Dante watched Celine walk away, but Archer stepped right into his path, bringing him to a dead stop.

A cold, humorless laugh escaped Dante at Archer’s words.

"A gentleman? Seriously?"

"She's my wife. How I treat her is absolutely none of your business."

Archer hadn't seen that coming, but he pressed on. "Are you sure you haven't mistaken her for someone else? She genuinely seemed not to recognize you."

"How could I mistake her? We were married for three years. We've only been divorced for three months."

Still, Dante couldn't shake a nagging feeling that something was off. Celine's gaze and entire demeanor had been undeniable to both of them.

He’d have to dig into this the moment he got back.

But Archer's grin widened at his words. "Divorced, you say? Then 'wife' isn't quite the right term, is it? Once you're divorced, there's no connection. At best, you're just... the ex-husband?"

"You..."

Furious and not wanting to waste another second on this guy, Dante shoved past Archer and stormed back into the party, determined to get to the bottom of this later.

Archer watched him go, a dark, contemplative look in his eyes. After a moment, he finally turned and walked away.

"About that woman I asked you to look into, what have you found?"

Returning to the Williams estate that night, unusually sober, Dante's first move was to call and check on the task he'd assigned earlier that day.

"It's all done, Mr. Williams. A detailed itinerary of Mrs. Williams's activities over the past few months has been sent to your email. You can check it whenever you're ready."

After hanging up, Dante started sifting through the documents.

"A psychological clinic? The first thing she did after leaving me was go to a psychological clinic?"

A flicker of something unreadable crossed Dante's face.

Was she in so much pain she just couldn't handle it, resorting to hypnosis to erase him?

What she did afterward only deepened Dante’s disbelief.

During their three years together, she’d meticulously taken care of him without a single complaint, but she’d never shown any ambition or value of her own.

Yet, within her first month out, she’d landed a job and become an executive assistant.

When his parents had sponsored her, hadn't they mentioned something about her school? It seemed pretty prestigious.

Ah, whatever. He'd sleep on it and investigate the rest tomorrow.

The next day.

Arriving at his office, his assistant placed the stack of documents needing his signature to one side.

Then, separately, he handed Dante another file.

"Mr. Williams, this is all the information regarding Mrs. Williams's past, including her academic records and family background. You can review it if you need to."

Dante nodded, a sense of satisfaction washing over him. His assistant always knew what he needed.

"Good, just leave it there."

"Of course. Also, Mr. Williams, you have a dinner reservation with the second son of the Reynolds family at seven tonight. Should I cancel it for you?"

Archer Reynolds? What could those two possibly have to discuss?

He was about to tell his assistant to decline, but then he suddenly remembered that woman. His thoughts immediately shifted, and he decided to accept the reservation.

Celine Evans...

It really seemed like she had forgotten him...

And what exactly was her relationship with Archer Reynolds?

He realized with a jolt how little he actually knew about his ex-wife.

...

In reality, Celine was far from the simple woman Dante imagined her to be.

After leaving the clinic that day, she headed straight to the apartment she had rented in advance.

After a quick tidying up, she started sending out her resume. She needed a decent job, one that could support her and give her room to grow.

Throughout her three years with Dante, she had never given up on her career.

As an architectural designer, a top graduate from an Ivy League university and program, she had continued to self-study and enter various design competitions. Even though she hadn't worked formally, her resume was incredibly strong.

Now, even though she had forgotten Dante, her professional skills and knowledge were still sharp as ever.

Because of the hypnosis, in her mind, those three years were spent recovering at home from an illness.

The position Celine first set her sights on was Executive Assistant to the General Manager of Reynolds Group.

Reynolds Group was a family business and a major player in the construction industry, meaning plenty of opportunities.

This General Manager was the second son of the Reynolds family, Archer Reynolds, who had recently returned from overseas.

He held dual master's degrees in Architecture and Management from top-tier international universities, his expertise was undeniable. As a newly returned executive parachuted into the company, he likely faced skepticism from veteran employees and needed to be cautious.

Therefore, for Archer, grooming a newcomer as his right-hand person was crucial.

Moreover, Celine was certain he had seen and was familiar with the international competitions she had entered.

So, after careful consideration, Celine submitted her resume directly to Reynolds Group.

Just as she'd anticipated, after personally interviewing her, Archer hired her on the spot.