Chapter 2

“Evelyn, when you get out, I will make it up to you with the grandest wedding.”

His vow still rang in my ears, but the man before me was no longer the man from back then.

No wonder he often hid from me to make phone calls, and each call lasted all night.

No wonder he insisted on sleeping in separate rooms from me, and he would not even eat at the same table with me.

No wonder whenever he accidentally touched me, he sprang away as if he had been burned.

How ridiculous that I only thought he was having trouble adjusting, so I lay in bed waiting for him in the lingerie he had once loved most.

That day, Ethan flew into a rage, dragged me into the bathroom, and threw a steel wool scrubber at me.

“You just got out of prison, so it’s impossible for you not to be dirty, and we’ll talk after you wash yourself clean.”

After my whole body was scrubbed until the skin peeled, I curled up in the corner while tears slid down together with blood.

Just as my heart was about to die, he carried me back to the bedroom and promised to give me a wedding night I would never forget.

Naively, I thought he had finally changed his mind.

It turned out he had only thought of an even more humiliating way to shame me.

Seven years was too long.

So long that the man I loved had become completely unrecognizable.

Since that was the case, I would let go.

Holding back the sharp pain in my heart, I called Grandpa Foster and spoke numbly.

“My wedding night has been put up for auction, Grandpa, and Ethan doesn’t love me anymore, so please let me leave.”

It was nearly dawn when Ethan came home.

For once, he entered my bedroom and called my name in a hoarse voice.

I had already gone to sleep, and his voice startled me awake, leaving me full of annoyance, but the moment I met his eyes, that anger somehow faded.

Ethan and I had once had feelings for each other.

When our love had been at its strongest, he had always looked at me with those eyes and said I was the most beautiful girl in the world, the one who moved his heart the most.

As if possessed, I reached out and touched his brows and eyes.

But when I remembered the filthy things he and his friends had said, my hand stopped halfway, then snapped back.

“It’s late, so hurry up and rest.”

When he heard me say that, he frowned, but he still coaxed me patiently.

“Evelyn, I was wrong these past few days, and I didn’t take good care of you.”

“I didn’t even notice your lips were cracked, so I made you honey water specially, come on, try some.”

Sensing something strange about him, I resisted.

But as soon as I turned over and got out of bed to run, the man grabbed my calf and dragged me back.

“I made it with my own hands, so drink it before you leave.”

He pinched my chin, forced my mouth open, and poured all the honey water into my mouth.

“Cough, cough,” I choked until my face turned red and coughed violently.

When I looked up again, Ethan had doubled in my vision, and my head had become heavy and dizzy.

He had drugged the water.

When I regained consciousness, I was tied to a European-style high-backed chair with only a layer of thin gauze draped over me.

Several unsightly tags were wrapped around my ankles.

Murderer, new Foster bride, cheap goods.

Ethan’s assistant had even thoughtfully noted my measurements, accurate to two decimal places.

The seats below the stage were filled with people, and their gazes fell over me without restraint, as if they wished they could devour me clean with their eyes.

“Mr. Foster really is thoughtful, since he was worried no one would dare take a murderer like this, so he even let us inspect the merchandise first.”

“Evelyn may be a little older, but her body is seriously amazing, with that tiny waist and those long legs, and I can barely hold myself back now.”

“Although the starting bid is only one dollar, there are so many rich men and big shots here tonight that who knows how much it’ll cost to take her away, so I might as well feast my eyes first.”