Vesper’s lip curled, her expression flat.
"Do you think I’m in the mood to joke with you?"
"The invitations have been sent. The wedding is next week. You’re going to throw a tantrum over something so small?"
Luke’s jaw tightened as he suppressed his rage. To him, Vesper’s refusal to back down was just proof of how desperately in love with him she was. This was just one of her ploys—a feigned retreat to gain the upper hand.
’They’d been together for three years. How could she possibly be willing to leave him?’
Vesper sneered. "If we break up, you can mess around with Ivy Joyce openly. You won’t have to worry about this old woman holding you back anymore. You can go find all the tender young things you want and play to your heart’s content."
She had heard what was said in the private room.
’So she’s still angry!’
"You’re the one who wouldn’t let me touch you. Who dates for three years without being able to have sex? Vesper, I’m a normal man, not some celibate monk."
’He was implying she wasn’t normal, that she wasn’t even a real woman.’
Three years ago, she had nearly been assaulted. Ever since, she’d had a visceral, physical aversion to intimate contact with men.
They had been dating for half a year before she could gradually accept Luke holding her hand, hugging her, and kissing her. But whenever they got to the final step, she would always remember that dim alley, the chaotic, filthy hands grabbing at her...
For the past few years, she had been secretly and actively seeking treatment, which had been proving very effective.
She had originally planned to give herself to him completely on their wedding day, and then reveal her true identity to him.
’But now, there was no longer any need for that!’
Disappointment filled Vesper’s eyes. "So you and Ivy Joyce get your kicks by mocking the pain I’ve endured?"
A flash of panic crossed Luke’s eyes. He rushed to explain, "I was drunk that day. I needed to vent my pent-up frustrations... I didn’t mean for it to happen."
His feelings for her had never been fake, but over time, he had grown weary. Especially when, time after time, just as his passion peaked, her psychological issues would force him to back down.
With his lust having no outlet, Ivy Joyce had shown up at just the right time. She was young, vibrant, and full of energy, always gazing at him with admiration, even deliberately seducing him.
He hadn’t been able to resist and ended up betraying Vesper. Afterward, he was filled with regret and shame, yet he couldn’t resist the thrill. He became addicted, unable to free himself.
"You can’t keep it in your pants, yet you blame the woman and shamelessly make excuses for your own cheating."
"If you had just come to me and broken up with me honestly, I would have at least respected you as a man!"
Vesper stared at him, her expression cold, showing not a hint of softening or wavering.
Seeing that neither threats nor pleas would work on her, Luke’s anger erupted.
"Vesper, you’ve been living off me for years! I built this company with my own two hands. And now, with a single word, ’breakup,’ you think you can walk away with half of my assets? Aren’t you being a little too greedy?"
Vesper’s gaze remained steady as she stated a fact. "I’m only taking what I’m owed."
’Without her pulling the strings behind the scenes, could he have succeeded so quickly?’
’Does he really think he’s some kind of business prodigy, the chosen one?’
"What do you deserve? Those shares were transferred to Mrs. Lockwood."
The implication was clear: if she refused to be Mrs. Lockwood, he would take back everything he had given her.
’Vesper had struggled through poverty with him. How could she bear to give up this vast fortune?’
’If she couldn’t bear to lose it, she’d have to swallow her pride and accept his infidelity.’
Seeing her silence, Luke looked as though he held all the cards. "Vesper, I can tolerate you not sleeping with me. You should be able to accept Ivy’s existence. The three of us, living our lives together... wouldn’t that be better than anything?"
’He’s not even that good-looking, but he sure has a beautiful imagination.’
’Take off the ’charismatic man’ filter, and he’s nothing special.’
"Luke, you make me sick! How could I have ever loved a shameless bastard like you?"
Her contemptuous glare stabbed into him like a needle. Luke flew into a humiliating rage and grabbed her jaw. "Don’t you dare look at me like that! You think you’re so pure? I’m willing to coddle you, to marry you—you should just be a good girl and be grateful."
"Have a few good days made you forget who you depend on?"
The air was snatched from her lungs. Vesper struggled, her delicate face flushing red from lack of oxygen, but her bright eyes remained locked on him in a death stare.
Luke met her loathing, icy gaze and snapped back to his senses. Realizing what he had done, he snatched his hand away.
"Vesper, I didn’t mean to... It’s just, you said things to provoke me..."
’Even now, he was still trying to pin the blame on her.’
’He really never failed to disappoint.’
Vesper stumbled backward, grabbing the edge of the desk to steady herself as she gasped for air like a fish out of water.
"I just love you too much. I can’t accept you wanting to break up..."
A flicker of remorse crossed his face. He stepped forward, wanting to touch her, but Vesper reacted like a cat whose tail had just been stepped on.
"Stay back!"
Luke froze in his tracks.
"From this moment on, we are completely finished. In the future... we have nothing to do with each other. What is mine, you won’t touch a single penny of. And if you dare try any tricks, I wouldn’t mind letting the entire internet watch a live stream of you and Ivy Joyce."
Once in her car, she made a call.
"Cease all assistance to Zephyr."
She then contacted a real estate agent and listed the house for a quick sale, dropping the price by three hundred thousand.
That very afternoon, a potential buyer viewed the property and a contract was signed.
She packed her belongings and shipped them to her family home in Northolme.
She threw everything belonging to Luke in the trash.
Without a shred of sentimentality, she drove away.
That evening, she checked into a five-star hotel in Ashmore.
That evening, Luke drove home to find the house, which should have been brightly lit, completely dark. His brows knitted together.
In the past, no matter what time he got home, Vesper would hear the sound of his engine and come out to greet him.
When he tried the door, he discovered the code on the keypad lock had been changed.
His expression turned grim. As his eyes swept over the trash cans by the door, his face fell completely.
He immediately called Vesper to confront her.
"You threw my things out. What is the meaning of this?"
Vesper stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows of her hotel room, gazing out at the neon city lights. She took a sip of red wine, as if celebrating her newfound freedom.
"Trash belongs in the trash."
She hung up and, without a second thought, blocked his number.
Though she had accepted the fact that Luke had cheated, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of melancholy as she thought of the past.
’Such a waste of three years.’
She could already imagine how mercilessly her father would mock her when she returned home.
She drank until she was tipsy, then turned off her phone and collapsed into bed.
...
「In a bar.」
Luke, his face grim, was downing shot after shot of hard liquor.
The roaring music did nothing to soothe his agitated heart.
His friends couldn’t bear to watch any longer, but they didn’t dare provoke him in his current mood. Instead, they called Ivy Joyce and asked her to come over and try to talk to him.
Ivy Joyce rushed over, threw herself into his arms, and settled onto Luke’s lap, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"Luke, Sister Vesper is just having a hard time accepting this. She’s just being difficult to spite you. Once she’s had some time to think and has run into a few dead ends out in the real world, she’ll realize how good you were to her."
Luke threw his head back and downed another glass, his eyes cold. "You’re right. I’ll just wait. When she can’t make it on her own out there, she’ll come crawling back to me!"
He made a call and gave a few brief instructions.
"Cancel her supplementary card. And while you’re at it, clear out the balances on all of Vesper’s bank cards."
’Without money, you can’t get anywhere. We’ll see how long her pride lasts then.’
Lowering his gaze, he met Ivy Joyce’s coquettish face. Luke grabbed her chin, bent down, and kissed her fiercely.
Ivy Joyce whimpered, clinging to his head and responding with passion.
"I love you the most, Luke..."