chapter 4

I was the Foster family’s heiress, and I had been engaged to the Suttons since I was a child.

The man I was supposed to marry was Graham, the heir of the family. Zach’s older brother.

But I refused. No matter what. Because by then, I had already fallen for Zach.

Graham had said to me, “He doesn’t love you. Why not choose me instead?”

Back then, my head was full of romance. I didn’t listen to anything else. I just thought Zach treated me so well. How could he not love me?

Graham didn’t fight it. He only said, “If you ever regret it, come find me. I’d give everything up for you.”

Now, I was here to ask.

He looked at me and said, “When?”

“Right now.”

He nodded, turned to his assistant, and said, “Cancel the engagement party.”

The second the news broke, the whole place exploded.

Some people laughed. Some whispered. Most just stood there, watching the drama unfold like it was a show.

Sierra went pale.

Zach rushed to her side, holding her up, trying to calm her down. He said the rumors weren’t true. He even started yelling at guests for spreading lies.

Anyone with eyes could see how much he cared.

Looking back, I couldn’t believe how blind I’d been.

“Are you sure you won’t regret this?”

I shook my head.

A man who never once put me first—I didn’t want him anymore.

I left the party early. The moment I got home, I threw out everything we shared.

I had made up my mind. I was going to disappear from his world completely.

He came home looking drained. When he saw me, he asked why I had left the party so early.

I brushed it off, saying I didn’t feel well.

Then he noticed the documents in the trash and asked, “What’s all this?”

I smiled and said, “The photos on them were awful.

“Everyone at the party looked perfect. I looked dull next to them. Figured it was time for some new ID photos, so I tossed the old ones.”

He knelt down and started picking them up one by one.

“Even if you want to redo everything, you don’t just throw away our marriage papers.”

I almost laughed.

So now they mattered to him?

“Forget it,” he said. “If you want new photos, I’ll go with you. I’ll book the trip right now. Beach or desert, you pick.”

I said Anywhere was fine.

Because no matter where he went, I wasn’t going with him.

“Then I’ll—”

His phone rang.

He glanced at the screen, then looked at me, clearly torn.

I spoke first, “If you need to go, it’s fine. I’m okay here.”

I heard the call earlier. Sierra was crying, saying she’d been dumped for no reason and didn’t want to live anymore.

Zach looked visibly shaken.

Any time she called, he went to her. Always. I wasn’t about to humiliate myself by asking him to stay.

Still, it hurt to watch him walk out without even hesitating.

He had always been so careful about his image. Never did anything that could damage his reputation. But for Sierra, he didn’t care. He’d sneak out at night just to see her, no matter how scandalous it looked. His brother’s fiancée, and he was visiting her in secret.

He knew she always drew attention and that the paparazzi followed her everywhere, but he never cared.

Love or not, it was clear enough.

It felt like someone had carved a hole into my chest. I couldn’t even feel the pain anymore.

I got rid of everything. Every photo, every document. Even our wedding picture.

That photo had captured the happiest moment of my life.

Now, it meant nothing.

As I took it down, a smaller photo slipped from the back.

Sierra, in a wedding dress. Zach, holding her with a real smile on his face.

Not like the smile he gave me. That smile was real.

No wonder he always looked lost in thought when he stared at our wedding photo.

When I asked him why, he used to say, “You looked so beautiful that day. I just wanted to keep staring.”

Now I finally understood. When he looked at our wedding photo, he wasn’t looking at me. He was looking through it, remembering their past.

Disgusting.

Absolutely disgusting.

I tore every photo to shreds.

Later that night, he came home and passed out on the couch.

I looked at the man I had loved for so many years, and all I felt was regret.

I lifted his hand and used his fingerprint to unlock his phone.

There was a scheduled message set to go out at 8 a.m. the next morning.

“Babe, I booked our tickets to the beach. Pack your cutest dress. I can’t wait to leave with you."

I deleted it without a second thought.

Zach, from now on, you and I no longer exist in each other’s world.

I walked out and got into the car.

Graham looked at me and asked, “You’re really going through with this?”

“I’ve made up my mind. Don’t try to stop me.

“Three years ago, you told me he didn’t love me. I didn’t believe you. I made a fool of myself. I just want this all to end.”

He nodded and drove me to a clinic.

Before we went in, he reminded me one last time, “If you go through with this treatment, you might lose all your memories.”

I closed my eyes.

The IV fluid slowly entered my veins.

All I could think was, “When I wake up, he’ll be nothing but a stranger.”