Chapter 1The Desperate Woman

It was our seventh time filing for divorce.

An hour later, wedding photos of my husband and his young assistant appeared on my feed. Her hand was intertwined with his, showcasing his elegant fingers.

The caption read: Legally, logically, lovingly yours.

I clicked his profile—the first “like”—and instantly blocked him.

His frantic call came moments later. I ignored it. He seemed to vanish.

Days later, he called again: “Withdraw the divorce, Aurora. Come home.”

His voice trembled. “Your daughter and I… we’ve missed you.”

I laughed bitterly. Missed me? He’d flown his assistant to New Zealand for orcas, then to Norway for Northern Lights—all documented in a hundred boastful posts.

I stayed silent, switched to speaker, and playfully pinched the bare chest of the man in front of me.

He groaned sharply.

The silence grew heavy.

“Who was that?” My husband Karl’s voice turned tense, teeth gritted. “Where’s my wife?”

* * *

The man holding me chuckled softly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear before ending the call and walking out the door.

Half an hour later, my front door was kicked open.

Karl stormed in, his eyes wild with panic. He grabbed my hands, pulling me up and spinning me around, his gaze frantically checking every inch of me. Only when he was satisfied that I was unharmed did he let out a shuddering breath and pull me into a bone-crushing hug.

“Aurora, I missed you,” he whispered, his eyes red-rimmed as he nuzzled his chin against my shoulder. “Are you mad at me? I’m sorry, I’ll never do it again. Just… don’t use some other guy to make me jealous.”

Listening to his heartfelt confession, I couldn't help but smile. “He’s not a prop, Karl.”

His own smile froze on his face. My voice was light, almost cheerful. “We’re divorced. I have no reason to make you jealous.”

Karl let out a forced laugh, his posture immediately relaxing. “Oh, you’re still hung up on that? Don’t be mad, baby. She’s just a colleague. I didn’t do anything to betray you.”

“Look,” he said, pulling a small box from his pocket. “To make up for this whole divorce mess, I’ll propose to you all over again. You know how we are—we fight, we make up. Just forgive me one more time.” The box opened to reveal a delicate DR necklace. “I got this for you on my business trip.”

My gaze fell to his left ring finger. A faint, pale line circled the base—the unmistakable mark of a ring worn for a long time. We never exchanged wedding rings; he’d claimed it was unprofessional for the office. That, combined with this sudden, out-of-place necklace, made it painfully obvious who he’d been wearing a ring for.

Just then, my daughter burst through the door and threw her arms around my waist. She opened her small hand to reveal a lifelike butterfly hairpin. “Don’t be mad anymore, okay? The little butterfly is saying sorry to you.”

I took the hairpin and clipped it into my hair. The cold, sharp words I’d been about to say died on my lips. You can’t stay angry at your own child.

BOOM!

The sudden crack of fireworks made me jump. Karl grabbed my hand and led me outside. A swarm of 999 drones, arranged in the shape of a massive heart, was gliding toward our house. As they hovered over our lawn, they shifted formation, spelling out my name.

AURORA, HAPPY 10TH ANNIVERSARY.

My daughter looked up at me, her eyes shining with hope. Karl’s smile was as gentle and intoxicating as it was the night he’d laid out 999 candles and asked me to be his girl.

It was cheesy.

But it was dazzling.

Passersby stopped to gasp and applaud. “Now that’s how you do it, kid! So romantic!” someone shouted.

“Kiss her! Kiss her! Kiss her!” a group chanted.

I stared into Karl’s eyes, saying nothing. He bit his lower lip softly and leaned in, aiming for my cheek.

At that exact moment, a pair of blinding headlights flooded my face, and the sound of a woman’s heartbroken sobs cut through the air.