Chapter 3

Less than ten minutes, and the car reached home.

It hit me then why Minnie had picked this place the moment she saw it when we bought the house.

Because it was so close to Vincent's inn.

Even if it meant I had to wake three hours early to commute, she didn't care.

To her, I was a partner who only handed over money and never truly loved her.

No. She hadn't even treated me as a partner. A marriage business associate, at most.

I walked to the mirror and only then saw how bloodshot my eyes were.

There were dried tear tracks on my face too.

I must have cried in my sleep last night.

I'd dreamed of the first time Minnie and I met.

When I first joined the company, my grandfather hid my identity and had me start at the bottom.

The workplace was full of scheming.

Only Minnie, with no idea who I was, still treated me with kindness.

When I was too busy to eat, it was Minnie who brought two lunches a day, telling me that no matter how tired I was, I had to eat.

When I couldn't take the pressure from my family, it was Minnie who pulled me into the stairwell, held me, and said she believed in me.

Holding onto that old feeling, I drafted a breakup agreement.

The assets I set aside for her were generous, more than fair.

Just as I was about to sign, a call came in.

“Thomas! My brother hit someone, driving without a license again, and the station won't release him. Get down here, now.”

It was Minnie.

I stayed silent for only three seconds.

That was enough to set her off.

“Thomas, are you deaf? Oh, are you still sulking about last night? Is it really worth this? My brother's about to be locked up and you're standing there fussing like an old woman.”

“My brother was right. You never treated us like family.”

“Fine. Then I won't show up at the wedding in three days. You can put on the one-man show by yourself!”

“Beep, beep, beep……”

The call cut off.

The old me would have rushed over in a panic.

But now, I only looked at the breakup agreement and deleted the three cars I'd meant to give her.

Still, there had been something between us.

I pinched the bridge of my nose and decided, in the end, to go.

One, to find her brother a strict sergeant so he wouldn't keep making the same mistakes.

Two, to tell Minnie to her face that our wedding was already off, and congratulate her on getting her freedom back.

The moment I stepped into the police station, my father-in-law stood up.

“Since you're here, hurry up and have a word with them. Vincent's restaurant reservation is almost up.”

“There's no time to waste. If you'd come earlier we wouldn't be rushing like this.”

I ignored him and told the sergeant why I'd come.

“I'll cover the injured party's medical bills. But nail Minnie's brother with the harshest charge you can. Let it teach him a lesson.”

My father-in-law's face changed on the spot.

“Thomas, are you out of your mind? Playing this hard against your own family?”

I gave him a cold glance and turned to the sergeant.

“The car is Vincent's. Encouraging unlicensed driving is a crime too. If you're worried about lacking evidence, pull the surveillance footage around Aspen Ridge. I doubt this is the first time for them.”

Vincent was completely stunned.

Finally, forcing down my impatience, I asked him.

“Where's Minnie? I have something to say to her.”

Vincent seemed to find his backbone all at once, and sneered.

“You've still got the nerve to go looking for Minnie? She's in the restroom fixing her makeup with your mother-in-law. Go find her, then. Tell her exactly what you just did, and see if she still wants to marry you.”

I said nothing more and headed for the restroom.

Just as I got close, my mother-in-law's voice came from inside.

“What was with Thomas's attitude just now? Is it because you two are about to get married, and now that he's got what he wanted he's changing his face?”

“We can't have that! Dump him fast, land yourself someone better, and make him choke on it!”

Minnie let out a careless little laugh.

“Not a chance. I'm his first love, you know.”

“Back when he hid his name and worked his way up from the bottom, I was the one at his side the whole time. He loves me down to his bones. That just now is probably him still sore about last night, that's all.”

My mother-in-law let out a breath.

“Good thing you got lucky. Pick some poor kid at random and he turns out to be a rich young heir.”

“Lucky?”

Minnie burst out laughing.

“Luck wouldn't have been enough. The truth is, I knew who he was ages ago. His first day there, I heard every last word of the conversation he had with his grandfather.”

“Why else would I bother? Cooking for him, giving him all that emotional support.”

“And that's not all. Those first few big deals he landed, I was the one leaking the details to the rival side.”

Minnie dropped her voice.

“Otherwise everything would have gone too smoothly for him. How else was I going to make my loyalty stand out?”

It was summer, yet I felt like I'd been dropped into ice.

I stumbled a long way off before I slowly loosened my clenched fist.

Every bit of that old feeling I'd been holding onto turned out to be a lie.

I opened my phone and looked at the breakup agreement I'd just drafted.

Then, without a moment's hesitation, I tapped 【Erase All】.