Chapter 2

Liam stumbled off the stage, the rejected ring still in his hand.

Ben, his college roommate and best friend, rushed to his side.

"Man, I'm so sorry," Ben said, his voice low. "She's... unbelievable."

Liam couldn't speak.

He just nodded, numb.

The gala continued, a grotesque parody of celebration.

Jessica was holding court, laughing, her arm linked with the young model.

She didn't look his way once.

Later, Ben pulled him aside.

"Look, I don't want to make things worse, but I saw Jessica leave with that model guy. They're heading to that new rooftop bar, 'Apex'."

A fresh wave of pain hit Liam.

He had to see. He had to know.

"Take me there," Liam said, his voice hoarse.

The Apex was exclusive, loud.

Ben got them in.

They found a shadowed corner.

And there was Jessica, with her clique.

The model was beside her, his hand possessively on her waist.

Liam' s stomach churned.

He could hear her voice, amplified by her usual dramatic flair.

"God, Liam is just so... stifling," Jessica was saying to her friends, loud enough for him to hear over the music.

Her friends, sycophants mostly, nodded.

"Ten years! Can you imagine? I need excitement, new energy."

She nuzzled the model' s neck.

"Younger men are just so much more... appreciative."

One of her friends, Maria, looked a little uncomfortable but said nothing.

The model smirked, pulling Jessica closer.

Liam felt like he' d been kicked in the gut.

Stifling? After he' d dedicated his life to her, to their company?

He watched them kiss, a deep, passionate kiss that was clearly not new.

The betrayal was absolute.

He turned and walked out, Ben following silently.

Back at their shared luxury condo, Liam waited.

Jessica waltzed in hours later, reeking of expensive perfume and champagne.

She looked surprised to see him awake.

"Oh, you're still up?" she asked, annoyed. "Don't start with the drama, Liam. I'm tired."

"Drama?" Liam' s voice was dangerously quiet. "You humiliate me in front of hundreds of people, then I hear you call me stifling while you're all over some new boy toy. That' s drama, Jessica."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't be so sensitive. We grew apart. It happens."

"We didn't grow apart," Liam said, his voice firm now. "You threw us away. You disrespected everything we built, everything we were."

He stood up. "We're done, Jessica. I'm done."

Jessica stared at him, then scoffed.

A genuine, arrogant laugh.

"Done? Oh, Liam. You're just emotional. You'll come crawling back. You always do."

She smirked. "I give you a week. You can't live without me."

Liam just looked at her, his heart a cold, hard stone in his chest.

"You really believe that, don't you?"

He walked into the bedroom and started packing a bag.

This time, she was wrong.