Chapter 2

Even now, Verity remembered the flutter in her heart when she first saw Caelum eight years ago.

On her very first day of college, she had watched him at the podium, delivering a speech on behalf of the student council. He was radiant, authoritative, and completely out of her league. She fell for him instantly.

Bathed in the glow of the spotlights, he was impossible to ignore. Countless women in the freshman class were infatuated with him, and Verity was no exception.

Caelum was the scion of the prestigious Vance family, blessed with striking looks and a lineage most people could only dream of.

Yet, despite the endless line of admirers trailing him, his heart belonged solely to his childhood sweetheart, Liora.

They had been together for years, and Caelum's devotion to her was the stuff of campus legend. He once spent a fortune lighting up the sky with fireworks in the heart of the city just to celebrate her birthday.

He was fiercely protective, too. The first time he ever lost his composure and got into a fistfight was when jealousy flared after another man tried to pursue Liora. It had ended with a permanent mark on his academic record.

Every morning, without fail, he bought her breakfast and waited faithfully downstairs at her dorm.

He once even stood waiting in the snow until he ran a high fever. Later, when it turned out that Liora had simply ditched him to go shopping with her best friend, he didn't utter a single word of complaint.

Everyone said that Caelum loved Liora to his very core.

Verity believed it, too. With Liora in the picture, she buried her own feelings for Caelum deep in her heart, content to remain a silent observer and wish them well from afar. In her mind, simply being able to watch him was enough.

After graduation, Caelum couldn't wait to make Liora his wife.

Verity hadn't actually been invited to that lavish wedding, but she went anyway, slipping in under the vague guise of a former classmate.

But to everyone's surprise, Liora never showed up.

By nightfall, Caelum was frantic. He had called her 99 times, only to realize she had blocked and deleted his number.

He stared at that cold exclamation mark on his screen, frozen in place, while the guests began to assume the wedding would be called off. As a wave of pity for Caelum slowly filled the room, he suddenly did something that stunned everyone.

He walked onto the stage and took the microphone.

"Today, I, Caelum Vance, have decided to find a new bride," he announced, his voice cold and broken. "Is there a single woman here willing to marry me?"

At that moment, Verity, who had always been a shadow in the background, felt her heart slam against her ribs. Perhaps it was the weight of years of suppressed feelings that finally gave her the courage to break through her own insecurity. The moment his voice faded, she stood up without hesitation.

That day, wearing a wedding ring engraved with Liora's name, she blindly married a man who didn't even know who she was.

If Liora hadn't disappeared, Verity's world would never have collided with Caelum's, let alone ended in marriage.

For the next three years, they fulfilled their duties as husband and wife. Their days together were fairly peaceful.

Verity had always known the truth. She was nothing more than a thief who had stolen someone else's destiny.

Then, a month ago, Liora suddenly returned.

The news was like a stone dropped into still water, shattering the fragile dream Verity had lived in for three years.

Since Liora's return, Caelum had been spending less and less time at home.

Deep down, Verity knew it was time to return the title of Mrs. Vance—a title she held in name only—to its rightful owner.

By letting go, she gave them a chance at happiness and found her own peace.

A bolt of lightning tore across the sky, followed by a crash of thunder outside the window. At that very moment, Caelum was likely holding Liora in his arms, murmuring soft reassurances.

Verity took out her phone and sent him a message.

"The document you asked about is tucked under the back seat cushion of your car. If you want to know what it is, just open it."

She braved the rain to get home, but she still hadn't heard back.

It wasn't until dusk settled in that Caelum finally replied.

"No need. I trust you."

Once again, he had missed his chance to learn the truth.

But of course he had. He was so wrapped up in comforting Liora, who was terrified by the storm, that he didn't have a moment to spare for Verity—not even to glance at a piece of paper.