Clara's POV
Evening settled over the city like a shroud, and I moved through the house with methodical precision, throwing clothes into my suitcase without really seeing them.
My hands were steady now. No more tears. No more hysterics. I'd cried myself empty hours ago, and what remained was something cold and crystalline—a clarity I hadn't felt in years.
I gave up everything for him. I I never imagined it would end like this.
Although Ethan and I began with a lie. Not his—mine.
Back in college, drowning in debt I was too ashamed to tell my parents about, I'd let a wealthy old man keep me for a while.
Then I met Ethan and fell for him anyway. It wasn't until later I found out whose money I'd taken—Ethan's grandfather.
He tried to pay me off a second time once Ethan an
