Chapter 2

I arrived at the company early the next morning.

My resignation letter lay quietly in the drawer, waiting for me to submit it.

My phone vibrated. Julian had sent me a text.

“Ethan, I heard you’ve taken care of Evelyn for all these years. You must be exhausted.”

“She said that if you weren’t so capable, she wouldn’t have settled for keeping you around until now.”

“Evelyn and I are going ring shopping today. I’ll leave the company’s affairs in your capable hands.”

I read the messages without expression. My fingertip hovered over the screen for a moment, but in the end, I didn’t reply.

I opened the compressed folder he had sent.

Inside were photos of Evelyn and him traveling together over the years.

Five years ago. Three years ago. One year ago.

So they had been in contact all along.

When I drank until I vomited blood at a business dinner for a contract, they were skiing in the Alps.

When I worked through the night revising proposals until dawn, they were kissing beneath the Eiffel Tower.

When I was hooked up to an IV at the hospital while still taking work calls, they were watching the sunset on a beach in the Maldives.

…

I had suggested traveling together too, even if it was only a short weekend trip.

She would always rub her temples and lean against my shoulder with a tired sigh.

“Ethan, I can’t relax right now. How about we go after the company goes public? Wherever you want to go, I’ll go with you.”

I had believed her.

I had even secretly researched countless travel guides.

But the business trips she took alone once every year had all been dates with Julian.

I stared at the screen and suddenly laughed.

This time, I didn’t hesitate. I took my resignation letter to Human Resources to complete the departure process.

The HR manager looked stunned. “Ethan, you’ve been here since the company was founded. You finally made it to the public offering, so why are you leaving now?”

“Besides, didn’t Ms. Evelyn say she would grant you one wish after the company went public? Wouldn’t it be a shame to leave now?”

Everyone at the company knew that I loved Evelyn.

But she never acted close to me in front of outsiders, and she never allowed me to cross any boundaries.

She even required us to take different routes to and from work.

My coworkers all assumed that I had loved her in vain and was leaving because I could never have her.

Looking back, that was probably for the best.

Loving her had been my choice.

Once I stopped loving her, I could let go just as decisively.

As for that wish, I had originally planned to use it to propose to her.

She had once said that she had no hopes for marriage, so she wasn’t planning to get married anytime soon.

I had been willing to wait seven years, so I hadn’t minded waiting a few more.

But now I was tired. I didn’t want to wait anymore.

“Yeah, maybe it is a little unfortunate, but I really think I need some time to rest. Let’s just finish the paperwork.”

Seeing how determined I was, the HR manager stopped trying to persuade me.

After completing all the procedures, I returned home and saw Evelyn staring blankly at a diamond ring.

When she saw me, she hurriedly hid it and said in an obvious attempt to cover things up, “You’re back? Oh, right. I’m going on a business trip tomorrow. I wanted to let you know in advance.”

I put down my keys. “Okay.”

I never argued with her or questioned her decisions.

I was about to enter the bedroom when she suddenly grabbed me.

“Ethan, why aren’t you asking how long I’ll be gone?”

I froze, not expecting her to ask me that.

Usually, she simply informed me so I could pack her bags.

Looking at her evasive eyes, I forced a smile.

“Sorry. I’ve been busy today and my mind’s a little foggy.”

She smiled tenderly and suddenly kissed me.

“Ethan, I haven’t even congratulated you on our company going public. Tell me what you want, and I’ll make it happen when I get back.”

I knew I should give up.

But I still couldn’t accept it. I wanted to make one last attempt.

I wanted to give these seven years some kind of conclusion.

I caught her hand and asked seriously:

“Evelyn, if my wish was to marry you, would you say yes?”