The Red Rose of Manhattan Chapter 3

He never fell for me.

So for three years, she'd been the only fool in this play he'd directed, pouring her entire heart into it.

Lily stood frozen, staring at her empty hand, still warm from touching him, now burning like a brand.

The next second, she grabbed an expensive bottle of liquor from the coffee table and smashed it on the floor!

Glasses, fruit bowls, decorations—everything within reach became casualties of her pain.

Everyone in the room was too stunned to stop her.

When she finally exhausted herself, eyes hollow and face streaked with tears, she was still laughing quietly.

She didn't remember how she got out of the club.

The night wind hit her face, cold and wet. She roughly wiped away her tears and flagged down a cab.

"Follow that Maybach up ahead."

She needed to see with her own eyes who this woman was—the one he'd pined for three years, the one Lily couldn't compare to!

The driver saw her condition and didn't ask questions, just stepped on the gas.

Ethan, usually so controlled and smooth behind the wheel, was driving noticeably faster tonight.

Was he that desperate to see his precious old flame?

The car finally stopped at JFK Airport's arrivals area.

Lily paid the driver and stumbled out, hiding behind a pillar.

She watched Ethan stand at the exit as a woman in a white dress, delicate and graceful, emerged pulling a suitcase.

When Lily saw the woman's face, she felt like she'd been struck by lightning!

Not just because Ethan opened his arms when the woman rushed to him, catching her and pressing a gentle kiss to her hair.

But because that woman he held so tenderly, his precious old flame—

Was Serena!

Her nominal stepsister. The person she hated most in this world!

Six months after Lily's mother died in a car accident, her father brought a woman home—along with a daughter three years older than Lily. That was Serena.

Her father explained that this woman was his first love, that Serena was his biological daughter. If Lily's mother hadn't "stolen" him away, he never would have made his first love break up with him while pregnant.

How absurd!

Lily knew the truth better than anyone.

Back then, her father's startup was failing—he couldn't even afford to eat. He'd actively pursued Lily's mother, who'd been chasing him for years. He promised that if her family invested in his company, he'd marry her.

Her mother gave him money, gave him all her love, and eventually gave her life—pushing him out of the way in a car accident!

And what happened? Before her mother's body was even cold, her father used her mother's dowry and inheritance as a wedding gift to marry his so-called "first love."

Ethan could like anyone... why did it have to be Serena?!

Lily bit down hard on her lip, tasting blood without realizing it.

Lost in thought, Ethan had already taken Serena's luggage and was leading her toward the parking garage, his arm around her waist.

Like she was possessed, Lily flagged another cab and followed them.

Because she was close behind, she could see clearly through the car windows—Ethan turning his head, saying something gentle to Serena, even reaching up naturally to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

Such tender, attentive care—something he'd never given Lily in three years together.

Her heart felt like it was being ground on a millstone, over and over, the pain so intense she could barely breathe.

Just as she stared ahead, her vision blurring with tears, there was sudden chaos at the intersection!

A screech of brakes and the crash of impact!

Lily's cab rear-ended the car ahead, then was slammed from behind!

"CRASH!"

The impact threw Lily forward, her forehead slamming into the front seat. Sharp pain exploded through her skull, and warm liquid flowed down, blurring her vision.

Through the chaos and screaming, through the shattered car window, she saw the familiar Maybach's door open.

Ethan got out first, quickly circling to the passenger side to carefully lift Serena out.

He held her, checking her for injuries, his brow furrowed with concern.

He was about to leave the accident scene with Serena when his gaze accidentally landed on Lily, trapped in the backseat of the mangled cab, covered in blood.

In his usually calm eyes, she saw a flicker of surprise. But it vanished instantly.

Serena seemed to notice his pause, her voice soft and weak: "Ethan, what's wrong? Do you see someone you know? I'm fine, just scratched my skin a little. If there's someone you know, you should go check on them... I heard one of the cabs was hit pretty badly..."

After a few seconds of silence, Ethan looked away.

"No one I know."

"Just strangers."

With that, he carried Serena away from the chaotic accident scene without looking back.

Lily watched his retreating figure, wanting to laugh, but tears mixed with blood streamed down her face.

Just strangers.

So after three years, to him, she was just a stranger!