I made a hasty retreat. "Leo, I'm going back to bed."

I quickly escaped to my room, and even after I closed the door, I could faintly hear their voices.

Leo was probably grilling Ethan about what the hell happened.

At lunchtime, Leo knocked on my door to call me to eat, but I didn't move.

"Leo, I'm not hungry yet. You guys go ahead."

Soon, I heard Nora's light laughter from outside.

"I'll go get Sadie. After all, if it weren't for her, Ethan and I wouldn't have gotten together so quickly last night."

The door was knocked on again, gently this time.

"Sadie, it's Nora. Please, for my sake, come out and have lunch with us."

My parents and brother had always taught me to be polite and respectful to guests, so I had no choice but to open the door with a heavy heart.

At the table, Ethan was silent, but he tenderly placed food on Nora’s plate.

Within minutes, her plate was piled high.

"Ethan, honey, Sadie is still here," Nora purred. "She was already upset about last night. We don't want to make her jealous."

Ethan glanced at me coldly. "What does she have to be jealous about? You're the one I'm going to marry. To me, she's just like a sister, same as Leo."

I silently ate the rice in my bowl, which tasted like ash.

Leo opened his mouth to say something, then closed it and sighed repeatedly.

Nora had a bit of food on the corner of her mouth. Ethan reached out to wipe it for her, but she stopped him with a playful smile.

"Ethan, I want you to use your mouth to clean it for me."

She leaned her face toward him expectantly.

Ethan paused for a second, then smiled and leaned in to kiss her.

Nora turned to look at me triumphantly. "Sadie, honey, don't mind us. Ever since that night, Ethan just can't get enough. You're still single, but you'll understand when you get a boyfriend."

The meal felt like chewing on cardboard. I put down my chopsticks. "I'm full. You guys enjoy."

Even if Leo was a complete idiot, he had to have figured out what was going on between them.

After lunch, he was so angry he slapped his own thigh.

"You sweet, dumb idiot! You had the perfect opportunity last night, why did you just hand it over to that snake, Nora?"

"Ethan might not see how manipulative she is, but I sure as hell do! They were just showing off at the table today to piss you off. I told you that you and Ethan had a connection…"

"Leo," I interrupted him. "Don't say things like that anymore."

He looked at me in disbelief.

I smiled. "I'm over Ethan. Leo, can you set me up on that blind date?"

My brother really did care about me.

After making sure I wasn't joking, he let out a long sigh of relief.

"Good girl. You've finally seen the light. I've been telling you not to waste your time on one guy. Ethan's a great catch, sure, but there are plenty of guys out there who are even better."

"I'll get you in touch with Maxwell Lin right now. You know, the one from that merger your parents wanted, the one you blew off? His family's business is way bigger than Ethan's, he's ridiculously handsome, and just like you, he's never been in a serious relationship. Just meet him. You might actually like him."

I obediently took out my phone and added his contact.

I thought giving up on Ethan would be hard, but now that I'd actually done it, I realized it wasn't a big deal at all.

This time, I could finally change my fate, and my daughter's.

"Ethan, darling, can you help me take my suitcase back to your room?"

Nora's voice, full of laughter, floated over.

She then turned to me. "Sadie."

"Ethan's condo isn't ready yet, and he wants me around all the time, so I'll be staying here with him for a few days. I hope you don't mind?"

I shook my head. "Of course not."

I watched as Ethan bustled around, carrying her luggage for her, and I couldn't help a self-deprecating smile.

I remembered my past life.

After our one-night stand, Ethan, terrified of upsetting Nora, sent her abroad under the guise of "furthering her studies."

After a quick, loveless wedding, he spent most of his time overseas too.

I gave birth to our daughter, Lily, all alone, waiting desperately for him to come back, only to see him arrive at the airport hand-in-hand with Nora.

Back then, his eyes were always cold and indifferent when he looked at me.

Not like now, when his gaze on Nora was so warm.

As I turned to leave, I bumped into something.

Nora, who had been carrying a basin of water, let out a sharp cry as it splashed all over her.