Adam pressed his lips into a hard line. "Celine Tate, get back here now!"

Celine choked back a laugh. "You want me to come back just because you say so? We're divorced, Adam. I'm not going to put up with you anymore."

Adam gritted his teeth. "I'm giving you one more chance to rewrite—"

Celine's smile widened. "Is there something wrong with what I wrote? You've been awake for half a year now, but in all this time, you haven't even held my hand. You were in a coma for three years. Although your health seems fine now, I seriously doubt your manhood is working. You should see a doctor. I sincerely hope you can regain your masculinity."

Adam was speechless. The veins on his forehead were visibly pulsing. This woman had really lost it!

"I'll show you how capable I am in bed one day, Celine Tate!" he retorted.

"Sorry, you don't have that chance anymore."

A couple of beeps sounded, and the call was abruptly disconnected. Adam seethed with rage. But before he could vent, all he heard was the dial tone.

Celine had already arrived at her best friend, Robin Smith's apartment. When she hung up, Robin burst into laughter and gave her a thumbs-up. "That was perfect, Celine! He's probably so mad right now he might burst a vein."

Celine felt that it was because she had been too humble in the past; he had come to see himself as superior. She believed that loving oneself before loving others was crucial to prioritizing one's happiness.

Robin added, "When Carly found out Mr. Alvarez was in a coma years ago, she left him, right? But now that he's awake, he's going after her again. Honestly, it's better to befriend someone like him."

Celine grabbed a piece of candy and popped it into her mouth. The sweet taste seemed to mask the bitterness in her heart. "Robin, that's the difference between being loved and unloved. The one who is loved can act without fear, while the one who is unloved remains cautious and insecure."

Robin glanced at Celine, who had already eaten a whole handful of candies. She pulled Celine to her feet. "Cheer up, Celine! When you let go of one tree, you'll realize you've gained a whole forest. His loss is your gain. I'm throwing you a singles party tonight!"

Celine laughed, smoothing her forehead. At that moment, Robin reached up and took off Celine's block-toned glasses. She tossed them straight into the trash.

"My glasses!" Celine went to retrieve them.

Robin stopped her. "Celine, you're too used to hiding behind those glasses from all your academic work. You should even upstage Carly and dress yourself up beautifully."

Celine remembered how her parents called her an ugly duckling while Carly was the swan. It seemed that it wasn't just her parents who thought so; Adam probably saw her as an ugly duckling, too.

Robin pulled her out the door. "Come on. I'm taking you out for a full makeover—hair, nails, outfit, everything! I want Adam and the others to open their eyes and see just how beautiful you are!"

As they were leaving, Robin suddenly remembered something. "By the way, Celine, you never did want any of Mr. Alvarez's money?"

"I have my own money," Celine replied.

"Well, then you're leaving that money to Carly. She'll probably thank you."

Celine was rendered speechless.

"Where's the card Mr. Alvarez gave you?"

Adam had always been generous and had given Celine a gold-plated black card, but she'd never used it. Celine pulled the card out of her purse and said with a wink, "Mr. Alvarez can foot the bill for our shopping today."

Club 19 was the playground for the wealthy elite of Mercy, where the city's heirs and socialites spent money without a second thought. That night, the DJ kept the music going, and the crowd danced wildly.

In one of the luxurious booths, Adam sat center stage, wearing a black shirt and black pants. His sleeves were rolled up to reveal his muscular forearms and a watch worth millions. He looked every bit the hot, aristocratic type that had women in the club constantly looking his way.

Sitting beside him was his good friend, Benjamin Goodson—the heir to the Goodwin fortune—along with a few other trust-fund babies.

Benjamin laughed heartily. "What's this I hear, Adam? Celine wants a divorce?"

The others joined in the laughter.

"Who doesn't know how much Celine is in love with you, Mr. Alvarez?" one of them said. "She even wanted to marry you when you were in a coma."

"We should make a bet to see how many days Celine can resist before reaching out to Mr. Alvarez," another chimed in.