Chapter 1

My boyfriend was Jordan Fray, the prince of Jeriton City. He'd always been arrogant and unruly, and he spent money like it meant nothing to him. He was never short of women, too. I was with him for three years, during which time he seemed to have turned a new leaf. He remained faithful to me, even proposing to me. However, he recently found a new prey. She was a pretty college student with flawless skin and an icy temperament. He went mad for her. He didn't hesitate to shove me into the ocean on my birthday to please her. … It was a sunny day without a cloud in sight. The calm water was rippled by splashes as I thrashed in the water, my face filled with despair as I looked at the people on the yacht. A young woman in a white dress stood near the edge of the yacht. Her eyes were guileless and clear. She covered her mouth daintily at the sight of me struggling to stay afloat and smiled brightly. It was a beautiful sight, and Jordan laughed when he saw it. His laugh was hearty, and his originally furrowed brows smoothened. I was already sinking when he heard my cries for help. The feeling of drowning smothered me. I'd had a near-drowning experience as a child and had been terrified of the water since. I'd objected to having my birthday party on the water, but Jordan had begged me until I gave in. Only when I arrived on the yacht did I notice a woman I didn't know among our usual friends. She was gorgeous, and Jordan gave her all his attention. He poured her a drink before doing the same for me. He cut some fruits for her first, too. Even the first slice of cake went to her. He was considerate of all her needs. I couldn't remember the last time he'd treated me like that, though. I immediately realized something was amiss but didn't suspect him of anything. Only after he shoved me into the water was I sure of what had happened—Jordan had had a change of heart. He watched as I slowly sank, casually pushing his sunglasses onto his head. As I thrashed, he squinted his eyes and laughed at me. "You can't really not know how to swim, can you, Seraphine? Drop the act and get back up here! Jessica's already laughed because of you, so that's enough." His mockery stabbed my heart. "Jordan, I think Seraphine really can't swim!" someone shouted when they noticed something was wrong. They hurriedly threw a lifebuoy my way, but the water was already swallowing me up. "Save her!" "Seraphine!" Chaos broke out. A few people managed to get me back on the yacht, but I didn't wake up despite having CPR performed. My body slowly turned cold. That was when Jordan started to panic. He took me to the hospital and sent me to the emergency room. The doctors had to work hard for two hours before they managed to save me. Jordan heaved a sigh of relief when a doctor told him I was okay. He would've become a murderer if anything had happened to me. He was wild and liked having fun, but that didn't mean he wanted to go to jail for it. I only woke up the following day. I stared dazedly at the ceiling and sniffed the hospital's disinfectant, feeling lost. My head throbbed painfully as soon as I tried to move. I pressed a hand to it and let out a muffled groan. Jordan entered the hospital room just then and hurried to me when he saw that I was awake. He grabbed my hand and cried in agitation, "You're finally awake, Sera! You were out the whole night, and I thought you would never wake up!" I tugged my hand out of his clutches and looked at him in confusion. Then, I frowned and asked, "Who are you?"