For me, Nate Hunt gave up three things. Women, fighting, and street racing. Everyone said that I, his gilded canary, had tamed the city’s most untamable wolf. Until the morning after our wedding of the century. I woke up five years in the future. A twenty-nine-year-old Nate was slamming a divorce agreement onto the table in front of me. “I told you, stay away from her! Otherwise, next time it won’t just be a broken hand.” “Clara, I’m done wasting my time on you.” The man before me was all sharp angles and cold fury, the warmth in his eyes completely extinguished. My own eyes welled with tears, my lip trembling. “Honey, you’re scaring me.” Nate froze. Then his brow furrowed even deeper. 1 It was like… I couldn’t understand. Just the night before, he had humbled himself, bringing me a basin of warm water to wash my feet. A few months ago, after a car crash, he had nearly died shielding me from the impact; the scar by his eye was still a pale, visible line. At our wedding, the famously ruthless heir to the Hunt empire had choked back tears in front of all our guests, simply because he was marrying me. How could one night change everything? The man who had once cherished me like life itself was now looking at me with pure disgust. Clearly, Nate couldn't understand my confusion either. He stared at me, his gaze intense. “Time travel? Clara, there’s no need to invent such a ridiculous excuse.” He didn’t believe me. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, not even wanting to look at me as he grabbed his jacket and headed for the door. I stood there, stunned, then instinctively ran after him, trying to grab his arm. “Na—” He stopped so abruptly I didn’t have time to react, my nose crashing into the solid wall of his back. A small cry of pain escaped me as tears pricked my eyes. But Nate didn’t seem to hear, let alone turn around. He was looking down at his phone, which was vibrating in his hand. Ah. Someone was calling him. He answered. A light, feminine voice came through the speaker, clear enough for me to hear. “Nate, where are you? Finn has been waiting for you forever.” Nate’s response was a soft hum. The cold mask on his face melted away. “On my way.” A knot tightened in my stomach. I blinked, my voice small. “Who is that?” Her voice was vaguely familiar, but my mind was a tangled mess. I couldn’t place it. “Are you done with the act?” Nate put his phone away. When he turned back to me, a trace of that softness still lingered around his eyes, but his words sent a chill down my spine. “If it weren’t for me, you would have died on that godforsaken mountain, not standing here in the Hunt family home.” His gaze flickered over my reddened nose, his tone flat and cold. “You should be grateful, Clara.” The door slammed shut. The sound was so loud it made my entire body flinch, snapping me out of my daze. My hands trembling, I picked up my phone. Almost on instinct, I dialed the number I knew by heart. It rang for a long time before it was finally answered. “Hello? Is this… Clara?” Nina sounded surprised, as if my call was the last thing she expected. But I couldn't dwell on her strange tone. The moment I heard my best friend’s voice, the tears I’d been holding back broke free. After I told her everything, there was a brief silence on the other end of the line. Then, Nina’s voice shot up several octaves. “You’re saying you just got married yesterday?” I stared blankly at the paper in my hand. “Yes. And now Nate… he wants to divorce me.” I sniffled. “Nina, can you come get me?” Another long pause. So long I thought she might not have heard me. Finally, a single word. “Okay.” 2 In the coffee shop, Nina stared at me for a long time, disbelief etched on her face. “So you’re telling me you just went to sleep and woke up here? You… you don’t remember anything from the last five years?” I nodded, then shook my head. “This isn’t the first time Nate has tried to divorce you,” she said, her expression complicated. After a moment, she managed a wry smile. “And we… we haven’t spoken in a very long time.” I was speechless. Nina sighed, and then she told me everything. Less than a year after our spectacular wedding, Nate changed. The reformed bad boy, it turned out, had been an illusion. My eyes widened. “He cheated?” “Yes. Four years ago.” She took a sip of her coffee, glancing at me. “With a junior from your university. And just like you, she was a scholarship student sponsored by the Hunt family.” Nina said that when I found out, I fell apart. I did a lot of crazy things. I went to the university and cornered the girl, screaming at her, making a huge public scene. Then I crashed the lavish birthday party Nate threw for her, forcing him to have me arrested. That was the first time he demanded a divorce. Nina took another sip. She told me she couldn't stand to watch me self-destruct and tried to convince me to let him go, but in my crazed state, I had attacked and injured her. And with that, my only friend cut ties with me. The canary who tried to tame the wolf had become the city’s biggest joke. I was horrified. “He broke my hand just because I ruined a flower his mistress was growing?” Nina looked at me and nodded. I looked down at the divorce agreement. Honestly, Nate was being generous. For a bitter divorce, the settlement was substantial. Twenty million dollars and several downtown apartments. I came back to my senses and picked up the pen to sign. Nina’s hand shot out and grabbed mine. “Are you sure this time?” Seeing my confusion, she hesitated. “The last few times, you pretended to sign, then went back on your word and made a fool of him. It made Nate furious.” I was stunned. Had I really become that unhinged? Nina pressed on. “Clara, are you sure you don’t love him anymore?” My hand paused. Love? My thoughts drifted. Nate was right. If it weren’t for him, I would have died on that mountain. I was a scholarship student he had personally selected. Without the Hunt family, I never would have escaped, never would have gone to school. Then, my sophomore year of college, my stepfather tricked me into coming home, lying that my mother was seriously ill. He was afraid I would run away again, so he broke my hand and locked me in the cellar, waiting to sell me to an old bachelor for thirty thousand dollars. It was Nate who drove through the night to save me. He was enraged. He hired the best lawyers to put my stepfather and that man behind bars. He saved both me and my mother. Before my mother passed away, she told me over and over, “Clara, you wouldn’t be here today without the young master of the Hunt family. We may be poor, but we must always be grateful.” I never forgot. I swore I would repay him. He said he loved me, so I learned to love him back. He said he wanted to marry me, and I nodded happily, just wanting to make him happy. And now, he had found someone else, someone better suited to him. My debt of gratitude… hasn’t it been paid in full? Isn’t it time for me to find a life of my own? Nina’s eyes were red as she spoke, her voice thick with emotion. “Clara, for you to think that way… it’s really… it’s for the best.” 3 Standing beneath the Hunt Industries tower, I tilted my head back, looking up at the skyscraper piercing the clouds. It was the same building, but it felt different from five years ago. “Isn’t that the crazy Hunt woman?” “What’s she doing here again? Didn’t she embarrass herself enough last time? You can take the girl out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the girl.” The whispers around me pulled me back to reality. I lowered my gaze and clutched the divorce agreement in my hand. Before I left, I had tried to call Nate. The call was declined after one ring. When I tried again, I was blocked. I figured if we were getting a divorce, there was no point in dragging it out. I would deliver the papers myself. Nina had tried to stop me, only relenting after I convinced her I was really, truly just going to finalize the divorce. “I have a case this afternoon. Are you sure you can handle this on your own?” Nina was a busy lawyer. Seeing my determination, she left, looking back every few steps. She still didn’t trust me, worried I was using this as an excuse to cause a scene at Hunt Industries. Apparently, she wasn’t the only one. The moment I walked into the lobby, the receptionist knocked over a glass of water in her nervousness. Security guards immediately surrounded me, on high alert. I suddenly remembered what Nina had told me. At my most manic, I had even trashed the Hunt Industries headquarters, giving their rivals plenty of ammunition to drag the company’s reputation through the mud. Nate had held a lot of people accountable for that. No wonder they were so tense. I offered the receptionist a friendly smile. “I’m here to see Nate Hunt.” She hesitated, then said apologetically, “Ms. Lin, the new director, has a strict rule. No one can see Mr. Hunt without an appointment. Not even… Mrs. Hunt.” It took me a second to process. Ms. Lin. That must be my university junior, Seraphina Lin. Nate’s precious mistress. “And if I insist on going up?” I asked calmly, starting to walk forward. The receptionist grew more anxious, and the guards moved to block me. I frowned, about to speak, when a commotion erupted outside. A crowd of people was surging into the lobby. 4 Before I could even turn around, someone pushed me from behind. I stumbled and fell, my not-yet-healed right hand slamming against the corner of a wall. I hissed in pain. Then, a sickeningly sweet voice rang out. “Oh, someone help the cleaning lady up… wait, is that you, Clara?” I looked up into Seraphina Lin’s wide, innocent eyes. “You must be aging quickly, Clara. From the back, I didn’t even recognize you. Is your hand okay?” I rubbed my swollen wrist, my expression turning cold. “You’re so young, Ms. Lin, it’s a shame your eyesight is already failing. Then again, when it comes to men, you also seem to prefer those who are already taken.” Seraphina’s face instantly darkened. I ignored her and turned toward the elevator, but she motioned for her entourage to block my path. “Did you not hear the receptionist, Clara?” Seraphina’s voice was soft and melodic. “Let me repeat it for you. Outsiders without an appointment are not allowed to see Mr. Hunt. Unless they’re a senior executive, of course. Oh, right… you’re not an employee of Hunt Industries anymore, are you?” My eyes narrowed. I had started working at Hunt Industries during college. According to Nina, the jewelry lines I designed over the last few years had been instrumental in the company’s successful expansion into the luxury market, and I had even become the Director of the Design Department. Until last year, when Nate replaced me with the newly graduated Seraphina. Seeing me stand there silently, Seraphina smiled, leaned in, and whispered triumphantly, “Haven’t you learned your lesson yet, Clara? You were kicked out like a stray dog…” I watched her for a moment, then let out a small laugh and, in one swift motion, slapped her across the face. “As long as I am not divorced, I am the rightful Mrs. Hunt, the lady of this company! Who do you think you are to stop me? The company watchdog, or… Nate’s dirty little secret?” Seraphina, spoiled and pampered by Nate, had never been treated like this. She clutched her face, her eyes wild as she lunged at me. “How dare you hit me!” I sidestepped her, caught her flailing arm, and used her momentum to swing her around, delivering another sharp slap with my other hand. “If Nate won’t teach you some manners, I will!” The slaps sent Seraphina into a frenzy. Her face was contorted with rage as she tried to attack me again. Just then, the elevator chimed open. The man emerging, surrounded by his executives, looked up and his eyes landed on me. He froze for a second, then strode forward and wrapped his arms around Seraphina, who was now sobbing uncontrollably. When he looked back at me, his face was a mask of fury. “Clara, what the hell are you doing now!” 5 Before I could speak, Seraphina beat me to it. She huddled in Nate’s arms, looking terrified. “Nate, I was just explaining the rules to Clara. No appointments, no entry. Even if she… tried to use her status as Mrs. Hunt to pressure me, it’s still against the rules!” “I was just following company policy, but she flew into a rage and started hitting me…” I gave her a cold look. “Still haven’t learned your place, have you…” “Clara!” Nate’s voice was sharp, his eyes colder than mine. “Is this fun for you?” He stared at me, his lips a thin, hard line. “Whatever games you’re playing, they won’t work anymore.” I was taken aback for a moment, then I understood. In his eyes, everything I was doing today was just another desperate ploy to get his attention, to delay the divorce. He was telling me that no matter how much I fought, he wouldn’t change his mind. “You’re right. It’s not fun at all,” I said with a humorless smile, pulling the papers from my bag. “That’s why I’m here, isn’t it?” This time, it was Nate’s turn to be stunned. His gaze swept over my calm face, then settled on the divorce agreement in my hand for a few long seconds. The next thing I knew, he knocked the papers from my hand, his voice exploding with rage. “Do you think this is funny?” he roared, his temple pulsing. “Trying the same old tricks again? Clara, are you really so pathetic that you can’t live without me? Do you have to keep stooping to these cheap tactics? How desperate can you be? You—” Slap. Nate’s head snapped to the side. The rest of his words were swallowed by the sharp sound of my hand connecting with his cheek. Meeting his thunderous gaze, I flipped the agreement to the last page and shoved it in his face. “Take a good look!” Nate glared at me, his jaw clenched, before finally taking a deep breath and looking down at the paper. And then he froze.
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