Sunflowers Uprooted, Love Dissected

Noticing the paparazzi snapping photos, Ian tried to shake off Cece’s hand.

His eyes darted to my pale face as he offered me a placating smile. “Mira, Cece only got hurt because she was protecting you. It’s only right that I take care of her.”

I wordlessly opened the front passenger door.

Cece suddenly slipped in ahead of me. She looked at me with a saccharine smile and said, “Sorry, I’ve been by Ian’s side when he handles both the underworld and the legitimate side of things since we were little. I’m used to riding shotgun with him. Besides, I have this problem where I get carsick in the back. If you don’t believe me, just ask Ian!”

I looked at Ian. He seemed lost in a nostalgic daze for a moment. Then, he smiled fondly at her and looked as if he could never say no to her.

“Mira, that’s just how Cece is. She’s spoiled and used to her comforts. The front seat is cramped, anyway. Why don’t you take the back?”

I wordlessly climbed into the back seat alone as I watched another woman take the spot that was originally mine alone.

At that moment, my memories took me five years back. Ian had fallen in love with me at first sight and pursued me so fiercely that it became the talk of the entire city.

Once, he spent billions to create an artificial meteor shower on my birthday just to make me smile. To marry me, he even defied his family’s rules, endured punishment, and even starved himself to make his stance clear.

His devotion had been absolute. The love in his eyes had shone brighter than the sun.

However, that devotion had shifted like the wind. Lately, I could not tell if he still loved me at all.

Cece had cooed her way into the new house Ian and I had shared as newlyweds.

Every decoration inside had been something I had chosen and added after our wedding, yet Cece had overturned it all in her redecoration efforts.

The sunflowers I had nurtured with my own hands were ripped out and replaced with bushes of red roses.

On her very first day in the house, she was already strutting around and erasing all of my traces.

It was not until Cece took down our wedding photo that Ian finally, for once, frowned and gave her a scolding.

That night, after giving me a massage and tucking me in, Ian slipped out of the bedroom.

I had not been asleep. I lay there in bed and listened in silence as the wild sounds of passion came from the next room.

Cece’s voice was soft and teasing. “Ian, with Mira pregnant for so long, she clearly hasn’t been keeping you satisfied. With all this noise, aren’t you worried she’ll find out and get mad at you?”

A snort followed. Then, Ian’s familiar voice came through. “Mira has no one but me now. She has no family to turn to. Besides, I’ve been pampering her for so many years. We’re even expecting a baby now. Who else could she turn to if she leaves me?”

The cold cruelty in his words stabbed into my heart like a blade. Tears slipped from the corners of my eyes.

Five years ago, I thought I had found true love. I never imagined this marriage would become the cage that trapped me.

I stared into the dark, silent room until morning as the last flame of love I had for him snuffed out completely.

The next day, when Ian saw how exhausted I looked, he actually seemed worried for once.

He came over with concern written all over his face. “Mira, didn’t you sleep well last night? Is the baby giving you trouble again?”

Ian pulled me into his arms, but that was when I spotted the lurid love bite blooming above his collarbone.

At that moment, the revulsion I felt was too much to contain. I bolted into the bathroom.

His touch only made me feel disgusted!

The only reason I buried my hatred deep and stayed by his side was to gather every last piece of evidence of his crimes!