Billionaire Pretended to Be Poor to Test His Fiancée – What Happened Next Shocked Everyone!
Chapter 3
Ethan stood immediately.
Lily looked toward the window.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
But when he reached the door, Victoria was already gone.
That night, he couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Why was Victoria in Queens?
Why had she been watching him?
The next morning, he called her.
She answered after several rings.
“Hello?”
“Were you in Queens last night?”
Silence.
Then:
“No.”
Ethan closed his eyes.
“You’re sure?”
“Yes.”
He ended the call.
There it was.
A lie.
Small.
Simple.
But undeniable.
Marcus told him to stop.
“End it.”
“Not yet.”
“What are you waiting for?”
“The truth.”
Marcus laughed bitterly.
“You already have it.”
But Ethan had learned something during his years in business.
People rarely revealed their intentions all at once.
They revealed them when they believed they were safe.
So he continued.
He began selling the illusion of his downfall more convincingly.
He told Victoria he might need to sell his watch.
His car.
His vacation property.
He told her the company board had removed him temporarily.
That investors were furious.
That he might need a job.
Victoria became increasingly distant.
Then, one afternoon, she asked to meet.
They chose a quiet café in Manhattan.
Victoria arrived wearing sunglasses.
She removed them slowly.
“I’ve been thinking.”
Ethan already knew where the conversation was going.
“I have too.”
She folded her hands.
“This situation isn’t healthy.”
“No.”
“I need stability.”
“I understand.”
“You don’t seem upset.”
“I expected this.”
Her face changed.
“What does that mean?”
Ethan smiled faintly.
“Nothing.”
Victoria looked away.
“I think we should postpone the wedding.”
“Postpone?”
“For now.”
“Until?”
She hesitated.
“Until things are normal again.”
Ethan nodded.
“Of course.”
Victoria seemed relieved.
Then she said something unexpected.
“My mother thinks you should move out of New York.”
“Why?”
“She thinks the city reminds you too much of your old life.”
Ethan stared at her.
His old life.
She spoke as if his wealth had been a temporary personality trait.
As if without money, there was nothing left to remember.
“Victoria.”
“Yes?”
“If I never get anything back, would you still marry me?”
Her face went completely still.
Then she laughed.
“Don’t be dramatic.”
“It’s a question.”
“Ethan.”
“If I become an ordinary man.”
Her eyes hardened.
“You’re not an ordinary man.”
“Would you still marry me?”
Victoria stood.
“I can’t have this conversation.”
And she walked away.
Ethan sat alone.
For several minutes, he didn’t move.
Then his phone buzzed.
A message from Lily.
You alive, mysterious businessman?
He smiled.
Barely.
Her reply came quickly.
Come get dinner. You look like someone who needs fries.
That evening, Ethan told Lily more than he intended.
They sat outside Maggie’s after closing.
He explained the relationship.
The financial collapse.
The postponed wedding.
Lily listened quietly.
“You know,” she finally said, “you don’t have to keep defending her.”
Ethan looked at her.
“What?”
“You keep explaining why she acts that way.”
“She might just be scared.”
“Maybe.”
“And this is a huge change.”
“Sure.”
Lily looked at him.
“But who is taking care of you?”
Ethan didn’t answer.
Because he couldn’t remember the last time anyone had asked.
Lily stood.
“Well?”
“What?”
“Go home.”
“That sounds romantic.”
She laughed.
“Not everything is about romance.”
Ethan smiled.
“That’s a refreshing opinion.”
She pointed at him.
“Eat something besides fries tomorrow.”
He watched her walk away.
And suddenly, Ethan understood why he kept returning.
Lily didn’t know who he was.
She didn’t care.
And for the first time in years, Ethan wasn’t sure he wanted her to.
