The papers were signed. Three years of my life, officially dissolved in black ink on legal letterhead. I stood outside Patterson & Associates, breathing in the crisp morning air that somehow tasted different now. Cleaner. Freer.
"Noah!"
I turned to see Chloe hurrying out of the building, her heels clicking against the pavement. Behind her, a man I didn't recognize stepped into the sunlight. Tall, expensive suit, the kind of confident smirk that came with inherited money.
"I wanted you to meet someone," Chloe said, a strange note in her voice. "This is Ethan Pierce. We've been... seeing each other."
The timeline became clear instantly. The late nights. The secret phone calls. The growing distance between us. How long had this been going on?
"Nice to meet you," Ethan said, extending his hand with mock politeness. "Chloe's told me so much about you."
I shook his hand briefly. His grip was unnecessarily firm, the kind of power play insecure men used to establish dominance.
