Chapter 12

Andrew's fingers froze. Over the past three years, he'd occasionally heard a bit of news about Emily. She'd gone abroad to study at a top design academy, and her works had begun to appear at small, niche exhibitions. After graduating, she'd quietly returned to the country and started her own studio. Every piece of news felt like a pinprick to his heart, giving him an explicable sense of annoyance and… despondency. He found himself comparing Emily's quiet independence to Lucy's taxing reliance on him. Emily, the ex-wife he'd once ignored completely and discarded as if she were trash, had quietly bloomed out of his sight, slowly revealing her dazzling existence. The brilliance of her newfound glory only made his "new life" seem even more chaotic and pathetic. … A week later, it was time for the triennial high-society charity gala. It was a gathering of all the most prominent people in society. Andrew attended the event with Lucy. Intent on being the center of attention, Lucy wor