Chapter 2

At 9:00 PM, Chloe finally called. Her voice was sweet and whiny. "Ethan, babe, something happened."

My voice was flat. "What is it?"

"I was trying on the dress earlier and accidentally got it dirty," she said casually. "Can you arrange another one for tomorrow morning?"

My chest tightened. My fist clenched so hard my knuckles popped.

She had just finished getting wild with Tyler, and now she was calmly asking me to clean up her mess.

She knew how much that dress meant to me. She knew I designed it myself.

She just didn't care. She had absolutely no heart.

I took a deep breath. "Sure. I’ll handle it."

Chloe giggled. "I knew you were the best! After the wedding, let's fly straight to Iceland for our honeymoon."

Going to Iceland to see the Northern Lights was a wish Chloe had made on our second anniversary.

They said couples who saw the aurora together would never part.

Because I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her, I worked myself to the bone, pulling endless overtime just to save up enough vacation days and money for the trip.

But she always made excuses to postpone it.

Later, when she finally wanted to go, I was tied up with a massive project at work and couldn’t leave.

She had thrown a massive fit, saying she was going to go with her girls instead and would block me.

I felt so guilty back then that I transferred $8,000 to her account for travel expenses.

She was thrilled, sending me endless heart emojis.

But now, looking at her secret Snapchat archive from those exact dates, I saw the truth.

She hadn't gone with her girlfriends. She had gone with Tyler.

In the photos, their fingers were tightly locked under the glowing green aurora.

On their last night there, she had posted a picture of a messy hotel bed with used wrappers on the floor.

Her caption: [Finally caught my moon.]

A wave of nausea hit me.

Chloe’s voice chirped through the receiver. "Anyway, the girls are throwing me a last-minute bachelorette party tonight, so I won't be checking my phone. Love you!"

A bachelorette party? Or another round with Tyler?

I sneered inwardly and said deliberately, "Have fun. Coincidentally, my ex just reached out. She wants to meet up tonight for some closure."

Chloe immediately exploded. "Your ex? At this hour? What kind of ex asks to meet up the night before your wedding? What are you guys going to do in the dark?"

I countered calmly, "Well, if Tyler asked to meet you tonight, would you go? Would anything happen?"

Chloe’s voice pitched higher, laced with panic. "That’s a completely different story! That hypothetical doesn't even make sense!"

"And even if it did... it would just be for closure. I just didn't want my youth to end with regrets. After tomorrow, I'll be yours forever. Can't you just be the bigger man?"

She wanted me to be the bigger man while she handed me a green hat.

I almost laughed out loud.

Chloe threw her ultimate tantrum. "If you dare step out of the house tonight, the wedding is off!"

Over our four years together, she had always used this weapon.

"If you don't buy me this bag, we’re breaking up."

"If you touch my phone again, we’re breaking up."

"If you aren't nice to my family, we’re breaking up."

Because I loved her, I had always yielded. I complied with her every whim, coddling her like a princess.

She honestly believed I was so hopelessly in love that I would never leave.

But she was dead wrong.

Love isn't everything.

I was a realist.

When I loved her, I could tolerate anything. But the moment she proved unworthy, I could take all my affection back in an instant.

The call ended. Chloe sent a barrage of texts ordering me not to take a single step outside tonight.

If I hadn't seen the video and the secret posts, I would have thought she was just incredibly possessive of me.

Now I knew it was all a sick show.

I didn't reply.

Just then, a frantic knocking came from my front door.

I opened it to find Liam and three of my groomsmen standing there.

I tried to keep a straight face. "What are you guys doing here?"

Liam sighed, stepping inside. "Stop pretending, man. We know."

With that one sentence, my defenses crumbled.

A sudden sting rushed to my eyes.

Four years of devotion. How could it not hurt?

She had been my emotional anchor, the reason I worked so hard.

I had practically sworn before God to love her with everything I had.

Yet, her betrayal was so cheap, making my pure love look like a total joke.

Liam patted my shoulder. "We're here for you. Just say the word, and we’ll beat that bastard Tyler into the ground."

I covered my face and ran into the bathroom.

I splashed freezing water on my face, slowly forcing myself to calm down.

When I walked back into the living room, my phone buzzed. Another text from the unknown number.

[Great venue you booked. Her flexibility is amazing.]

Attached was a photo of the hotel bathroom.

My couch was small, and the groomsmen were sitting close. They all saw the screen.

These were my closest friends. They stood up instantly, furious, ready to murder Tyler.

I held them back, my heart feeling cold and dead. "Don't dirty your hands on trash. I have a better plan."

I had wanted a clean, dignified exit.

But they clearly didn't want me to have one.

All night long, my phone buzzed incessantly.

First from the unknown number, then directly from Chloe’s Snapchat.

Explicit photos, degrading clips.

They would send them and then quickly delete them, followed by lazy texts: [Oops, wrong meme, sorry babe!]

Staring at the screen filled with "This message was deleted" notifications, my heart was completely torn to shreds.

What did they take me for? A toy in their sick game?

I gripped my phone, the very last ounce of affection draining from my soul.

Since they chose to play dirty, I had no reason to spare their dignity.