Chapter 1
I suffered a threatened miscarriage from overwork.
Yet everyone at the company had received an order from my husband, Charles Keaton, and no one dared to drive me to the hospital.
It all traced back to my previous life.
Back then, Charles rushed me to the hospital in time, but his true love, Melissa Lewis, fell into depression and committed suicide because of it.
He hated me to the core. To take revenge, he even drowned my entire family in a lake.
"It's all your fault Melissa died," he screamed. "You'll all go to hell to apologize to her!"
When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day of my threatened miscarriage.
This time, I didn't stop Charles from going to see Melissa.
I thought he'd finally get what he'd always wanted.
But in the end, he came back to me, sobbing and begging for my forgiveness.
*****
I felt blood streaming down my lower leg, and my eyes snapped open.
I stared at my slightly rounded belly, my heart pounding.
I seemed to have traveled back in time.
Somehow, I was right back on the day when all that overtime nearly caused me to lose my baby.
The cramp in my lower belly jerked me awake.
Things weren't critical yet. I still have a chance to save myself, and I was going to take it.
But my phone was missing. Even the office landline had been shut off.
A cold chill ran down my spine. I staggered out of my office, desperate for help.
"Can anyone drive me to the hospital? Or at least call 911," I pleaded, my voice shaking.
I was pale, sweating all over with pain.
But my colleagues glanced at me and then looked away indifferently.
I'd been through this before—I knew any delay could be life-threatening.
Clinging to what little strength I had left, I stumbled into the office of Ryan Cooper—Charles's closest friend.
"Ryan, you can't watch Charles's child disappear like this, can you? Please, drive me to the hospital," I said desperately.
But Ryan didn't spare me a sympathetic glance—he even shoved me away without a shred of concern.
"Cut the act, Emily. Charles already told me all about you," he scoffed.
He looked at me with pure disgust, pulling out a tissue to wipe his hand like touching me was some kind of contamination.
"You're married to Charles, and you're still scheming? Give it a rest. There's no way I'm letting you ruin his day," he said coldly.
Ryan had always hated my guts.
From the moment Charles and I tied the knot, Ryan was convinced I was the homewrecker who stole Charles from Melissa and destroyed their relationship.
He had never had a kind word for me.
"Even if Charles kept quiet, I still wouldn't let anyone lift a finger for you," Ryan added.
Then he slammed the door shut, leaving my desperate cries echoing in the empty hallway.
But his words made it crystal clear why everyone was turning their backs on me.
Charles had been pulling the strings all along.
With no other option, I went around begging my colleagues for help.
"I'll pay. Help me downstairs, please, at least let me call a taxi," I said, my voice weak.
But everyone just turned a blind eye to my misery.
Some people even started laughing and gossiping.
"Heard she's faking pregnancy—got to admit, she's a pro at it."
"Not her first time, either. Word is, she roped Mr. Keaton into marrying her by playing the fake baby card."
All those nasty rumors and cruel gossip stabbed at me—not just my stomach, but straight through my heart.
I never would've guessed Charles would spread such lies about me behind my back.
Desperate to survive, I bit down hard and lunged for a colleague's phone.
But I was way too weak to stand a chance against anyone.
Noticing what I was up to, the colleague shoved me hard to the floor and shot me a look of utter contempt.
"I'm not risking getting fired by Mr. Keaton for you," he sneered. "Besides, a woman like you doesn't deserve anybody's help."
Overwhelmed by their indifference, I broke down in tears.
Was I doomed to suffer this all over again, even after getting a second chance?