Chapter 3

Ethan's Adam's apple bobbed.

He looked at me, then down at Serena, trembling in his arms.

The next second, he did something that stunned everyone present.

In front of all the elites, the media, and our business partners, he dropped to his knees before me.

"Scarlett." He looked up, his eyes full of pleading. "Serena has always had a hard life, and her health is poor. That night, I had too much to drink... I let you down."

"BOOM," went the room. Everyone erupted.

Phone flashbulbs erupted, flashing wildly. Even with Richard Davies's people trying to stop them, there was no way to contain the spread of this earth-shattering scandal.

"The baby is mine." Ethan clenched his jaw, admitting it. "But I love you, Scarlett. I'm begging you, for the sake of this child."

I looked at his pathetic figure, kneeling on the ground, and felt nothing but utter absurdity.

He was kneeling *to me*, but every single word was for Serena.

Serena sobbed, shaking her head, struggling to kneel as well. "No, it's not Ethan's fault... it was just that once, I didn't mean to..."

Eleanor's eyes flickered. She immediately adopted a solemn, almost empathetic expression, her words coming out in a rush, a plan forming. "Scarlett, this has become a mess, but the baby is innocent. You can raise it. You'll still be Ethan's wife, his *only* wife. No one will ever take your place!"

I slowly turned to Eleanor. "I'll raise it?"

"Yes!" Eleanor seized onto it like a lifeline. "Serena won't compete with you; she just needs a safe place to stay. After you two marry, Ethan will be a good husband to you, and the Thorne family will take care of all the gossip."

Several Thorne relatives nearby also chimed in, offering their advice.

"What old-money family *doesn't* have a little scandal? Men will be men; sometimes they just... play around."

"If you want to be the lady of the Thorne family, you have to think about the bigger picture."

"Ethan publicly knelt for you. Do you really want to destroy Serena?"

I listened to their nauseating remarks and suddenly laughed.

My laughter, in the cold air, sounded unusually sharp.

They weren't feeling sorry for *me*. They simply thought that since the scandal was out, I should just quietly take over.

To hide Serena's shame, to secure an heir for the Thorne family, to let Ethan keep up his 'devoted boyfriend' act.

And even later, I'd have to raise this secret baby for them, pretending nothing had ever happened.

In my past life, I actually believed their lies.