8

I turn around now, admiring the outfit I have on through the mirror. Cropped fitted ivory tweed jacket with a black trim, bearing black and gold buttons and a matching tweed pencil skirt stopping mid thigh. Then of course, ivory thigh high heels with a sharp end.

My hair is packed in an upright ponytail and I have on red lipstick.

I look stunning.

"You look good, Luna,"

Valerie appears by my side. She looks smaller now, happier. And of course she is. I've agreed to marry Ethan. She's happy.

I'd like to say that it's been a little complex trying to act happy with her as well, but that'd be a lie. She's nice to be around and it's easy to think around her.

Plus, being around her is a good enough excuse not to see Ethan. Just like before, she's the one handling the wedding except this time, I'm spending all of my free time with her and not him. He didn't have any complaints about it though. More time for my sister, I'm sure.

I should feel jealousy but that'd have to mean I still had any sort of… Love for Ethan but I did not. Not even a little. For now, whatever emotions I felt for him had to be put on hold while I navigated what exactly was going on.

I died, but I am alive now. I was stuck somewhere and something happened, and now, I'm three years back in time with a one year deadline on my head and a threat of eternal punishment. Oh, and of course, the revenge. We can't forget that.

At the very least, I can't. It is why I stayed up all night to know for certain if I really was back in time.

When I used to be married to Ethan, I spent most of my days hidden away in our very extravagant mansion reading the news and learning more about the leading business companies here in New York.

Of course, one of the main reasons I did it at the beginning was because I wanted to know how business was going for Ethan in hopes we'd have something to talk about— Didn't work— But it quickly became a habit.

I followed stocks, mergers, acquisitions and most importantly, scandals. Especially the one involving Dante Salvatore.

I remember this more than anything else because Dante was an old friend in high school, or to be more precise, a male who enjoyed bullying me constantly. I used to hide behind Ethan for safety but eventually, that became pointless so I hid a lot in the drama room in the basement till he graduated.

Seeing his name on the news had drawn my interest, especially when I read that he invested in the wrong business deal and now, he's lost all of his money and his company while also acquiring debt. I had been worried and planned to tell Ethan all about it.

He never came home.

"You've been distracted a lot recently,"

Valerie's voice pulls me out of my thoughts and I turn to look at her. She looks worried again. We can't have that.

I walk behind her and wrap my arms around her body. As I place a kiss on her forehead and hold her tight, she closes her eyes briefly with a look of bliss crossing her face while I say softly, "I have a meeting to attend. That's what I've been thinking about,"

She pulls away from me, a look of confusion in her eyes now as she asks, "Meeting?"

I know why she's confused. We had both agreed I didn't need to look for a job because her and Ethan had my back. Ah, I was so stupid.

Nodding, I look at my watch, "And… I have to leave now."

A look of hurt crosses her face at the fact that she doesn't know anything about this but I don't care. I kiss her again, this time on the forehead, "I promise, I'll let you know about whatever comes up but for now, I have to go, okay?"

I see her from the corner of her eyes clutch the handle of her bag tighter but she tries not to show it. I don't wait for a response anyway and head outside the mall we're in.

Because of my outfit, it doesn't take too long for a taxi to pick me up. I could order a ride but that's pointless. The deal is about to be put in place and though I know other people I could blackmail or use as levarage, Dante is still the perfect candidate.

For now, he rules the tech world with his creative mindset and ability to know a good business investment when he sees one. Now that I think about it, there are rising questions about why he'd invest in what he did— Or is about to but none of that is my concern now.

When the taxi pulls up at his company, I don't bother asking for what my bill is as I place a 100 dollar bill in his hand and head out of the car.

I can instantly sense eyes piercing into my skin, wondering why a person dressed in designer clothes would be coming out of such a vehicle. That's good enough for the paparazzi to feed into for now.

We have to unsettle Ethan somehow, don't we?

The second I'm in the lounge area of the building, I don't hesitate to walk to the reception and place my bag on her desk. She looks up at me, irritation on her face before she spots the smile on my face. The kind of smile I'd seen Valerie use to make people she felt were beneath her do her bidding.

It worked.

The lady rushes from her seat, her hands clasped in front of her as she says with a bright smile, "Miss. What can I do for you?"

I don't bother to reply till I've found what I'm looking for. Still smiling, I place a note in front of her and a black velvet compact sized box in front of her and say, "What you can do is hand this over to Dante before he has his meeting. I promise that if you don't, you'll lose your job,"

A look of terror crosses her face and I immediately find myself correcting myself, "You will but he won't fire you." Then I wink at her, "Maybe,"

She still looks horrified by the statement but she doesn't bother to speak on it anymore. Instead, her curiosity and fear lies somewhere else as she asks quietly, stuttering a little bit, "A-And what is inside that box?"

I'm already zipping up my bag now. "Just an engagement ring," Then looking at her again, her eyes are wide now, shock spreading across her face before I add, "For Dante, of course. I'm unfortunately not in women. Make sure to give him both the note and the ring, will you?"

Then without bothering to wait for an answer, I head out the door, a small smile playing on my face.

And now, we wait.