Chapter 6

On my way home, Julian called me, frantically explaining that everything was a misunderstanding.

He wanted to make excuses, but I didn't want to hear them. I simply smiled and said softly, "Don't worry, Julian. I believe you. After all, we're getting married soon, right?"

The line went silent. Then, Julian let out a sigh of relief, his voice turning playful. "Of course, Chloe. I dream about you in that wedding dress every single night. You can't back out now."

He sounded so sincere. If this were the past, I would have believed him.

Suppressing my disgust, I said gently, "I'm just teasing. I know you love me most."

The Sterling family certainly didn't have the courage to break off a marriage with the Montgomerys on their own.

When I got home and saw my parents sitting together lovingly, my heart softened for a moment.

After a long silence, my eyes grew hot as I looked at my father.

"Dad, Melody is back. She's your biological daughter too, isn't she?"

The living room fell into a dead silence. My mother was the first to explode, demanding an explanation.

My father’s face went pale. He hung his head and confessed everything. Melody was the child of his college sweetheart, born secretly after they broke up.

"That was nineteen years ago. Her mother only brought her to me right before she died of illness. I couldn't bear to leave her, so I adopted her. I swear, there was nothing else to it."

But years ago, my father had claimed Melody was the orphan of an old friend from Savannah. My mother, out of the kindness of her heart, had even told me to welcome her as my new sister.

And five years ago, even though Melody knew I had been chasing Ethan for years, she still tried to get close to him. When I accidentally caught them, she pushed me down the stairs in a fit of rage, shattering my right wrist and giving me a mild concussion. I could never play the piano again.

Yet, she refused to apologize, screaming that I had stolen her life.

Back then, my father’s only solution was to pack her off to study in the UK.

And now, five years later, both of his daughters were pregnant by the same man.

I turned my head, wiping the tears from my eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Dad, Melody is pregnant with Julian’s baby. If the Sterlings want to keep partnering with the Montgomerys, you have to recognize Melody as your eldest daughter. Let her marry Julian in my place."

"Richard Sterling! You bastard, how dare you lie to me!"

"Five years ago, you tricked me into raising your mistress's child. And now, she’s pregnant with Julian’s baby, and my daughter has to pay the price!"

My mother, usually a refined lady, lost all control. She grabbed my father’s collar, screaming at the top of her lungs.

Our once warm home had turned into a chaotic, absurd comedy.

"Enough!" I yelled.

My mother stopped. She was the most innocent one in all of this, yet she held me tight, weeping and apologizing over and over.

"Mom, I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

I made my parents promise to keep my MIT plans a secret, and insisted that my father follow my instructions.

Most of our family wealth came from my late grandfather's estate. If Julian tried to destroy the Sterlings for his revenge, I couldn't just stand by and watch.

While packing my bags, I suddenly came across my old diaries.

They were filled with ten years of my painful pursuit of Ethan. As I flipped through the very first page, I noticed the paper was loose, and the childhood photo that used to be taped there was gone.

I also realized my lily-of-the-valley bracelet was missing.

Without hesitation, I unblocked Ethan and called him.

"Ethan, when you saved me all those years ago, did you lose a lily-of-the-valley bracelet? Do you remember?"

"What bracelet?"

My heart skipped a beat, then stopped completely.

I burst into a fit of wild laughter, tears streaming down my face.