Chapter 4

Lauren didn't come home until late that night. She carried a massive thousand-piece puzzle box, smiling brightly as she walked over and tried to throw her arms around me.

I leaned back, dodging her touch.

"Babe, aren't you a puzzle master? Come help me with this."

She dumped the pieces onto the coffee table. There was no reference poster, just a pile of fragmented cardboard.

Before I could decline, Lauren pressed on, "It's a little surprise I had custom-made for you."

She urged me to assemble it to see the final image. As she walked around the living room, she finally noticed the subtle changes in the house.

"Wait, didn't we have decorative sculptures here? And where did the reading stool go? It feels so empty in here."

"Didn't you say you disliked clutter? I hauled them over to my old apartment. It's better with more space."

I offered a careless excuse and sat down to work on the puzzle. I had always been good at this sort of thing; within an hour, the outer frame and main silhouettes began to take shape.

Lauren brought over some midnight snacks and leaned in to kiss my cheek. "I knew my man was the smartest."

"Whose picture is this?" I asked, looking her dead in the eye.

A flicker of panic darted across her face, but she quickly masked it with a playful pout.

"Who told you to buzz all your hair off? You can't even recognize yourself anymore? Silly."

If this had been the past, I would have convinced myself that the silhouette was indeed me. The haircut and the jacket were styles I used to wear, and from the side profile, the resemblance was uncanny.

Until I spotted the small mole on the earlobe.

It was Mason.

I didn't bother calling her out. I quietly finished putting the puzzle together for her.

From that night until the rescheduled wedding day, I didn't see Lauren once.

Having finalized the handover of my local responsibilities, I stood at the departure gate with my suitcase, looking down at our chat log. The most recent message was still the accidental photo she had hastily deleted.

In her world, I had always been entirely expendable.

Just before boarding, right as the scheduled family dinner was about to start, my phone rang. Lauren's voice came through, frantic and rushed.

"Where on earth are you, Luke? Dad said he wants that vintage wine you brought last time. Mason couldn't find it anywhere in town. Make sure you bring a couple of bottles when you come over!"

She fired off demands without catching her breath. That vintage was an exclusive reserve from my mother's private vineyard overseas. Of course Mason couldn't buy it anywhere.

"Got it."

I gave a noncommittal response. In the background, her father's grating, displeased voice cut through the speaker.

"Luke is so damn unreliable! Making us all sit here waiting! Shouldn't the wine have been delivered hours ago?"

He went on grumbling that now that Mason was back, Lauren should reconsider her options anyway. The call abruptly ended.

No need to reconsider. I wasn't showing up. Since we never registered a marriage license, Lauren and I weren't legally tied in any way.

Last time, she had abandoned me in front of hundreds of people just because Mason dialed her number.

Now, I was simply stepping out of the way to grant her wish.