Chapter 2

That single sentence froze me in my tracks.

It was true. He was once the golden boy of Vance Enterprises, living a life of absolute luxury.

But to be with me, he had a massive fallout with his parents and was cut off.

To give us a future, he used his remaining savings to start a small design firm.

All to prove to his family that he could make it on his own, with me by his side.

For me, he had sacrificed his wealthy life.

Because of that guilt, I had spent years giving in to his every demand.

Seeing the pleading look in his eyes, my heart softened once again. But I set a condition.

"This is the very last time I am cleaning up your mess. There won't be a next time."

"And you have to promise me one thing. For the next month, you are driving me to work."

When we first started working, Austin hated seeing me squeeze onto the crowded subway, so he bought a car specifically to commute together.

But ever since Chloe joined his startup, she kept whispering in his ear. She told him the other employees were gossiping about us, saying I was getting special treatment and that Austin was an unprofessional boss.

To "protect the company's reputation," Austin decided we needed to keep our distance at work.

He pushed my starting hours back by thirty minutes.

Since then, we never rode together. Instead, Chloe and Austin left at the exact same time every day, and he naturally became her personal chauffeur.

Austin eagerly agreed to my condition, pulling me in for a sloppy kiss on the cheek. "Elena, I knew you were the best."

Watching us, the fake sweetness in Chloe's eyes vanished. She quickly opened the fridge and grabbed a bag of fresh peaches.

"Elena, doesn't the lady next door love organic peaches? Why don't you take these to apologize?"

Hearing this, Austin immediately let go of me and grabbed the bag from Chloe's hands. "What are you doing? You’re highly allergic to peaches! Let me handle it."

Chloe was allergic to peaches? No wonder Austin had thrown a tantrum a few days ago when he saw me buy some, demanding I throw them out immediately.

It was only when I told him they were for our neighbor, Brenda, that he reluctantly let me keep them in the corner of the fridge.

But what shocked me more than Chloe’s allergy was that Austin actually remembered it.

In our ten years of dating, Austin had always kept his spoiled-rich-boy attitude. I was always the one catering to his needs, remembering his likes and dislikes, and taking care of him.

As the cold bag of peaches was shoved into my hands, the chill from the fridge seemed to seep straight into my bones.

When Brenda opened her door and saw me, she didn't look surprised at all. "Are you here apologizing for those two clowns again?"

I didn't say anything. I just handed her the peaches with a polite smile. "I’m so sorry we disturbed you again, Brenda. These peaches are for you. I hope you can forgive us."

Brenda sighed, took the peaches, and immediately disappeared into her kitchen. A moment later, she returned and shoved a warm container of homemade mac and cheese into my hands. "It's late. I bet you haven't eaten. I made too much anyway."

My stomach growled right on cue. My cheeks burned with embarrassment, and my eyes welled with tears.

As I ate, Brenda stood by the door, lecturing me. "Elena, I’m not trying to be a nosy neighbor, but that new girl in your apartment is bad news. And your boyfriend is completely blind. You need to watch your back."

"Think about it. Since she moved in, how many times have you been locked out? There's always an excuse, always a 'misunderstanding.' If you ask me, that girl is deliberately marking her territory."

"You’re too soft-hearted, honey. Start looking out for yourself. If I didn't know any better, I’d think those two were the actual couple."

I took Brenda's advice to heart. Lately, I had been so buried in project deadlines that I barely had time to talk to Austin.

When I walked back inside, the two of them were already yelling at the TV, playing video games again. I told Austin to come to the bedroom early because we needed to talk.

He just gave me a distracted murmur, probably not even processing my words.

I stood there for five minutes. During that entire time, he and Chloe laughed and bantered, never once looking up at me.

Suddenly, the desire to talk to him evaporated. I had been busy with work, while he had been busy playing games with Chloe, driving her around, and mentoring her.

I opened my phone, logged into my email, and replied to an offer from a rival design agency.

They had been trying to recruit me since I graduated, offering a great salary, but I had always turned them down to help Austin build his startup.

Their office was on the other side of town—far enough to give me some space to think about whether this relationship was worth saving.