That ring was the first gold band Dominic ever bought me. He'd stood in the snow handing out flyers for two months to afford it.
Gold was eight hundred eighty-eight dollars for ten grams, and ten grams was what he gave me. It cost us a full year's rent.
I scolded him for spending so recklessly and insisted we return it.
But Dominic kissed me, deep and tender.
"Joanna, I swear I will never let you suffer for being with me."
Yet from the day he brought Stephanie home, I had suffered more than I could count.
I curled up helplessly against the headboard.
Josephine finished clearing the dishes and lingered, wanting to say something but holding back.
"Ma'am, some things... it's better to let go. Love is the least important thing."
So she had known all along.
Three years of trust collapsed in an instant. I bit down hard on my lower lip to keep from crying out loud.
I didn't know how much time passed before I gripped the edge of the bed and stood.
"Josephine, take me to the studio."
"I need to be alone for a while."
Josephine dropped me off at the studio and left.
I ran my fingers over the oil paintings hanging on the walls.
After I'd helped Dominic build his company from the ground up, he knew how much I loved painting. He'd spent a fortune sending me abroad to study.
He was clingy back then. He'd call me every day, and we'd talk for three hours straight.
I used to stare at his handsome profile on my phone screen and sketch him on paper.
The entire studio was filled with portraits of Dominic.
I traced the texture of the oil paint, and something inside me cracked. I wanted to tear every single one of them to shreds.
The door creaked open behind me. I buried my emotions.
"Josephine, didn't I tell you not to disturb me?"
A girl's coy laughter rang out from behind me.
Stephanie walked over and took my hand, pressing it against her slightly swollen belly.
Her words coiled around me like venom, each one sinking its fangs into my heart.
"You've already figured it out, haven't you, Joanna?"
"Dominic stopped loving you a long time ago. Honestly, why didn't you just die in that car accident?"
Something splashed against my ankles. The sharp, unmistakable smell of gasoline filled the air.
My heart slammed against my ribs. I grabbed Stephanie's hand in a panic.
"What are you doing?"
The click of a lighter.
Seconds later, thick smoke clawed at my throat and I doubled over coughing.