Chapter 1
The day I finished my overseas assignment, I secretly flew back home after a thirteen-hour flight without telling Caius Frostmere.
Just a few days earlier, we had another argument. Caius wanted me to continue developing my career abroad, but I insisted on returning home so we could finally get married.
Before I boarded the plane, he was still trying to persuade me over the phone.
"Rosalie, don't give up your future for me. As long as we love each other, whether we get married or not doesn't really matter."
The moment I heard those words, I finally made up my mind completely.
As soon as I got off the plane, I headed straight to a jewelry store to buy a diamond ring while sharing my proposal plans with my best friend.
On the other end of the call, a baby was crying nonstop. My friend tried to soothe the child while speaking in an irritated tone.
"Rosalie, wake up! You've already been with him for ten years, and for the last five, he's kept you in a long-distance relationship while constantly delaying marriage. It's obvious he doesn't want to marry you! Marriage is the graveyard of love," she continued bitterly while trying to calm the wailing child. "I'm already losing my mind taking care of a baby every day. It's too late for regrets now!"
I was just about to argue back when I suddenly saw my best friend walking out of a maternity store while carrying a child in her arms.
"My husband is here to pick us up. Talk later." She hurriedly hung up the phone and waved toward the street ahead.
A black Mercedes-Benz stopped in front of her.
The car door opened, and the man gently took the baby from her arms and skillfully soothed the child as if he had done it thousands of times before.
Sunlight fell across the side of his face, making my eyes sting with pain.
The husband my best friend had secretly been married to for the past two years was actually Caius Frostmere, the boyfriend I had been in a long-distance relationship with for five years.
*****
My trembling fingers dialed Caius' number, my heart filled with panic. As long as he didn't answer, everything I had just seen could still be fake.
The next second, the man holding the baby pulled out his phone. He hesitated for a few seconds before ultimately rejecting the call. It synced perfectly with my phone screen.
I stood hidden behind the corner just a short distance away, and their conversation was crystal clear.
"Honey, you're on diaper duty tonight. I have carried our little boy all day, and my arms are about to fall off."
My best friend has always been strong-willed. In all these years, it was the first time I had ever seen her act so spoiled and affectionate.
Caius kissed her forehead, his voice as gentle as ever, "You worked hard today, sweetheart. Go home and get some rest."
That single word, 'sweetheart,' shattered the very last fragment of my fantasy.
The ring box in my hand felt unbearably hot, as though it were mocking my stupidity over all these years.
Alessia Holloway had been secretly married for two years. She never posted pictures of her husband online, yet she constantly urged me to break up with Caius.
Every time I brought up marriage, Caius always had another excuse to avoid the topic.
He said he didn't want to hold back my future and encouraged me to pursue my dreams boldly.
Only now did I finally understand.
His so-called 'not holding me back' meant that he had already married my best friend and started a family with her.
The moment the car drove away, a message from Caius appeared on my phone.
The words looked serious, but the tone behind them was unmistakably affectionate.
Caius: I'm in a meeting right now, so I can't answer the phone. Stop staying up late to call me, okay? Be good.
After five years of long-distance love, he even remembered the time difference perfectly. Every lie had been flawlessly crafted.
Countless nights, Caius would wake up in the middle of the night just to video call me, the background behind him always pitch-black.
I used to feel heartbroken watching him sacrifice sleep for me, but he would always patiently tell me it was fine.
As always, he fully supported my career overseas and never once complained.
Thunder exploded across the sky as rain poured down together with my tears.
Then my phone rang again.
It was Alessia.
"Rosalie, tomorrow is our little boy's first birthday," she said cheerfully over the phone. "You're his godmother, so don't forget to send a cash gift!" She let out a soft laugh before continuing, her tone filled with satisfaction, "The gift you sent for his one-month celebration? My husband and I both loved it."
Every single word she spoke felt like another knife stabbing into my heart.
The rain continued falling endlessly, just like the tears streaming down my face.
Tomorrow was supposed to be the tenth anniversary of my relationship with Caius. I had originally planned to propose to him that day.
After returning to the hotel, I called Caius five more times because I wanted to hear the truth from him personally.
Unexpectedly, he rejected all five calls in a row. On the sixth attempt, he finally answered, though his voice now carried a trace of impatience.
"Rosalie, I have already told you to get some rest early. Whatever it is, we can talk about it later."
My voice was hoarse as I spoke, "Tomorrow is our tenth anniversary. Don't you have anything you want to say?"
Silence instantly filled the other end of the line.
I waited.
I waited for him to admit with his own mouth that he had married Alessia.
I waited for him to explain why he had deceived me for so many years.
But in the end, all I received was a flimsy excuse.
"I'm sorry, Rosalie. Work has been so busy lately that I forgot about the anniversary... I still have to work overtime tomorrow, so I won't be able to video call you. Next year, I promise I'll fly over to spend it with you."
Even now, he still refuses to tell me the truth.
I didn't continue pressing him.
Instead, I deleted my application to transfer back home and submitted a brand-new application instead.
Caius Frostmere, there will never be a next year for us again.
