Chapter 1

The air in the SoHo gallery was thick with the smell of money and cheap champagne. I stood in the corner, a ghost in a world I used to own. For seven years, I' d been Ethan, the low-profile city planner, the supportive boyfriend. Not Ethan Vanderbilt, heir to a real estate empire.

All for her. For Chloe.

My fiancée, the rising star of the New York art scene.

Tonight was her big night, a prestigious preview. But she wasn't looking at me. Her eyes were fixed on Leo, her flamboyant best friend. They stood before their new collaborative piece, a series of photographs titled "Borrowed Time."

My blood ran cold when I saw the centerpiece.

It was a photo of them, Chloe in a white dress, Leo in a sharp suit, holding a prop marriage certificate. They were smiling, a private, intimate smile that wasn't for the camera. It was for each other.

Leo, her tragic muse. Three years ago, he' d told us he had a rare, degenerative heart condition. He had only a few years left. That lie had given him a permanent spot in our Brooklyn loft and a permanent claim on Chloe' s every waking moment.

A woman next to me sighed. "So tragic. So beautiful. Their love is so pure because it's fleeting."

My seven-year relationship, our engagement, felt like a joke. A seven-year-long, expensive joke.

Chloe finally saw me. She saw the shock on my face.

"Ethan, don't," she hissed, her voice low. "You're being unsupportive. This is my art. It's about the ephemeral nature of love."

Her words didn't even register. All I saw was the lie. The years of sacrifice, of putting my own ambitions on hold, of funding her "struggling artist" lifestyle, all flashed before my eyes.

I quietly pulled out my phone. My fingers were steady.

I found my mother' s number.

The text was simple.

"Mom, I'm ready. I'll marry Sophia Sterling."

I hit send.

The decision was made. The seven years of my bohemian life were officially over.

Chloe was still talking, explaining her artistic vision. I didn't listen. I just nodded, a cold smile on my face.

"I understand," I said. My voice sounded strange, distant. "It's a powerful statement."

She looked relieved, thinking she had placated me. "I knew you'd get it."

Leo drifted over, putting a proprietary arm around Chloe's waist. He gave me a condescending look. "It's a deep connection, Ethan. Not something everyone can grasp."

I just looked at them. The happy couple. The artist and her dying muse.

They were a perfect picture of betrayal.

Chloe' s phone buzzed. She glanced at it, her eyes widening slightly. It was probably a notification about a sale. She looked happy.

"I need to talk to the gallery owner," she said, pulling Leo with her. "Stay here."

She didn't look back.

I watched them go, a single thought echoing in my mind.

It's over.

I took a final look at the picture of their "marriage." Then I deleted every photo of Chloe from my phone. Seven years, gone in a few taps.

My own phone buzzed. A reply from my mother.

"The Plaza Hotel. Next month. Sophia is thrilled. Welcome home, son."

I put the phone back in my pocket. A weight I didn't even know I was carrying lifted from my shoulders.

I was finally free.