Chapter 3

I flashed him a genuine smile. "Don't worry. I'll play nice with Holly."

I couldn't be bothered with him anymore.

I headed out without looking back.

I drove straight home.

The first thing I did after I was back in time was kick my dad out of the group chat before Holly could send those gross photos.

But I still felt uneasy since I hadn't seen him myself.

Last time, things ended in tragedy for my dad and me.

This time, I swore I wouldn't let anything go wrong for my dad ever again.

Thank goodness, everything was just fine.

My dad hadn't seen those gross photos. He was out in the garden, contentedly taking care of his flowers.

When he saw me walk in, his face lit up.

He was so happy that he insisted on making lunch for me himself.

"Ah, my precious girl is home," my dad said. "It's chilly today. How about I whip up your favorite food, sweetheart?"

His eyes landed on my red-rimmed eyes.

His voice grew anxious as he asked, "Florence, why are your eyes all red?

"Did that rascal Barrett bully you?

"Come on, tell me, sweetheart. I've got your back."

My dad had always been like this.

No matter what, he'd got my back.

My mom died young.

So my dad had always felt like he had to double up on the love, just to make sure I never missed out.

Back when Barrett's dad took his own life after being exposed for financial crimes, his mom ended up in a mental hospital.

After that, everyone in our circle just figured Barrett was destined to be stuck at rock bottom for the rest of his life.

Not a single person was willing to lift a finger to help him.

I was the only one who had his back.

I never gave up on him, no matter how bad things got.

When he hit rock bottom, I literally got down on my knees and begged my dad.

I pleaded with my dad to help Barrett out.

In the end, my dad only took him in because I asked.

After that, to keep Barrett's company afloat, my dad gave every last cent the company had to him.

When Barrett found out what my dad had done, he was so overwhelmed that he fell to his knees before him.

Barrett, tears streaming down his face, choked out, "Sir, you saved my life.

"I'll never be able to repay this debt."

Barrett said he'd always see my dad as his own father from that day forward.

But after everything, the person who ended up taking my dad's life was Barrett.

Just picturing my dad's body back then, bloated and waterlogged from the river, made my stomach twist.

I bit down hard on my lip, just to keep myself from crying out loud.

I pulled the contract out of my bag, handed it to my dad, and said, "Look what I've got for you.

"I'm fine, Dad. Barrett didn't give me any trouble.

"He even handed over the Pitzburgh project to us.

"Here you go, Dad. We can break ground tomorrow."

When my dad saw the contract in my hand, he finally let out a sigh of relief.

He smiled. "Good, good. As long as you and Barrett are both alright, that's all that matters.

"Florence, now that I'm older, money doesn't matter to me anymore.

"As long as you're happy, that's all I need."

I blinked back tears and managed a smile.

"Dad, don't worry," I said. "I promise I'll be just fine."

That night, I stayed over at my dad's place instead of heading home.

Barrett was busy spending time with the love of his life.

So naturally, he didn't have a chance to mess with me.

I was loving the peace.

After a good night's sleep, I drove to the hospital.

I got myself a full-body checkup, just to be safe.

Back then, I died from stomach cancer.

This time, I wasn't going to take any chances.

While I was waiting for my checkup, I got another message from Holly, full of her usual trash talk.

Holly: [You really are a shameless bitch.]

[I've humiliated you so much, but you still cling on like a leech.]

[I didn't think you'd be able to keep your cool like this, but what can I do? Barrett only has eyes for me. He says he loves me and only me.]

[He's obsessed with me in bed, a million times better than you, you dead fish.]

[Listen up, don't think you can act clueless, and I'll let you off the hook. I'm going to make Barrett dump you for good.]

[Just you wait.]

After that, she sent over a bunch of wild shots of her in bed with Barrett.

I fought back my nausea.

I made sure to screenshot every last one, just in case.

Then I walked into the exam room.

In the doctor's office, the doctor looked over my test results, his expression grave.

He told me, "Your stomach's in bad shape, severe gastritis. If you'd come any later, it could've turned into something way worse, even precancer.

"Good thing you made it in time. Just stick to your meds, and you'll be fine."

Tears welled up in my eyes.

Fortunately, this time, I was not too late. I could still turn things around.

I looked up, just about to thank the doctor, when he suddenly cut in, "By the way, did you know you're pregnant?"

Pregnant? I just stood there like a statue, unable to process what I'd just heard.

Was I actually pregnant?

A sharp pain twisted in my chest.

Oh, that was right. I'd been pregnant before.