Zi Ya

For five years, my architectural career was my sanctuary, a fortress I built around myself and my sick daughter, Lily, after David, my fiancé and Lily' s father, vanished without a trace, leaving us to drown in debt and medical bills. The man who promised forever simply disappeared, and I poured every ounce of my being into keeping Lily alive. Then, he reappeared. Not alone, but with Chloe Davis – my best friend since childhood – by his side, her arm possessively linked through his. She was glowing, pregnant with his child, while my own daughter fought for every breath. They looked so perfectly, disgustingly happy. My world shattered again, only this time, he looked me in the eye, the woman he once loved, the mother of his child, and asked, "Who are you?" His mother and Chloe joined in, accusing me of stalking, of being crazy, while he stood by silently, denying our entire past, denying Lily. How could he forget? How could the man who swore to protect me, who saw my dreams, now look at me with such cold indifference, even annoyance? Did our love mean so little? Did our daughter mean nothing at all? But the final blow landed in Lily' s hospital room, where he stood with Chloe, brazenly celebrating their new life, while Lily gasped for air, hooked up to machines. He looked at our dying daughter and declared, "Whatever is wrong with this child, it has nothing to do with me." That lie, that ultimate betrayal, finally snapped something inside me. Enough. It was time for him to remember, and for me to fight back for my daughter, for our truth.

The night before the SATs, I sat at my desk, my mind fixed not on review books, but on Kevin Johnson, my ex-boyfriend, whose excited voice boomed from downstairs, bragging to my dad about Tiff Rodriguez' s party-his new girlfriend. Then, a horrifying, vivid memory jolted me from what should have been a normal evening: Tiff, sneering in the school bathroom, outlining her vicious plan to drug Kevin so he' d miss his Ivy League SATs. In that other life, the one I somehow lived, I' d desperately tried to intervene, to warn him, but he' d just laughed it off. Tiff' s scheme ultimately failed and led to her death, but Kevin, consumed by rage, responded by framing me for sexual assault. The unbearable shame of his lies drove my parents to suicide, and I, arrested and condemned, died in juvenile detention, haunted by Kevin' s cruel visit displaying my parents' last, broken moments. The utter injustice of his monstrous lies, the agonizing despair of being blamed for everything while struggling to help, was an unbearable burden. How could one life be so thoroughly shattered by such a deep, twisted betrayal? But then, a sharp gasp brought me back to my room, the exact same night before the SATs, Kevin' s laughter still echoing. This was it: my second chance. A cold, knowing smile touched my lips. This time, I would write a different ending.

I spent two years navigating the stratified air of Spencer Kensington’s world, thinking I was the woman he loved. I even ate instant ramen for months to afford a vintage camera lens for our anniversary. When I got a mysterious text about "Operation Blue Moon," I thought it was our private signal for a proposal. Instead, I walked into a limestone fortress to find the Kensington and Van Der Woodsen Engagement Party in full swing. Spencer wasn't there for a romantic dinner; he was standing under a crystal chandelier, announcing his "business merger" with a blonde heiress. When I confronted him in a service hallway, he didn't apologize. He offered to buy me a brownstone and keep me as his "side project" while his mother, Victoria, watched from the balcony like a queen. "Vanessa is just furniture," he said, his voice full of a terrifying sincerity. "But you're the one I love. I can give you a life of ease." When I refused to be his dirty little secret, the retaliation was instant and brutal. By the next morning, I was fired from my reporting job, my father’s nursing home funding was pulled, and I returned home to find my apartment condemned by the city. My entire life was piled in wet boxes on a rain-soaked sidewalk. I couldn't understand how one family could have the power to erase a person’s existence in a single night. How could the man who kissed me yesterday watch his mother leave me homeless and penniless today? Standing in the rain next to my ruined belongings, a black SUV pulled up and Mayor Julian Sterling stepped out. He didn't offer me pity; he offered me a deal. "The Kensingtons are panicked," he said, his eyes cold and calculating. "And panicked people make mistakes. You have a reason to watch them burn. I want to see what you know." I took his hand, knowing he was just as dangerous as the people I was fighting, but I was done being the victim. This wasn't just a breakup anymore; it was a war.

On my 21st birthday, my fiancé Chandler and my adoptive sister Brenda drugged me and sold my first night at a secret auction. Then they framed me for arson, and I spent the next three years in prison learning how to survive. After my release, I fought in underground clubs, bleeding for the money to buy back my family's brownstone. But Chandler found me, calling me a "common harlot" as he tried to drag me home. He offered me a "last chance" to apologize to Brenda for the crimes she committed. When I refused, he publicly announced the sale of my home. All proceeds would be donated to the "Brenda Richardson Philanthropic Foundation." He didn't just take my money; he took my soul. He took the last tangible piece of my parents, of my identity. Everything was gone. As I collapsed onto the grimy floor, my world shattered, I fumbled for my phone. There was only one name left, one last hope. "Brien," I choked out, my voice broken. "Please. I need your help. Get me out of here."

I fell for Kade Livingston, the campus king. To protect his family's reputation, he asked me to be his "shield," making me endure vicious bullying and even a kidnapping as a supposed test of my love. I endured it all, until his fragile stepsister, Dani, stole my most personal work—a photography series honoring my late mother. She didn't just steal it; she twisted my art into a grotesque, pornographic mockery of her memory. When I tried to expose her, Kade destroyed all my evidence. He then had me kidnapped and beaten, leaving me for dead, all to protect his stepsister's crime and hide the twisted nature of their bond. Lying bruised in a hospital bed, I finally understood. He never loved me. I was just a disposable pawn in his family's sick game. My disguise as a plain student, meant to keep me safe, had only made me a target for her jealousy. But they made one fatal mistake. They thought they were destroying Holly Erickson, a quiet, unremarkable girl. They had no idea they were messing with K.B. Barry, the secretly world-famous author with the power to ruin them all. Today, at the photography competition where they plan to celebrate their crime, I will make my first-ever public appearance and show them what happens when you break a queen.

After a brutal assault cost me my fiancé, my childhood friend swooped in to save me. He married me, cherished me, and I fell in love with the perfect life he built. I thought I had finally found my happy ending. Then, pregnant with our child, I overheard him confessing to my half-sister. He had orchestrated the entire assault. He married me just to stay close to her. In the hospital, she staged an attack, claiming I tried to kill her and her unborn baby. My husband shoved me against the wall, roaring at me as he rushed to her side. "I'll kill you for this!" As I lay bleeding on the cold floor, losing my own child, not a single person looked back. I was just a necessary casualty in his game. But I had recorded her gloating confession. I faked my death and fled to my billionaire mother. He would find out the truth, and I would be the ghost that haunted him to his grave.

I had loved my fiancé, Dominic Watts, since we were children. Our marriage was supposed to be the perfect seal on a merger between our two family empires. In my last life, he stood outside my burning art studio with my stepsister, Julia, and watched me die. I screamed for him, the smoke choking me, my skin searing from the heat. "Dominic, please! Help me!" Julia clung to his arm, her face a picture of false terror. "It's too dangerous! You'll get hurt! We have to go!" And he listened. He looked at me one last time, his eyes filled with a pity that cut deeper than any flame, and then he turned and ran, leaving me to burn. Until I died, I didn't understand. The boy who promised to always protect me had just watched me burn to death. My unconditional love was the price I paid so he could be with my sister. When I opened my eyes again, I was back in my bedroom. In one hour, I was due at the family board meeting. This time, I walked straight to the head of the table and said, "I am breaking the engagement."

The smell of smoke and burning memories filled my lungs on our golden anniversary. Fifty years of what I thought was love, a shared history, was going up in flames around me. Then, terror: Sarah, my wife, screamed not for me, but for David, my best friend, trapped under a beam. She shoved me-not away from the danger, but directly into a wall of fire, clearing her path to David. As the fire consumed me, I saw her scramble past where I' d just stood, without a single backward glance. Our children, our very own children, rushed past my agonized screams, ignoring their burning father to free the man their mother truly loved. I survived, a testament to the fire' s fury: a landscape of scars and melted skin. In the sterile hospital room, she finally came, with a chilling resolve I' d glimpsed but never comprehended. "Ethan, let' s get a divorce," she said, her voice flat. "I want to spend whatever time I have left with David. It' s always been him." My own children, our children, then stood at the foot of my bed, faces twisted in a mixture of pity and impatience. "Dad, just let her go," my son urged, "Mom and David… they deserve to be happy. You were just… in the way." Fifty years of sacrifice, of putting dreams aside, of loving, and I was just "in the way." They remarried the very next day, a grand affair splashed across media headlines mocking me, the burned, pathetic old husband cast aside for an "epic romance." But as I lay there, I knew one thing they didn' t: if I had the chance, I' d never, ever marry Sarah Reynolds. Then I closed my eyes. I opened them to the scent of lilies, standing in a grand ballroom, unburned. Opposite me, a young Sarah Reynolds, eyes shining with excitement, at our engagement party. Before a toast could be made, she looked right at me, clear and brave: "I' m sorry, everyone. I can' t do this. Ethan, I' m calling off the engagement." A wave of whispers spread, expecting my humiliation. But all I felt was the crushing weight of fifty miserable years lift from my shoulders. It was a clean break, an unexpected gift. My eyes scanned the crowd, past Sarah' s bewildered parents, past a smirking David Chen. I found her near the orchestra, a guest who barely knew us: Dr. Olivia Hayes, a woman of quiet grace and intelligence. "Olivia," I said, my voice clear and steady, cutting through the noise. "I only want to marry you. Will you take me away?"

It was our tenth wedding anniversary, but the party felt exactly like the nine humiliating ones before it. My wife, Vanessa Thorne, a dazzling socialite to the world, was my warden, and tonight, she paraded her newest "toy," a young model named Liam. "Show him the ropes," she purred, her eyes alight with cruel amusement, forcing me, her husband, to mentor her latest conquest in how to "please her." As the guests snickered, the subtext was clear: "Show him how to be my pet, just like you." For ten years, I had been her gilded prisoner, my father's mounting medical bills the chain around my neck, paid for by the Thorne family. But tonight, something inside me snapped. "No," I whispered, then louder, "No. I won't." I met her eyes and declared, "Vanessa, I want a divorce." The room erupted in laughter, and Vanessa sneered, "You always come crawling back. You have nothing. You are nothing without me." She was right; ninety-nine times, I had failed, but this was the hundredth. I pulled out a printed divorce agreement, a symbol of my resolve. In response, she snatched my champagne and flung it in my face, hissing, "Have you forgotten what you are? You belong to me." Then, for her audience, she commanded, "Get on your knees, Ethan. Crawl to me. Bark like the dog you are." Soaked, shaking, and utterly broken, I knelt, the marble cold beneath me, and whimpered, "Woof." That night, locked in my studio, the phone rang: my father was dying. I pounded on the door, screaming, "Vanessa! Let me out! He's dying!" Her reply, cynical and cold, echoed through the wood, "Another trick? It's pathetic." She left me there, and a primal fury ignited. I smashed the window, cut myself on the glass, and fashioned a rope from canvas. I barely made it down, landing hard and breaking my ankle, but I crawled through hedges, alarms blaring. On the street, a sleek black sedan pulled up. A woman, Sarah Jenkins, offered, "You look like you're in trouble." I gasped, "I need to get to the hospital. My father..." "Get in," she said, her voice calm and steady. At the emergency room, I heard it: "Mr. Miller... just passed a few minutes ago." My father was gone. The chain was broken. A strange, terrifying sense of freedom washed over me, a feeling of nothing left to lose. I clutched Sarah's card, a lifeline in my hand, and whispered, "I'm so, so tired of fighting."

My life as a librarian in a small Southern town was perfect, a sun-drenched dream. My new husband, Mark, was solid and dependable. And then, two pink lines: triplets. My heart swelled, a joy so big it almost hurt. But the whisper started, directly in my mind. "I hope Mommy Sarah likes the special cupcakes I made just for her." It was Chloe, Mark' s sweet-faced ten-year-old daughter. A cold dread, sharp and familiar, sliced through me. It wasn' t just a dream, it was a terrifying memory of a life I' d lived before, a future so certain it felt like the past. Chloe, innocent smile, offering poisoned cupcakes. Me, trusting, then fire, loss, and darkness. My unborn babies and I, gone. "Sarah, honey, look what Chloe made for you!" Mark boomed, holding a plate of bright cupcakes. I gasped, faking sudden morning sickness. Panicked, I offered them to Mark. Chloe' s innocent mask flickered; panic flashed in her eyes when I suggested Mark try one. She snatched the plate, claiming they were only for me. A cupcake fell, and our golden retriever, Buddy, gobbled the frosting. Minutes later, Buddy was violently retching, poisoned. The vet confirmed it: household cleaner. Chloe burst into tears, feigning an accident, but her projected thought was chilling: "Stupid dog. Almost ruined everything." Mark, heartbroken by Buddy' s illness, was blinded by her act. He looked at me, full of concern for Chloe. "It was just a terrible mistake, Sarah. She' s just a child." He didn' t know. He couldn't hear the venom, the calculation, the hidden hatred aimed at me and my unborn children. How could I make him see the truth when the enemy wore a child' s face and spoke only in my mind? A new, icy fear coiled around the warmth of my babies. This was just the beginning.

My life was falling apart, much like my Brooklyn apartment with its persistent leak. Then, I stumbled back into the life of Gabrielle Chadwick, the woman who' d ripped my soul out three years ago, only to find her in my best friend' s bed. She was now a ruthless tech CEO, engaged to the same insidious man who' d convinced me I was just her "project." My old wounds bled anew, and I tried to escape, even inventing a fake girlfriend. But Gabrielle wouldn't let me go; she trapped me, demanding answers, which I met with accusations of her playing games. At a lavish industry event, to finally sever our toxic tie, I publicly declared my love for someone else, shattering her. Hours later, she found me, furious, desperate, and after slapping me, kissed me like her life depended on it. We reignited, but then she vanished for an "emergency meeting," leaving me with that familiar sinking feeling. The next day, news broke: Gabrielle was merging her company and marrying her fiancé, and I was fired, my project snatched away as a condition of their deal. Heartbroken, I deleted her number, booked a flight to Berlin, ready to erase her from my life for good. But as my boarding call echoed, the airport screens flashed: "Merger Off! Chadwick Innovations Stock in Freefall!" Then, I heard her scream my name, saw her running towards me barefoot through the terminal, tears streaming down her face, telling me everything was a lie and a fight for us.

For five long years, I chased a man' s love, guided by a mysterious "System" that promised me his heart. I lived in a world not my own, sacrificing everything for Ethan Lester, enduring 999 rejections while he preached piety and purity. Then, I found him in his private prayer room, not praying, but whispering Maria's name to a hyper-realistic sex doll, an exact replica of his adopted sister. My entire marriage was a sham, a shield for his twisted obsession; all his coldness and devotion were just a lie. I didn't play a game; I tried to make a man love me, but discovered he was in love with his sister, and I was just a fool for listening. But when he then harvested my skin for a graft-without my consent-to protect Maria's perfect face after a near-fatal incident he caused, I knew I was truly done. He offered me his body as a 'reward' for my severed flesh, but the disgust was cleansing; it burned away every last shred of my affection. I finally understood; my worth wasn' t tied to his twisted devotion. So, I ripped out my IV, filed the divorce papers he' d unknowingly signed, and stood in his empty mansion: "System, take me home."

My adoptive sister, Sarah, was always distant. Ready to flee to college, my phone buzzed with an odd pop-up: She' s watching you. Her heart is breaking. Soon, these constant, mysterious messages haunted me. Then her manipulative boyfriend, Jake, turned our home into hell, destroying my most cherished things. Yet, the pop-ups relentlessly insisted Sarah' s coldness and complicity were secret acts of sacrificing love for me. The pop-ups justified every cruel act. But the ultimate betrayal came when Jake attacked my little sister Lily. Sarah publicly framed me, forcing Lily to lie, cementing my role as the family' s villain. How could this be love? This twisted nightmare, fueled by constant, insidious messages, made me question everything. Was I blind, or was Sarah truly lost? The gaslighting was relentless. Finally, Jake was gone. Sarah declared her love, expecting a future. But her "love" was a curse. With harsh words, I severed the toxic bond. In that moment, the pop-ups vanished forever. I was truly free.

If it hadn't been for Emma, Jack wouldn't have been lying on the bed for two years since that accident. She tried her best to take care of him every day and even lied to him that she cheated on him, only to motivate him to get up. However, he tried every means to torture her to vent his hatred of her. Swallowing all the grievances and bitterness, she was still there for him and treated him patiently and gently. Even before he knew, his indifference had already been melted down by her.

Aurora woke up to the sterile chill of her king-sized bed in Sterling Thorne's penthouse. Today was the day her husband would finally throw her out like garbage. Sterling walked in, tossed divorce papers at her, and demanded her signature, eager to announce his "eligible bachelor" status to the world. In her past life, the sight of those papers had broken her, leaving her begging for a second chance. Sterling's sneering voice, calling her a "trailer park girl" undeserving of his name, had once cut deeper than any blade. He had always used her humble beginnings to keep her small, to make her grateful for the crumbs of his attention. She had lived a gilded cage, believing she was nothing without him, until her life flatlined in a hospital bed, watching him give a press conference about his "grief." But this time, she felt no sting, no tears. Only a cold, clear understanding of the mediocre man who stood on a pedestal she had painstakingly built with her own genius. Aurora signed the papers, her name a declaration of independence. She grabbed her old, phoenix-stickered laptop, ready to walk out. Sterling Thorne was about to find out exactly how expensive "free" could be.

The sterile white of the operating room blurred, then sharpened, as Skye Sterling felt the cold clawing its way up her body. The heart monitor flatlined, a steady, high-pitched whine announcing her end. Her uterus had been removed, a desperate attempt to stop the bleeding, but the blood wouldn't clot. It just kept flowing, warm and sticky, pooling beneath her. Through heavy eyes, she saw a trembling nurse holding a phone on speaker. "Mr. Kensington," the nurse's voice cracked, "your wife... she's critical." A pause, then a sweet, poisonous giggle. Seraphina Miller. "Liam is in the shower," Seraphina's voice purred. "Stop calling, Skye. It's pathetic. Faking a medical emergency on our anniversary? Even for you, that's low." Then, Liam's bored voice: "If she dies, call the funeral home. I have a meeting in the morning." Click. The line went dead. A second later, so did Skye. The darkness that followed was absolute, suffocating, a black ocean crushing her lungs. She screamed into the void, a silent, agonizing wail of regret for loving a man who saw her as a nuisance, for dying without ever truly living. Until she died, she didn't understand. Why was her life so tragically wasted? Why did her husband, the man she loved, abandon her so cruelly? The injustice of it all burned hotter than the fever in her body. Then, the air rushed back in. Skye gasped, her body convulsing violently on the mattress. Her eyes flew open, wide and terrified, staring blindly into the darkness. Her trembling hand reached for her phone. May 12th. Five years ago. She was back.

Vesper's marriage to Julian Sterling was a gilded cage. One morning, she woke naked beside Damon Sterling, Julian's terrifying brother, then found a text: Julian's mistress was pregnant. Her world shattered, but the real nightmare had just begun. Julian's abuse escalated, gaslighting Vesper, funding his secret life. Damon, a germaphobic billionaire, became her unsettling anchor amidst his chaos. As "Iris," Vesper exposed Julian's mistress, Serena Sharp, sparking brutal war: poisoned drinks, a broken leg, and the horrifying truth-Julian murdered her parents, trapping Vesper in marriage. The man she married was a killer. Broken and betrayed, Vesper was caught between monstrous brothers, burning with injustice. Refusing victimhood, Vesper reclaimed her identity. Fueled by vengeance, she allied with Damon, who vowed to burn his empire for her. Julian faced justice, but matriarch Eleanor's counterattack forced Vesper's choice as a hitman aimed for her.

Trigger/Content Warning: This story contains mature themes and explicit content intended for adult audiences(18+). Reader discretion is advised. It includes elements such as BDSM dynamics, explicit sexual content, toxic family relationships, occasional violence and strong language. This is not a fluffy romance. It is intense, raw and messy, and explores the darker side of desire. ***** "Take off your dress, Meadow." "Why?" "Because your ex is watching," he said, leaning back into his seat. "And I want him to see what he lost." ••••*••••*••••* Meadow Russell was supposed to get married to the love of her life in Vegas. Instead, she walked in on her twin sister riding her fiance. One drink at the bar turned to ten. One drunken mistake turned into reality. And one stranger's offer turned into a contract that she signed with shaking hands and a diamond ring. Alaric Ashford is the devil in a tailored Tom Ford suit. Billionaire CEO, brutal, possessive. A man born into an empire of blood and steel. He also suffers from a neurological condition-he can't feel. Not objects, not pain, not even human touch. Until Meadow touches him, and he feels everything. And now he owns her. On paper and in his bed. She wants him to ruin her. Take what no one else could have. He wants control, obedience... revenge. But what starts as a transaction slowly turns into something Meadow never saw coming. Obsession, secrets that were never meant to surface, and a pain from the past that threatens to break everything. Alaric doesn't share what's his. Not his company. Not his wife. And definitely not his vengeance.

The roasted lamb was cold, a reflection of her marriage. On their third anniversary, Evelyn Vance waited alone in her Manhattan penthouse. Then her phone buzzed: Alexander, her husband, had been spotted leaving the hospital, holding his childhood sweetheart Scarlett Sharp's hand. Alexander arrived hours later, dismissing Evelyn's quiet complaint with a cold reminder: she was Mrs. Vance, not a victim. Her mother's demands reinforced this role, making Evelyn, a brilliant mind, feel like a ghost. A dangerous indifference replaced betrayal. The debt was paid; now, it was her turn. She drafted a divorce settlement, waiving everything. As Alexander's tender voice drifted from his study, speaking to Scarlett, Evelyn placed her wedding ring on his pillow, moved to the guest suite, and locked the door. The dull wife was gone; the Oracle was back.

My husband Julian celebrated our five-year anniversary by sleeping with his mistress. He thought I was a clueless trophy wife, too dim to notice the vanilla and tuberose scent on his expensive suits. He was wrong. For years, I played Mrs. Vance, hiding my brilliance while Julian claimed my patents. An anonymous email confirmed his ultimate betrayal: photos of him and Scarlett Kensington in ecstasy. My heart didn't break; it solidified into ice at five years wasted. I activated "The Protocol" for a new identity and escape countdown. Playing the doting wife, I plotted his downfall, catching him with his mistress selling my work, and publicly snapping his credit card. His betrayals and stolen work ignited a cold, calculated fury. He had no idea the monster he'd created. I was dismantling his empire. I shredded his patent papers, stripping him of his ill-gotten gains. With a final tap, I initiated "Identity Erasure." Mrs. Vance was dead. Dr. Evelyn Thorne had just begun her counterattack.

Yelena discovered that she wasn't her parents' biological child. After seeing through their ploy to trade her as a pawn in a business deal, she was sent away to her barren birthplace. There, she stumbled upon her true origins-a lineage of historic opulence. Her real family showered her with love and adoration. In the face of her so-called sister's envy, Yelena conquered every adversity and took her revenge, all while showcasing her talents. She soon caught the attention of the city's most eligible bachelor. He cornered Yelena and pinned her against the wall. "It's time to reveal your true identity, darling."

Betrayed by her fiancé and stepsister a day before her wedding shattered all Lina's dreams about love. She was heartbroken and in pain. Being drugged and unknowingly loosing her virginity to a stranger is not as painful as being betrayed by her loved ones. She promised to make her pretentious step sister and her unfaithful fiancé pay back hundredfold for what they did to her. On her journey to seek revenge, the stranger she had a one night stand with, came knocking at her door with a marriage contract in hand. Without her knowing he was the one she has that blissful one night stand with, she agreed on the marriage contract for some reasons. Will she find out he was the one she had that blissful one night stand with? Will she fall in love with him after being betrayed? Will she be able to get her revenge on those that betrayed her? Find out in this amazing book "Contracted After Being Betrayed"

The acrid smell of smoke still clung to Evelyn in the ambulance, her lungs raw from the penthouse fire. She was alive, but the world around her felt utterly destroyed, a feeling deepened by the small TV flickering to life. On it, her husband, Julian Vance, thousands of miles away, publicly comforted his mistress, Serena Holloway, shielding her from paparazzi after *her* "panic attack." Julian's phone went straight to voicemail. Alone in the hospital with second-degree burns, Evelyn watched news replays, her heart rate spiking. He protected Serena from camera flashes while Evelyn burned. When he finally called, he demanded she handle insurance, dismissing the fire; Serena's voice faintly heard. The shallow family ties and pretense of marriage evaporated. A searing injustice and cold anger replaced pain; Evelyn knew Julian had chosen to let her burn. "Evelyn Vance died in that fire," she declared, ripping out her IV. Armed with a secret fortune as "The Architect," Hollywood's top ghostwriter, she walked out. She would divorce Julian, reclaim her name, and finally step into the spotlight as an actress.

Vivian clutched her Hermès bag, her doctor's words echoing: "Extremely high-risk pregnancy." She hoped the baby would save her cold marriage, but Julian wasn't in London as his schedule claimed. Instead, a paparazzi photo revealed his early return-with a blonde woman, not his wife, at the private airport exit. The next morning, Julian served divorce papers, callously ending their "duty" marriage for his ex, Serena. A horrifying contract clause gave him the right to terminate her pregnancy or seize their child. Humiliated, demoted, and forced to fake an ulcer, Vivian watched him parade his affair, openly discarding her while celebrating Serena. This was a calculated erasure, not heartbreak. He cared only for his image, confirming he would "handle" the baby himself. A primal rage ignited her. "Just us," she whispered to her stomach, vowing to sign the divorce on her terms, keep her secret safe, and walk away from Sterling Corp for good, ready to protect her child alone.