Chapter 1

It was our wedding anniversary.

I wanted to surprise my wife, Seraphina, so I invited all our friends and colleagues over to our house for a party.

We all waited, but she never came home.

Finally, at midnight, I video-called her. A young, handsome man answered, completely naked.

"Shhh... she's asleep."

In the camera's view, my wife was wearing nothing but lingerie, her face flushed as she slept peacefully.

I ended the call.

I sent everyone home.

I threw away the flowers and the cake.

Then, I sent her the divorce papers.

...

She tore them up. "You're thirty years old, Caleb. What are you going to do without me? Find another woman to mooch off of? Can you even perform anymore?"

I laughed. A man in his thirties might lose his stamina, but he gains the courage to start over.

At thirty, you learn to say goodbye.

A goodbye that means you’re never seeing them again.

...

Seraphina sat on the couch, holding the divorce papers between two fingers and waving them casually.

"Hah, divorce? Is this the best you can do? How childish."

Not a single word of explanation. Maybe she didn't want to, or maybe she just didn't think I was worth one.

She reeked of alcohol, playfully dangling a stiletto from her toes. She glanced around the empty room and suddenly laughed.

"You're a thirty-year-old man, you don't need to be so dramatic. So you canceled a party? We can throw as many as you want. Now go make me some coffee."

In my wife's eyes, all my careful planning was just a joke.

And the fact that my colleagues had just seen a video of her in bed with her childhood friend, wearing only her underwear, seemed perfectly normal to her.

I just stood there, my arms crossed. In the past, I would have doted on her, taking care of her every time she came home drunk.

But that was then.

When Seraphina saw I wasn't moving, her brows furrowed.

"Are you deaf? Did you really think you could threaten me with this little stunt? Pathetic."

My voice was hoarse when I spoke.

"I've already signed them. If there's no love left, there's no point in torturing each other. I'm setting you free to be with your 'dear friend'."

Seraphina just scoffed, her face a mask of disdain.

"Divorce? Fine."

She kicked off her heels, her stockinged feet padding silently on the floor as she walked towards me. She looked down at me, her expression dripping with contempt.

"I'll have Jace draft an agreement where you leave with nothing but the clothes on your back. If you dare to sign that, I'll sign this."