Chapter 1

My husband, Ethan, had emotional detachment disorder.

In our six years of marriage, he never once smiled at me.

When I sliced my finger chopping vegetables, his face remained blank.

"Everyone gets hurt. Just put a Band-Aid on it. You don't need to show me."

When I walked home late from overtime and was nearly assaulted, all he said was:

"Aren't you fine? Why do you have to tell me every little thing?"

When I got pregnant and had a miscarriage after an accidental fall, I broke down in tears, completely shattered.

Ethan still wore that same indifferent expression.

"We can always have another baby later."

I comforted myself by thinking he was just sick.

It wasn't until his childhood best friend, Chloe, came back to the country that I realized Ethan knew how to smile, and he knew how to care for someone.

A day before her arrival, he began prepping all her favorite ingredients.

Fearing she might get hurt, he even installed corner guards all over the furniture in our house.

"Chloe is always clumsy. If I don't pad the sharp edges, she'll hurt herself and cry."

Watching him smile as he cooked for Chloe, I finally realized he never had emotional detachment disorder.

He was just emotionally detached from me.

In that case, let this six-year marriage end here.

Back when I was pregnant, I tripped and slammed into a cabinet, causing a miscarriage. Afterward, I was so weak I could barely stand.

Back then, I had asked Ethan to install corner guards on the furniture, but he turned me down.

"We don't need corner guards. Just be more careful when you get out of bed."

"I'm busy. I don't have time for petty things like that."

Because of that, I was constantly getting bruised during that period.

Now, just because Chloe was coming over for dinner, Ethan had padded every corner in the entire house without hesitation.

Right then, a knock sounded at the door.

Before I could even get up, Ethan rushed to the door, still wearing his apron.

Chloe had arrived.

This was the first time I had ever met her in person.

When Ethan and I got married, she was already living abroad, so she hadn't attended our wedding.

Yet I knew what she looked like.

In Ethan's study, there were countless photos of him hanging out with friends, and Chloe was in every single one of them.

The second Chloe stepped inside, she threw herself into Ethan's arms with a laugh.

"Ethan! I'm back! Aren't you excited?"

Ethan didn't pull away. Right in front of me, he hugged Chloe, his face softening with an affectionate tenderness I had never seen before.

"Of course I am. Look at you—all grown up, and still so reckless."

With that, he let go of Chloe and introduced me to her.

"This is Natalie. You've seen our wedding photos."

Chloe still had her arms casually draped around Ethan's neck as her eyes swept over me from head to toe.

"So this is your wife!"

"Hi, Natalie. I'm Ethan's best friend—and the dream girl he could never get, Chloe."

I gave a polite nod in greeting, but my eyes remained glued to Ethan's face.

This was the very first time I had ever seen him look so genuinely happy.

He actually knew how to smile.

Wasn't he supposed to be born emotionally detached? Why was he showing Chloe so much warmth?

Ethan lightly tapped Chloe's hand, prompting her to let go.

"Your favorite braised short ribs are ready. I'll go plate them up."

Only then did Chloe reluctantly release him.

As Ethan turned toward the kitchen, Chloe struck up a conversation with me on her own.

"Natalie, Ethan is actually quite a romantic guy. Where did you two go for your honeymoon?"

Romantic?

My brow furrowed.

That word felt like it had nothing to do with Ethan whatsoever.

"We didn't go on a honeymoon. Ethan wasn't interested in going anywhere."

"You grew up with him. Didn't you know he suffers from emotional detachment disorder?"

The moment those words left my mouth, Chloe stared at me in shock.

"Ethan? Emotionally detached? How is that even possible!"