Chapter 1

Mrs. Miller offered me 10 million dollars and told me to leave her son, Gideon Miller. I thought Gideon and I shared a deep connection, so I was planning to tell him as a joke. After our intimacy, I accidentally answered his call. "Do you think the wedding invitations should be gold-embossed or just plain, Gideon?" the person asked. My blood ran cold. Gideon was getting married. So what would that make me? … On the day of Gideon's wedding, I packed up everything we had over the years and mailed it to him. I then boarded the plane to a foreign country. Two years later, he used every trick in the book to lure me back, just to get me to watch a fireworks show. As the cherry blossoms showered down on the bridge, he asked me with reddened eyes, "Back when we were 19, you said that those who watched fireworks together would be bound for life. Does that still count?" … Gideon entered the bathroom after our intimacy. I lay on the bed and spoke to him through the glass door. "Mrs. Miller came looking for me today, Gideon." Gideon replied in a muffled voice, "What did you say?" Suddenly, the phone beside me started ringing. Ignoring my sore back, I turned over to answer the call. A bright female voice asked, "Do you think the wedding invitations should be gold-embossed or just plain, Gideon?" My blood ran cold. It turned out that everything Mrs. Miller said was true—Gideon was getting married. So what would that make me? I remained frozen in place when Gideon walked out wrapped in a bath towel. He scooted over and nuzzled my neck. "Are you upset?" I pushed him away and casually replied, "Your fiancée is asking if your invitations should be gold-embossed or just plain." Without hesitation, Gideon quickly tore off the bath towel, got changed into his tailored suit, and bolted out the door. That night, I washed myself over and over again. He did not call me, not even when morning came. … Gideon and I were high school classmates. Back then, he was an adored scion of a powerful family, with countless pursuers and endless love letters stuffed in his drawer. I couldn't imagine that someone like him would like me. As such, I didn't believe in him when he confessed his feelings to me during our graduation day. In order to prove his sincerity, Gideon accompanied me to a small town. We ate in shabby diners by the road. He reminded me that he liked me for two whole months, as if afraid I might have forgotten. I only accepted his feelings a day before our college admission. Like many other couples, we spent four wonderful years together in college. After graduation, Gideon took over his family business, while I became a language teacher in the best private high school in Windleton. It just so happened that the investor of the high school was one of his best friends. At that moment, I realized that my life had always been connected to Gideon. But now, he had dropped everything to rush over to that woman just because of a phone call. He had left me behind. It was as if he might upset her if he were even a second late. I wasn't even aware when Gideon had gotten a fiancée. Just like that, I was deceived by him over the years. … The next time we met, Gideon was picking me up from work as if nothing had happened. "I'll go over to yours tonight, Janice." I gave him a harsh slap on the face. Then, I retracted my hand. Gideon stepped closer, forcing me back against the car. His almond-shaped eyes were trained on my collarbones, clearly implying that I was the one who willingly offered myself to him. I pushed him away and raised my hand, but he stopped me. "Are you done making a scene, Janice?" Gideon, who used to treasure me dearly, was currently accusing me of making a scene, all for another woman. How did our eight-year-long relationship turn into nothing more than my one-sided love? To him, I was merely a secret lover who wasn't worth being shown to the public. I bit my lip and spat on Gideon. "You're shameless, Gideon!" He grabbed my arm. His tone softened as he said, "I don't want to hurt you. If you're willing, we can still go back to how things were." Was he asking me to be his secret lover like how it was before? Gideon continued to persuade me. "You should understand that someone like me needs to marry someone with a similar status and position. "The Hoffmans and the Millers have been close for generations, and Miriam is taking over the Hoffmans' subsidiary. Marrying her is the perfect arrangement." I asked, "What about me then?"