Chapter 3

Leslie stretched up and kissed him. "Elliott, you're the best."

Suddenly, Elliott took Leslie's hand, dropped down on one knee, and pulled a ring out of his pocket. The diamond on it glinted blindingly bright in the night.

Leslie's mouth fell open in surprise.

I stared at the ring, and a wave of sadness washed over me.

It was my favorite style, the one I had always hoped Elliott would give me.

When Elliott and I got married, he was just starting his business. He had almost no money, but I had married him anyway.

The ring he had given me back then was cheap, so he had promised me that when he made it big, he'd get me a proper diamond ring.

Before our fifth anniversary, I found this ring.

Elliott promised he'd buy it for me.

He did buy it, just not for me.

Elliott looked at Leslie, his eyes full of love. "Leslie, Jenna and I are divorced now. Will you marry me? I'll give you the best life, and you'll be the happiest Mrs. Gomez."

I still remembered the day Elliott had proposed to me. He had held me and cried after I said yes.

I tried to comfort him, but he only cried harder. He had choked out, "Jenna, thank you for always staying by my side. I know I can't give you much right now, but I'll do my best. Please, don't leave me."

In five short years, everything had changed.

Leslie threw herself into Elliott's arms, crying out that she would marry him.

I was already dead. I shouldn't have been able to feel anything anymore. But seeing that scene still hurt.

*****

The next day, Elliott brought Leslie back to the family home.

Ever since Elliott's business had taken off, Elliott's mother, Maeve Gomez, had never liked me.

She thought I did nothing to help Elliott's career, that I only held him back.

So, for years, she had been trying to convince Elliott to divorce me and marry some heiress who could help him out.

Now that Elliott had brought Leslie home, this was exactly what Maeve had been waiting for.

She welcomed Leslie in with a huge smile, treating her like she was already her daughter-in-law.

When I first started dating Elliott, Maeve had been kind to me.

Back then, the Gomez family had nothing. Elliott's father, Shane Gomez, was disabled. Even though Elliott was a great guy, it was still tough for him to find someone. So when I came along, Maeve had been thrilled.

Maeve's attitude towards me had changed the second Elliott made his first million dollars.

After that, she had started picking on me about everything.

As Elliott got richer and Maeve began mingling with all those wealthy ladies and heiresses, she became increasingly convinced that having me around would only make the Gomez family look bad.

I knew she had set Elliott up with other women, but he had turned them all down.

I still remembered the way Elliott had grabbed my hand, looked Maeve dead in the eye, and said, "Jenna is my wife. We went through hell and back together. I will never divorce her just because I'm successful now."

I had been so touched back then.

But now, looking back, I realized he had only said that because he had thought there was no chance of getting back with Leslie. I was the best wife he could get, second to her.

Leslie, who had once looked down on Maeve, was now holding her hand and chatting with her like she was her own mother.

As they chatted, Maeve suddenly seemed to remember me. She turned to Elliott and asked, "Where's Jenna? Did she move out yet?"

Elliott looked like he had just remembered me too. He pulled out his phone and frowned when he saw there were no messages from me.

I had always been the type to beg and cling to him. He was probably surprised I hadn't put up a fight this time.

But what he didn't know was that I was dead.

How could a dead person possibly cling to him?

Elliott put his phone away and said, "I signed the house over to her."

Maeve immediately started scolding him for being reckless with money.

But Leslie, always so considerate, said, "Mrs. Gomez, Jenna stayed with Elliott for all these years for me. If she's willing to let him go, I think giving her the house is the least we can do."

Maeve heard that and immediately started gushing about how kind and beautiful Leslie was.

Listening to them talk made me feel sick to my stomach.

That house was something Elliott and I had worked our asses off for. It was always mine, not some charity handout.

Maeve kept eyeing Leslie, clearly more and more pleased. She grinned and said, "You two better get to work and give me a grandchild soon.

"The Gomez family has so much to pass down; we need someone to carry on the legacy."

Leslie blushed at that and snuggled into Elliott's chest.

Elliott looked at her with a fond smile.

Then I heard Maeve say, "Good thing I drugged Jenna to make her lose the baby. That girl was never good enough to bear a Gomez child."

Her words left me numb.

So my miscarriage hadn't been because of my weak body.

It was because Maeve had drugged me behind my back.

Not only that, but after I lost the baby, she had screamed the most horrible things at me, saying I had killed the Gomez family's child.

I had taken it all. I had blamed myself for years, feeling like I had let Elliott down.

Looking back now, it was all so ridiculous.