Chapter 2
Ethan snapped awake.
He clutched his chest, the sound of car horns
filtering in through the window.
Memories flooded back
–
He’d chosen to end the marriage.
Chloe hadn’t put up a fight.
He’d been relieved.
The day after the divorce…
He went to visit his mother as usual.
She refused to see him.
L
She was still angry.
She’d really liked Chloe as a daughter–in–law.
But if Ethan had made up his mind to divorce,
it must have been a carefully considered
decision, with no room for reconciliation.
Elaine invited him to meet, even more gentle
and considerate than usual, her makeup
impeccable, her eyes alluring.
Ethan’s heart stirred slightly, but he was too
busy with work to linger.
He and Elaine were just friends.
That’s how he’d explained it to Chloe when he
asked for the divorce.
L
They were childhood friends, nothing more.
There was nothing inappropriate going on.
Chloe’s best friend had sent him a barrage of
angry texts, cursing both him and Elaine.
He’d glanced at them briefly.
The screen was filled with profanity, each
word cutting deep.
It didn’t sound like something someone on
their deathbed would write.
A month after the divorce…
Chloe still hadn’t contacted him.
Ethan had grown accustomed to this life.
L
Except when driving, he would unconsciously
honk the horn twice.
A habit Chloe had always reminded him
about.
Six months after the divorce…
Chloe’s image resurfaced in his mind.
He’d been thinking about her more and more
lately.
He looked at the food on the table and
suddenly remembered something.
He picked up his phone and opened the food
delivery app.
He ordered spicy crawfish
く
Chloe’s favorite.
They really were different.
Not the same kind of people at all.
He looked at the bright red crawfish and
sighed.
Just then, the housekeeper announced
Elaine’s arrival.
Ethan blurted out, “What does she want?”
The housekeeper looked confused.
Usually, Miss Yates didn’t need to give a
reason for her visits; Ethan would always let
her in.
<
“I’ll go ask,” she said quickly.
Ethan waved his hand. “No need, just tell her
I’m not home.”
Lately, Elaine had been coming over every
few days.
Mostly for trivial matters.
Inviting him to art galleries or concerts.
They always had endless things to talk about.
A soul mate like her was suitable for
remarriage.
Not someone with Chloe’s personality.
ᄀ
That’s what he’d thought before the divorce.
And he still held that view.
He overheard the housekeeper chatting with
the nanny in the kitchen, “My daughter got
divorced just a while ago, and now she’s
found a boyfriend five years younger than her.
How can I, as her mother, not worry…”
Ethan paused.
How could a divorced woman start a new
relationship so quickly?
He’d never imagined Chloe being with
someone else.
After nightfall…..
r
He couldn’t hold back any longer and asked
someone to check on Chloe.
His assistant replied that Chloe had gone
abroad.
“Her best friend, who’d been living alone due
to illness, passed away three months ago.
Chloe went to the funeral.”
“Neighbors said Chloe wasn’t planning to
come back. Someone accompanied her when
she left…”
Ethan’s hand trembled, spilling his tea all over
the table.
She really wasn’t coming back?
<
He didn’t sleep a wink that night.
He couldn’t understand.
How could Chloe be so heartless?
Unwilling to even see him.
Abandoning her two children.
Just running off with someone else.
Even if she hated him, as a mother, she
shouldn’t be so cruel.
He suddenly woke up.
Thankfully, it was just a dream from his past
く
He wouldn’t let Chloe down again.
Chloe wouldn’t hate him.
He was convinced Chloe was also reborn.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have deliberately
avoided him every time.
He had also chosen to avoid her.
Since they had a connection from their past
life, if they couldn’t be husband and wife, they
could at least be friends.
Like he and Elaine in his dream.
Thinking of this, a smile unconsciously crept
onto his face.
<
Someone with Chloe’s personality didn’t seem
like friend material.
She was silly, a bit ditzy.
But hadn’t he decided to marry her because
he found that adorable?
He missed the way she looked when she
listened intently while snacking.
Being friends should be interesting.
But why did he always want to see her?
The city’s hustle and bustle gradually
subsided.
The night was quiet.
L
But Olivia had told me…
He was the one who’d had an affair.
Ethan hadn’t married me because he loved
me, but because I was obedient.
He complained that I didn’t understand art,
that I couldn’t discuss literature with him.
In the early days of our marriage, every
intimate encounter felt like a chore for him,
his expression utterly indifferent.
Gradually, he started to enjoy it, or rather, get
used to it.
Ethan and I had two children.
L
L
Compared to me, Elaine was completely
different.
She was like a custom–made wife for him,
perfectly suited to his tastes.
Olivia said I used to be deeply in love with
Ethan.
The first time I caught him and Elaine on a
coffee date, I’d sensed something was off.
He’d never explained.
Time and time again, countless times.
Whether at the library or at art exhibitions
places he’d never take me.
They treated each other like soulmates,
–
く
They probably hadn’t officially crossed the
line.
So, when Ethan asked me for a divorce, he
was completely self–righteous.
He said he’d never wronged me.
Elaine hadn’t done anything wrong either.
They were innocent.
—
He’d simply realized his true feelings — that
he didn’t love me.
My two children said Aunt Elaine was more
like a wealthy housewife than I was, and that I
was too clueless about proper etiquette.
Just like that I signed the divorce papers.
<
No one came to see me off the day I moved
out of the Harris mansion.
I was shocked when Olivia told me all this.
I couldn’t accept that I’d ever been in love
with someone like Ethan.
Could intimacy have been the catalyst for my
feelings?
This time, I wouldn’t let him touch me, not
even a finger.
Now…
Ethan was about to say something else, but I
grabbed Caleb’s hand and rushed out.
Olivia had said I could only interact with
く
Since she wasn’t there, I naturally ignored
him.
Although Caleb was big, he was surprisingly
obedient, not asking a single question.
He held my hand as we ran.
Wherever I pointed, he’d follow.
I glanced back at Ethan.
He stood there alone.
Like an abandoned puppy.
Back at school…
Olivia asked Caleb, “What do you think of my
Chloe2!!
く
Caleb’s tanned face flushed, looking both shy
and handsome.
“Chloe is amazing, so cute and kind…”
Olivia nodded in satisfaction and proceeded
to grill him with more questions.
Confirming his family background was clean,
that he had no fiancée, no childhood
sweetheart, and no “the one that got away.”
I watched, dumbfounded.
After hearing his answers, Olivia smiled and
said,
“Since you two like each other, I, as her best
friend, can’t object. How you date and
develop your relationshin is up to you“!
Г
“But remember, be good to Chloe. If she’s
ever wronged, I’ll be the first to stand up for
her.”
I was still dazed when Caleb solemnly nodded
in agreement.
After Caleb left, I whispered, “Olivia, actually
[…”
“Your face turned bright red when you saw
him, you even stopped eating your fried
chicken. Need I say more?”
I fidgeted with my clothes. “I just thought he
was tall and strong, with healthy skin, and
looked…delicious…”
Could this be what it felt like to like
<
Did I look as cute as a steamed bun to
Caleb?
Olivia rolled her eyes and walked away.
I figured someone like Ethan, a cold CEO
type, would back off when I ignored him.
