Without Deep Love, How Could There Be a Misplaced Heart?

While I was out at an auction with my best friend, I unexpectedly ran into Sebastian Harrington—the man who used to spoil me rotten, the husband of Evelyn Caldwell, the crown princess of this city’s elite. He spent an absurd amount of money on the necklace I’d loved for ages.

But the next day, that necklace was hanging around the neck of that stunningly pretty little intern, Chloe Bennett.

I didn’t cry, didn’t make a scene. Instead, I called a friend who worked at the boutique counter and ordered two hundred custom necklaces of the exact same style, then had them delivered to Dorm Building No. 1 at Arden University.

Since he was so eager to give gifts, I’d do him the favor and help him. Let him give until everyone was sick of receiving.

At the same time, I asked my lawyer friend, Nathan Sterling, to draft a divorce agreement and sent that along to him as well.

That day, every girl in Dorm Building No. 1 at Arden University received a gift from the wife of the CEO of Yuemeng Technologies—everyone except Chloe.

…

When Sebastian walked into the banquet hall with Chloe on his arm, the atmosphere in the room was at its peak.

The young, delicate girl clung intimately to his arm, her smile dazzling and bright.

The crowd around me instantly dispersed, their faces shifting into expressions of awkward sympathy.

I hadn’t expected Sebastian to actually have the balls to bring her out in public.

Our marriage was an alliance between two of the most powerful families in Crestwood City. I’d thought he would at least give me that much face.

I’d been wrong.

“What’s with everyone’s expressions?” I broke the silence first, my tone light. “Don’t tell me you’re all bewitched by Sebastian’s new secretary?”

I graciously offered him that excuse.

Only then did the crowd seem to understand.

Sebastian walked over to me as if nothing had happened and called out gently, “Evelyn.”

Chloe followed, her voice saccharine and coy as she echoed, “Evelyn.”

I swallowed down the urge to throw up and gave them a warm, gentle smile.

We were all adults. There was no need to wear our emotions on our faces every second of the day. In this circle, the most important skill is pretending.

Unhappy? You still smile.

Hate someone? You still act like you adore them.

And Sebastian was who he was. Making a scene here wouldn’t do anyone any good.

But when my gaze fell on the necklace hanging around Chloe’s neck, my heart went cold.

Ten minutes earlier, I’d watched with my own eyes as Sebastian patiently brushed a loose strand of hair from Chloe’s forehead, tucking it behind her ear, then pulled her slipping strap back onto her shoulder.

Yesterday, when I saw him walking out of the auction hall, I’d thought he was buying that necklace for me. A quiet thread of sweetness had wound through my heart, and I’d been full of anticipation, waiting for the surprise.

This morning, I’d even gone to the salon for a hairstyle to match the necklace and had a makeup artist carefully do my makeup.

But even after the look was complete, he still hadn’t sent anything over.

So I called him, trying to probe indirectly, to see if he’d prepared a gift for me.

The answer was no.

But over the phone, I heard a playful female voice:

“Sebastian, won’t Evelyn be upset if she finds out?”

“No,” he said. “She’s always gentle and generous. She won’t mind.”

In that moment, I finally realized how naïve I’d been.

Sebastian had probably stopped being “clean” a long time ago.

He wasn’t wrong about something, though. I am gentle and generous.

I just don’t stoop to wrestling with a bitch like her. It cheapens me.

Chloe stayed glued to Sebastian’s side from beginning to end. On the surface, her smile at me was sweet, but the provocation and pride in her eyes were barely concealed.

I let out a cold laugh. At the end of the day, she was just a clear-eyed, clueless college girl—did she really think Sebastian took her seriously?

My gaze lingered on her neck as I spoke slowly. “That’s a nice necklace you’re wearing. Someone gave it to you, right?”

Chloe wasn’t stupid. Some things didn’t need to be spelled out.