4
Isabelle looked uncomfortable. She finally just shook her head. “I still think that no matter what, the most important thing for a couple is to be together. Even if it means weathering storms, it’s worth it.”
…I didn’t get it. In fact, I was floored. I couldn’t believe someone else shared Chloe’s mindset.
Still, a sliver of melancholy pricked at me. Maybe in their eyes, I was the strange one.
“I think you’ve changed, Serena. You’re not the girl I grew up with anymore…”
My stare made a blush creep up her neck. She threw the words at me and left in a huff.
She was right. I had changed.
thing
Lused to
2009
At first, I used to take her on trips, covering all expenses and giving her a supplementary card for spa days and shopping. But she
always felt awkward about it, insisting on splitting the costs everywhere we went, refusing to take advantage of me. Even when !
told her countless times not to worry, even when Nicolai himself told her to spend more time with me and that he’d cover everythi-
ng, she refused.
His assistant would present her with a heavily discounted bill, and she’d still balk at the price, demanding to see the original receip
1s, muttering under her breath that the assistant was trying to cheat her.
After a while, I stopped asking her to come along.
My social circle had completely transformed after marriage. I was busy. Very busy. Besides traveling, I enrolled in numerous class-
es–from French and floral arrangement to financial management. I studied diligently. Not for pleasure, but to ensure that if “some-
thing happened,” I wouldn’t leave empty–handed.
I’d heard that Chloe and her college boyfriend had broken up. She was even working at one of Nicolai’s subsidiary companies now.
If one day Nicolai remembered his dramatic, unforgettable first love and demanded a divorce, I couldn’t afford to be caught unpre-
pared. While getting half his assets was unrealistic, I wanted to walk away with as much as I possibly could. And I’d need to know
how to manage it.
So yes, I was very busy.
