Chapter 2
Back at the villa, I pulled out a cardboard box and started packing up everything connected to Lorian Vale.
The first thing I put in was a photo of us at seven years old.
He was wearing a gentle suit, stone–faced standing next to me, but secretly tugging at the hem of my dress.
His mom used to say that day he refused to take a solo picture–had to be with me.
That was the first time he showed his possessive streak over me.
The second thing was a mason jar filled with handwritten notes–exactly 520 of them.
Back in sophomore year, leaving little love notes was the thing to do.
At first, my locker would be stuffed with notes from different guys every damn day.
Then suddenly, there’d only be one note on my desk each morning.
Inside, in Lorian’s messy scrawl“Only mine. Stop reading theirs.”
That’s when he started using his family’s pull to keep other guys the hell away from me.
The third thing was the diamond ring.
The day I turned eighteen, he hired every drone in LA to propose to me.
As those drones rained down rose petals, that rock sparkled.
He slipped it on my finger himself, eyes drowning in love“Saffron, for the rest of our lives… you’re mine. Only
nine.”
‘n that moment, I actually thought we’d make it forever.
I let out a bitter laugh, shoved everything into the box, and chucked it all in the fireplace.
The next morning, I woke up to a racket coming from the garden.
When I looked out, I saw that the entire rose garden–the one Lorian had planted for me with his own damn lands–had been completely ripped out.
In its place was a massive patch of jasmine.
Wilda stood in the hallway, shaking her head all innocent–like“Lorian, this… this doesn’t seem right. When Mrs.Vale finds out, she’s gonna lose her mind…”
15:43
Husband’s Secretary Affair Exposed–Then I Fell Into College Upperclass’s Arms
Chapter
Lorian’s voice was all soft and soothing“Don’t worry about it, babe. Saffron’s cool–she won’t flip out.”
Then he spotted me and quickly jumped in,
“Saffron! You’re not pissed, are you?”
“I’m only doing this to keep Wilda happy–maybe it’ll help her deliver early, and then we can get back to how things
were.”
“I’ll replant all the roses myself later, and I’ll have someone grab you something nice to make up for it.”
Before I could get a word in, Wilda piped up all sweet,“Mr.Vale, you don’t need to buy anything. I’ve already got the one thing Mrs.Vale wants most.”
She walked over, holding out a manila envelope.
I opened it. The signed divorce papers stared back at me.
When my fingers brushed that signature, my heart felt like someone had just reached in and squeezed the life out of
- it.
Wilda had actually pulled it off.
Perfect. Now their happy family could be happy.
And me? Saffron Elwood was finally gonna live for herself.
