Chapter 1

While Noah Blake was out picking out our wedding rings after work, I was stabbed by a woman who burst out of the hospital.

That woman was Clara Parker, Noah's intern for three years and the girl he'd been protecting since they were kids.

The blade struck true, cutting off my chance to ever be a mother. The baby we'd just conceived was gone in an instant.

"She has to pay for this. Whatever you decide, I'm with you," Noah said, his voice steady and determined.

For the first time, Noah didn't hesitate or make excuses. He stood with me, all in.

Battered and barely able to stand, I forced myself to gather evidence and report Clara to the police, determined to have her charged for assault and see her locked up.

But when trial day came, the psychiatric evaluation personally signed by Noah turned into the key piece of evidence. Clara was found not guilty and walked out of court without a scratch.

"Clara's still so young. A little scare is enough. Throwing her in jail would destroy her life. You're fine, right? Just let it go?" Noah said.

To make sure Clara came away spotless, Noah showed up as my fiancé and told everyone I was suffering from paranoid delusions.

With everyone watching, Noah tossed me aside and chose Clara once again, like I was nothing.

*****

"Isn't Mr. Blake your fiancé? How could he..." My lawyer couldn't finish the sentence.

Her words cut straight through me. I stared at Noah sitting across the room as a witness, hit by that realization like a bolt from the blue.

"I'm sorry I didn't do a better job looking after Nia. I let her cause so much harm to Clara," Noah said.

His eyes softened as he looked at Clara in the defendant's seat, overflowing with affection, though she only offered him a pitiful side profile.

"Ever since Nia became ill, she's been paranoid, always believing someone's out to harm her. In fact, she's been battling uterine cancer, and I personally signed off on her surgery," Noah continued.

As his words landed, my whole world collapsed, my face draining of all color.

So all the effort Noah put into scheduling my surgery after I was stabbed wasn't because he loved me. It was all just so Clara could walk away scot-free, no consequences at all.

I was the only one who let myself soak up that long-lost warmth, foolishly thinking maybe we really could grow old together.

He personally planned my meals, picked out clothes made from the softest fabrics, and even insisted on carrying me around whenever I needed to move. After work, he spent every waking moment with me, just trying to cheer me up.

Tenderness and brutal betrayal clashed violently in my head. It buzzed. I collapsed back into the chair, unable to hear anything but the call to adjourn.

"Clara, did that scare you?" Noah asked, his voice thick with worry. He was checking her anxiously as if she might break at the slightest touch.

My fiancé didn't even check on me, even though I'd just gotten out of the hospital. All he cared about was his fragile, spoiled childhood sweetheart.

I tilted my head back, forcing back my tears. Just as I finished gathering the evidence, Noah reached out and pressed his hand over mine.

"Nia, just hand it over. It's nothing but trash now anyway," he said.

I clenched my jaw, refusing to let go. My eyes, rimmed with tears, locked onto him as I snapped, "Noah, do you even know? She didn't just hurt me. She also hurt our..."

"Nia, sorry about last time! When my emotions go wild, I just can't control myself. Noah already told me off, so I swear I'll never do it again." Clara interrupted me, her voice innocent and light.

She even stuck her tongue out at me playfully, as if she'd only given me a little shove.

Noah reached over and playfully pinched her nose, putting on a faux-stern face.

"We'll see if you dare to mess around next time," he teased.

"It's all thanks to you rescuing me, Noah!" Clara said, her voice bubbly and flirtatious.

She snuggled up to Noah's arm, but seeing how pale I looked, she said, "Oh, and Nia, thank you for being so kind and not holding it against a kid like me."

Noah patted her head with approving warmth, then turned to look at me coldly.

"Was it really worth taking something so trivial all the way to court? If you keep being this petty after we're married, I'll just divorce you on the spot," he said, his voice icy and dismissive.

His aloof, indifferent attitude had me shaking with anger, cold sweat lining my brow.

To Noah, no matter how badly Clara hurt me, it barely registered. Nothing I went through ever seemed serious enough for him to care.

Noticing my pale face, Noah sighed, and his voice grew gentler for a moment. "Clara was just young and didn't understand. But you also scared her. Let's just drop it and stop making a scene."

Young? She was three years older than me.

Clara was the orphan that the Blake family sponsored through charity, raised right by Noah's side since childhood. In his eyes, she'd always be the little girl who needed his protection.

And I would forever be the vicious woman jealous of their relationship.

A sharp pain struck my stomach. I closed my eyes in agony, unwilling to look at the two of them any longer.

I always thought Noah was just a little too soft on Clara over little things. But I never imagined he could even forget his original oath as a doctor to help her out.

All just to make sure Clara walked away free.

He faked my medical records, lied about my diagnosis, and blatantly tried to cover up what she'd done.

Noah even tried to coach Clara's story with her, thinking he could trick me, a fellow doctor. He no longer deserved to wear that white coat. He was no longer the man I once admired in academia.

The relentless blows made me cough up blood. My vision went black, and I passed out.