me with pure disgust. "Juliet, have you lost your mind? Just looking at your face makes me sick. And now you're acting like a lunatic. What man would want this?"

His sharp words and icy gaze were knives in my heart. The great love I thought would last a lifetime couldn't even make it five years. The final blow came when I discovered he’d secretly altered the artistic rose tattoo on his arm—the one that symbolized me—into the letter 'S' for Skylar.

"It's okay, it's over now," Caleb's voice pulled me from the painful memories. "Juliet, leave it in the past. It's time to look forward." He gently cupped my cheek, a soft smile on his face as he led me into City Hall.

When we emerged, his face was radiant, so overcome with joy he could barely speak. "Juliet, I feel like I'm dreaming. I've imagined this moment a thousand times, and now it's real. I'm not Nolan. I will always love you and protect you."

I smiled and scrolled through the photos on my phone. "You're right. To celebrate a new beginning, we should post something." I looked up at him. "Let everyone know I have a new husband."

Nolan was at Vera Wang with Skylar, helping her try on wedding dresses, when he stumbled upon my wedding announcement on Instagram. The photo showed a vibrant, stunning Juliet, like a rose in full bloom, smiling sweetly on the arm of another man. A knot of unbearable irritation tightened in Nolan’s chest.

"Juliet… when did she get so beautiful?" Nolan muttered to himself. For five years, he had grown sick of her plain, dull face. A friend had once snidely commented, "What's with Nolan's taste? He picked such a tacky country girl," and he'd never taken her to a social event again. But the radiant woman in the photo was a stranger to him.

"Hey, Nolan, I'm talking to you!" A hand slapped his shoulder, followed by Skylar’s petulant whine. "What is your problem? I heard from your housekeeper that when Juliet married you, her dress was custom-made. Now you're making me pick from these simple styles? They're hideous! Do you even care about me?"

Nolan's brows furrowed. He irritably tossed a black card at her. "Fine. Pick whatever you want."

Skylar’s pout vanished instantly. She giggled and snatched the card, but as she looked up, her eyes met mine. Her smile froze.

"Juliet… what are you doing here?" Skylar’s gaze flickered between me and Nolan, her tone dripping with insinuation. "Don't tell me you're already having second thoughts. Are you here to stalk Nolan?"

Caleb and I exchanged a faint smile. "We're at a bridal shop. What else would we be doing but trying on a wedding dress?"

Hearing my voice, Nolan shot up from his seat and strode over, a scornful laugh on his lips. "Juliet, I didn't realize you were so resourceful, finding a replacement so quickly. But your acting is terrible. You think I can't see you're just using this guy to get my attention?"

I remained silent. He wasn't entirely wrong. In the raw days after I discovered his affair, I had stalked him like a woman possessed. Each time, he only found new ways to wound me, moving from hiding his infidelity to flaunting it, even taking Skylar to hotels right in front of me. But all of that ended the moment we divorced.

My face was serene as I said coolly, "You're mistaken. I'm getting married."

"Married?" Nolan looked as if I’d told the world's greatest joke. "You? Do you dare let that guy see you without all your designer labels?" He turned to Caleb, his words sharp with provocation. "Hey, buddy, you might want to see what she really looks like before you put a ring on it. You wouldn't want to find out she's just a country bumpkin and get the shock of your life. As her ex-husband, I stared at that face for five years. I know exactly what she's like. Just a friendly warning."

Caleb stood by my side, a half-smile playing on his lips as he looked at me, then nodded at Nolan. "Ah, Mr. Vaughn. What a coincidence." He smoothly produced an invitation from his coat. "I was going to have this delivered, but since you're here, you've saved me a trip. Juliet and I are getting married next month. We'd be honored if you'd join us."

The color drained from Nolan's face. He stared at the gold-embossed card for a long moment before letting out a cold, harsh laugh. "Wow, Juliet. You're really committed to the bit. You even had props made?" He scoffed. "You'll do anything for attention, won't you?"

Right in front of me, he crumpled the invitation and tossed it into a nearby trash can.

Caleb's expression darkened, and he took a step forward, but I placed a hand on his arm.

"It's fine," I said with a smile. "It's going to be a big wedding. He won't be missed." I turned to the waiting sales associate. "We're here to pick up my dress. We'll just be a moment."

When Skylar saw me leaving with the store’s one-of-a-kind, custom-designed gown, her face contorted with envy. She shrieked at Nolan, "Nolan, look! She bought that wedding dress!"