The Last Time I Loved Him (Autumn and Ryan)

Chapter 9

Kaylee glanced at the skyrocketing viewer count and a glimmer of smugness flashed in her eyes. She continued, "Here's what happened. That day, I went to Easton's house for a class reunion. After everyone had a few drinks and left, he..."

Kaylee trailed off and covered her face with her hands, beginning to cry.

Easton's name wasn't unfamiliar to anyone. His marriage to me had caused quite a stir online, and everyone praised him as a responsible, dependable man.

Easton, seizing the opportunity, tried to become an internet celebrity, capitalizing on that fame. Unfortunately, his talent wasn't enough, and his account, though briefly popular, soon faded into obscurity. I had only gotten involved in the online world because of him, and through my own abilities, I was thriving behind the scenes.

My parents had always been cautious about Easton, worried he had ulterior motives for pursuing me, so they insisted I notarize my premarital assets. Looking back now, their concerns were justified. Hearing Easton's name, the atmosphere in the live stream exploded.

"Isn't he that man who stuck by his girlfriend despite her being assaulted? What happened to him?"

"Of course, men always think with their lower halves. Someone should just throw him in jail."

"I can't believe Easton turned out to be like this. He swore he would only love Amina and would find and punish the person who hurt her, but look at him now-he's the one who should be punished." "Amina is so unlucky. She thought she'd found her redemption, only to end up with another criminal."

As Kaylee watched the viewer count soar to over 200,000, a wide grin spread across her face, barely concealing her satisfaction.

Easton's mother, seeing the live stream's popularity grow, turned pale with rage and spat, "Just wait."

Then she stormed off.

Easton's parents were both university professors at the school we attended. When I had no one to turn to and was expelled from school, all the surveillance footage had been erased, and I was left with nothing. I was certain his parents had something to do with it. Kaylee ended the live stream an hour later and immediately called me.

"Where are you? Let's meet."

We agreed to meet at a café downstairs from the company building.

Kaylee had ditched the heavy makeup from our earlier encounter. Now, she wore sunglasses, a coat, and a small hat on her head. If I didn't know it was her, I would've thought she was heading to a funeral.

"Amina, I just got my popularity up, and now you want me to end the stream? What's your problem?" she demanded.

I chuckled softly. "You know the saying, 'Haste makes waste'? Is that really so hard to understand?"

"Easton is your husband. Suing him won't do you any good.

Everyone knows what happened in the past. After you leave him, who else would want you?"