Chapter 500

• “After you left—these three years—I kept wishing we could be like a normal couple. I’d cook and you’d eat. We’d take walks after dinner. I’d do all the chores myself. I wouldn’t work overtime day and night. I’d spend all my extra time with you. We’d go to the amusement park, catch a movie. And yeah... I still owe you a grand wedding, the right ring. We never even had a honeymoon...”
• Zayla Steele’s face stayed blank. She lowered her head, gazing at Nian Nian in her arms, gently stroking its fur, scratching its neck the way she used to.
• She only showed the slightest reaction after hearing Joaquin Latham’s “sweet talk.” “What you didn’t give me back then? No need to give it now. Joaquin, have you ever heard this? ‘Affection that comes late is worth less than weeds.’ Like a down comforter in summer, a box fan in winter—totally pointless.”