Chapter 1 On our fifth anniversary , I opened Jason Locke's personal safe only to find an old phone . [ ] The password was , of course , his first love Yvonne Yates's birthday . [ ] All their past sweetness - every message , every photo - was right there , while his current phone held not one single picture of me . " Lydia , snooping through my past - is it fun ? " I turned to the man in the doorway - no yelling , no drama . I simply said , " Divorce . " ]] He walked over , took the phone from my hands , and factory - reset it right in front of me , his expression flat and emotionless . " Happy now ? Still wanna divorce ? " I looked him straight in the eye and nodded . " Divorce . " ] " Enough already . Quit being dramatic . " Jason frowned , clearly annoyed . " Be a good girl - when this project ends up at the end of the year , I'll take you to Aspen to see the snow . " I stayed quiet . Jason pulled that familiar careless smirk and tapped my forehead || " I'm not messing with you this time . Really . " I almost laughed . He wasn't messing with me this time , which only made it worse . He knew damn well he'd been lying all along . ] ] That Aspen trip had been pushed back year after year . Every movie date , I was left standing outside the theater alone until showtime . Every time he swore he'd pick me up , leaving me soaked in the rain without a trace of his car . Every . Single . Promise . Jason ever made was Broken . [ ] And now he acted like saying this shit was some kind of reward . " Don't bother . " I drew in a steady breath . " Jason , I want a divorce . " ] His expression went ice cold . He had completely lost his patience . ] ] " Lydia , you're being ridiculous . " Go to Aspen or don't , I don't care . I already gave you a chance . " ] " Don't come back crying that I didn't do what I said . " ] He grabbed his jacket , headed for the door , not even touching the anniversary dinner I'd spent hours preparing just the way he liked it . [ ] I stayed silent . For the first time , I didn't try to make him stay - not even a minute longer . ] Jason paused at the door , glanced back , and saw me already seated , picking up my fork and taking a bite , as if he wasn't even there . He slammed the door behind him , letting his anger out . ] My heart stopped hurting long ago . Now there was only quiet . I used to think Jason was too refined for ordinary things , too sophisticated for simple pleasures . But he cooked for the girl he loved , just to hear one nice word from her . Those cuts on his hands , the burns from the stove - they were trophies of love . He even said the most childish romantic shit : " Cooking for someone you love makes you feel so damn good . " " I'm gonna cook for Yvonne forever , fatten her up so nobody else will want her . " Reading all that made me see it clearly for the first time : I was a complete joke . The next day , I met my bestie Sophia Mitchell at a coffee shop to draft the divorce papers . " What the hell happened ? This seems serious . Tm exhausted , Sophia . " I stared at the busy street . " She's back . " ] Just that one word , and Sophia knew . Yvonne . Jason's first love . Her name was like a tiny needle in my heart - never bleeding , always hurting . Five years , and she had been messing with my life the entire time . ]] Jason preached personal space , yet they shared a Spotify account . He hated public exposure , yet his old social media was littered with her traces . He took me to an art gallery , but it was her favorite artist . Shopping with me was a waste of time, while he spent entire weekends with her hitting every antique market in the city . We had been together for five years - two years dating , three years married - and he had never truly removed her from his heart . I had only been his companion during that time , just a habit , a second choice . * Fine . I'll handle the divorce papers and make damn sure he doesn't pull any crap on you . "] Sophia frowned . " But are you really sure about this ? " " I've been telling you forever - he's all wrong for you . His heart's never been clear , and you've been selling yourself short staying with him . " " But you still went and fell for him , didn't listen to a damn thing I said . " ] I stirred my coffee and looked up . " I will never make myself small for anyone again . " Freelance photographer Violet Beck is forced into an engagement with CEO Roy Payne. He is everything her wild heart rebels against: proper, predictable, and painfully kind. But love has a way of devel...