Chapter 5

The next morning, I went to the hospital. The test confirmed my fears: I was pregnant.

Holding the report, I stood frozen in the sterile hallway, completely lost.

Suddenly, two familiar figures walked out from around the corner.

Their fingers were tightly intertwined. On Melody’s wrist was a familiar lily-of-the-valley bracelet.

"Chloe? What are you doing at the hospital?"

Meeting my gaze, Julian quickly yanked his hand away from Melody’s and walked over to me with a warm smile.

He was always so good at acting in front of me.

I gripped the paper tightly and looked into his gentle eyes, forcing a small smile.

"You're back. I'm fine, just had an upset stomach."

Julian asked anxiously, "Chloe, you need to eat on time when I'm not around. Your stomach is already weak. I'll worry myself to death if anything happens to you."

He wrapped his arm around my shoulder, acting as if nothing had happened on that yacht.

Seeing his instant face-flip right in front of Melody, I almost laughed out loud.

During the six days he was missing, I couldn't eat or sleep. When I heard he was in Savannah, I was terrified he had been kidnapped or hurt because of some business rivalry.

While I was losing sleep over his safety, he was passionately proposing to another woman.

The strong scent of jasmine perfume from Melody drifted over. My empty stomach spasmed, and the urge to vomit hit me again.

Seeing my scowl, Melody smiled sweetly.

"Chloe, tell Dad I'm home."

She put extra emphasis on the word "home." Her eyes flicked toward Julian as she added, "Julian has been with me the entire time he was 'missing.'"

"Melody, shut up," Julian snapped, a rare flash of panic appearing in his eyes.

Unable to take the nausea any longer, I violently pushed Julian away and bolted for the restroom.

"Chlo—"

Julian went to chase after me, but Melody grabbed his sleeve and whispered, "Julian, it's my turn for the ultrasound."

Julian froze. Ultimately, he stayed by her side to accompany her for her prenatal checkup.

After throwing up stomach acid, I washed my face, staring at my pale reflection in the mirror with a bitter laugh.

How pathetic. I looked less like the legitimate fiancée catching her man cheating, and more like a dirty mistress who couldn't be shown in public.

Actually, I wasn't even qualified to be a mistress.

To Julian, I was nothing more than a tool for his sick revenge.

When I stepped out of the restroom, I saw Ethan standing at the end of the hallway.

He had clearly been waiting for me. His dark eyes stared at the OB-GYN clinic door before turning to me.

"Chloe, is this the kind of trash you settled for after leaving me?"

"That's none of your business, Ethan."

"I didn't accept you back then because I was afraid you only chased me out of gratitude, not real love. I wanted to test you. But why did you stop?"

I had chased him for ten years. And now he was asking me why I stopped?

How ridiculous.

Maybe it started as gratitude, but over ten years, that gratitude had turned into genuine love.

Yet Ethan chose to use that gratitude to dangle me along.

He didn't love me. He was just bitter that he had lost his loyal shadow.

He and Julian were cut from the same cloth—stomping on my love, only to blame me for not loving them enough.

"Now you've seen his true colors. Do you still want to be with him?" Ethan stepped closer. "Chloe, why don't you look back at me?"

I scoffed. "I stopped caring about the past a long time ago. Keep those ten years. Consider them a gift."

Ethan pressed on. "Even if he used you? Even if he's having a baby with someone else?"

A sharp pain flared in my chest.

I pressed my hand against my heart, then slowly slid it down to my stomach.

*It's okay, Chloe. Just bear it a little longer.*