After hanging up, the white queen of the night flower outside fell off. It was just like his marriage—it would be ending very soon.

Dylan came from a poor family. The Padden Group graciously sponsored his studies, allowing him to graduate with honors. In fact, he was the sole recipient of an exchange program offer to another country.

For that, Dylan had purposely gone to the Padden residence to personally thank them before flying. Padden Group had sponsored many other scholars, but Dylan was the first to express his gratitude.

Initially, Mandy had wanted to be perfunctory, speaking up, “If you really want to repay us, then do us a favor; leave him alone.” But when she heard what Dylan was there for, she gave him a second look and fell silent for a long while.

It was then that Dylan learned about Violet and Archer’s story from Mandy. Violet Padden and Archer Niall were both born into wealthy, affluent families. They were both smart and very good-looking, and had been friends since childhood.

Everyone could tell that Violet had a crush on Archer, but Archer had told Violet to take things slowly because he wanted a romantic, longer-lasting love. That was why she was waiting for him.

They had finally graduated from college, and Violet thought it was time to confide her feelings for Archer. However, Archer suddenly produced a girlfriend out of nowhere and went abroad with her.

Violet was still in disbelief as she rushed to the airport in the middle of the night. However, it was then that she met with an accident. And when she woke up from the operating table, Archer and his girlfriend had already had their shotgun wedding.

After that incident, Violet shut herself up at home and started drinking her sorrows away. She was soon reduced to a shadow of her past brilliant self. Then Dylan showed up. So, Mandy decided to use Dylan to help Violet out of her depression by making her forget about Archer.

That was how Dylan gave up furthering his studies abroad to show the Paddens his gratitude. He then signed a five-year contract with Mandy.

Some time later, at a party, Dylan happened to meet Violet and was completely smitten by her at first sight. Then, he started pursuing her relentlessly. From that day onward, everyone in the circle knew that Violet was being pursued by a man who was deeply and irrevocably in love with her.

Violet gradually got used to Dylan’s treatment of her. However, she still didn’t take the next step.

It wasn’t until one night on a yacht, when Violet made a bet, offering to gift a piece of land in Rathana to anyone whose plate would dive into the sea to find the ring she had lost.

Dylan knew Violet had spent countless sleepless nights trying to acquire that piece of land. So, while everyone else was getting cold feet at the crashing waves, Dylan jumped into the sea without a second thought.

He helped Dylan tightly after he was pulled back, and she sounded happy and fragile. She said, “Dylan, let’s get married. I’ll do my best to love you back.”

However, it wasn’t until long after that incident that Dylan learned Violet only agreed to marry him that night because she saw pictures posted on his social media of him kissing his wife under a sky full of stars.

Even then, Dylan did his best to fulfill the terms of the contract by treating Violet even better. He cooked, cleaned, and did all the housework. He knew Violet’s child loved watching meteor showers, but he had been too busy to take her. Dylan spent the next six months finding the best mountaintops to watch the best meteor shower with her.

Dylan waited all night for her, but Violet never showed up.

Later, he learned that Violet had gone to see Archer that same night. Archer had been having some trouble at the time, and ever since then, Violet would always fly abroad every week to visit him. Each time, she would also prepare all sorts of fun and interesting gifts to make him happy, but she didn’t let him know that she sent them.

The night Archer returned to the country, Violet sped off in her car to be the first one to greet him. That was when she got into another crash and fell into a coma for three days.

Dylan stayed vigilantly by her side for all three nights. However, although Violet was unconscious, she still cried out Archer’s name at least a million times.

That’s when Dylan realized that he would never be able to fulfill the mission Mandy had given him. Coincidentally, his contract was coming to an end, and Archer was already back. Since Violet could finally be with the person she loved the most, just as she always wished, it was now time for Dylan to step out of the picture. That day, they finally started their own separate lives.

Chapter 3

“Who were you talking to on the phone?”

Seeing that Dylan hadn’t returned to the dining room after a long while, Violet looked for him in the kitchen and saw him staring at his phone.

It was dark and quiet at night. Dylan listened to Violet’s faint breathing next to him as he stared up at the ceiling, unable to sleep all night. The following day, at breakfast, Violet frowned at the steak sandwiches on the table.

“You know that I hate steak sandwiches. Why did you make them today?”

Dylan looked down and took a bite of his sandwich, chewing slowly.

“These were the only things left in the fridge.”

That wasn’t the truth. However, he was preparing for when he would be living abroad. He wanted to get used to the cuisines there beforehand.

Luckily, Violet didn’t seem to pay much heed to him. She placed her phone on the table and kept glancing over every few seconds as if she were waiting for someone’s messages. Dylan didn’t even have to ask to know whose messages she was waiting for.

Suddenly, Violet’s phone started buzzing, and she immediately snatched it up.

Archer must have sent her something funny. A slight smile decorated her usually cold and aloof expression.

Dylan watched her quietly for half a minute. Then, he brought out the divorce agreement he’d prepared beforehand. He had been waiting for this moment from the second he signed the five-year contract with Mandy. He was well-prepared for this. Finally, he would regain his freedom. “Violet, let’s get a divorce,” Dylan said ever so calmly, as if he were just talking about the weather.

Meanwhile, Violet was so engrossed in her conversation with Archer that she didn’t seem to have heard what Dylan said. She just answered with a perfunctory hum.

Dylan wasn’t surprised. Violet had been treating him like this for the past five years. Even though he was physically there, she treated him as invisible most of the time. Now that Archer was back, even the scant attention Violet used to give Dylan was gone.

Dylan flipped to the last page of the agreement and handed the papers to her, along with a pen. He pointed at the signature line and said, “Please sign your name here.”

Violet was so busy chatting that she didn’t even look at the papers before signing her initials on the signature line. She was still typing away with her other hand on the phone.

Dylan then put the papers away and said, “Violet, I’ll be leaving at the end of the one-month cooling-off period.”

Violet still answered him with a nonchalant hum. She then set down her knife and fork and got up to leave.

Dylan looked at her disappearing back and called out to her, finally unable to hold it back anymore. “Violet Padden, did you hear anything I just said?”

Violet paused in her steps and turned around to look at Dylan with a puzzled expression on her face.

“Weren’t you telling me about the resources we’d be sending over to the orphanage? Isn’t the contract I just signed for that? You’ve already told me about this a few days ago. What’s wrong?”

Dylan laughed self-deprecatingly in silence. He had let her sign that orphanage resources contract last month.

Just as he expected, Violet never cared about him or paid attention to anything he said. However, none of that was important anymore. He was just going to leave. Violet would be much happier with Archer in the future.

So, Dylan just smiled and said, “It’s nothing.”

That afternoon, Dylan drove a truck of supplies to Sunnyside Orphanage. After he was done delivering the things, he purposely made his way to the orphanage director’s office to bid goodbye to her.

“Ms. Williamson, I’m furthering my studies abroad.”

Becky Williamson was overjoyed when she heard this from him. Dylan had always been gifted in art, and Becky had thought it was a huge pity that Dylan gave up continuing his studies back then.

“That’s really good to hear, Dylan!” Becky held both Dylan’s hands happily. She then thought about something and frowned. “But if you’re leaving for your studies in another country, you will be separated from Violet. Long-distance relationships are particularly hard to maintain, too.”

Dylan stared into the distance where a few kids were happily chasing each other on the field. Then he shook his head.

“We won’t be in a long-distance relationship. We’re divorced.”

Becky was stunned at first. Then, she let out a long sigh.

“Just as I thought. I wasn’t wrong when I thought back then that your marriage wouldn’t last very long. If she really loved you, why would she have never accompanied you every time you came here to visit? It’s for the better that you’re divorced now.”

Becky then patted Dylan on the back, comforting him softly. Dylan smiled and hugged Becky in return. She was right. It was good for them both that they were divorced now.