Chapter 1

After the performance ended, I received an anonymous bouquet of blue roses.

The irritation that had been simmering all evening spiked the moment I saw my ex-husband.

Ethan Lee stood by his car door, looking sharp in a tailored suit. "The flowers were for you," he said. "You don't like them?"

I snapped back to myself, looked away first, and lowered my head as I walked toward the curb.

Ethan caught up with me. "Rachel, after all these years, you haven't changed at all."

I shot him a look of utter loathing. "A good ex is one you never have to see again."

He froze for a second, then reached out as if to grab me.

Our marriage had ended on bitter terms.

To take our daughter's custody, he had confined me to a hospital room right after I gave birth.

Later, he had stood in open court and accused me of being mentally unstable.

The memories came rushing back. I'd had enough and slapped him hard across the face. "Stay away from me, or I'll call the cops."

Ethan touched his swollen cheek. There was a flicker of obsession in his eyes. "You don't want to see me, but what about Sophie?"

*****

Just thinking about my own flesh and blood, my heart ached like never before.

Back then, right after I gave birth, Ethan took her away from me. I never even got to see her.

Seeing my expression falter, Ethan stepped closer again. "Rachel, can we talk? Let's clear up this misunderstanding."

Misunderstanding? He had gone to great lengths to hand my child over to his lover, and that was a misunderstanding?

I laughed through my anger. "There's nothing to talk about with a scumbag."

Ethan lost his patience. "Rachel, you don't want to lose your spot as the company's lead dancer, do you?"

I shot him a mocking glance and got into a taxi, leaving without another word. Watching his figure shrink in the distance, I leaned against the window and couldn't hold back the tears.

From school uniforms to wedding gowns, I had given up the chance to study abroad, all for him.

After graduation, I joined the city's top dance troupe as a background dancer. Ethan, on the other hand, turned down a big company offer to start a business with his friend. We had promised to meet at the peak.

Determined to become lead dancer as soon as possible, I worked tirelessly, never letting a single day slip by. My goal was within reach. But then, everything fell apart. Ethan's business partner took off with all the company's money, disappearing without a trace, leaving behind nothing but an empty shell and a mountain of debt.

"Rachel, you're all I've got now," Ethan had said.

Without a second thought, I quit the dance troupe and stood by him through the struggle.

During those toughest years, I shared a basement with him, and we split a single pack of instant mac and cheese.

With tears in his eyes, he held my hand and promised over and over. "Rachel, when I make it, I swear I'll make you the happiest woman in the world."

Eventually, Ethan succeeded in business, and our life began to improve. The year his company went public, he gave me a wedding that was the talk of the town. After we got married, he said he didn't want me in the spotlight, so I returned to the home, tending to every little detail of his life.

Just when I thought we would be happy forever, Ethan's childhood sweetheart, Yvonne Drew, came back to the country.

For her, he abandoned me countless times. He let her take my jewelry, my dance costumes and even poison the cat I had raised for ten years. This led to endless arguments between us.

Ethan's face twisted in disgust. "Rachel, look at you now. How are you any different from a shrew? Yvonne's the lead dancer, and you're just a housewife. Why do you even need jewelry and dance costumes?"

He had forgotten that once, I had been the star that lit up the stage.

I spent the whole night brooding and finally and finally made up my mind to chase my dreams again.

When Ethan found out, he begged me to give up, warning me not to humiliate myself. To crush my resolve, he even went so far as to engineer my pregnancy.

The day I found out I was pregnant, I sat dazed on the sofa, hands pressed to my belly, my heart a whirlwind of emotions.

Ethan held my hand and promised, over and over, that he would be a good husband and a good father. To make me believe him, he even deleted Yvonne's number right in front of me.

For a while, he did everything without a single complaint, and the tension between us eased. It felt like life had returned to the way it was before Yvonne ever appeared.

We just focused on the pregnancy in peace until that day, when I went to the office to deliver lunch to Ethan on a whim. I spotted Yvonne there and instinctively stepped aside.

Through the crack of the door, I saw Ethan crouched in front of her, wiping her tears. "Don't worry, Yvonne. I'll make sure your dream of being a mother comes true. When she gives birth, I'll divorce her and give the baby to you. Then the three of us will live happily together as a family."

The illusion of happiness we had been living shattered in an instant. A thousand tiny daggers stabbed at my chest, and I froze, gasping for air.

So all those tender days, all that affection, had been nothing but a lie to lull me into complacency.

I staggered back helplessly and accidentally knocked over a trash can.

"Who's there?" The loud crash made them both alert. Ethan rushed out first. When he saw me, panic flickered across his face, and he instinctively stepped toward me.

"Don't come any closer," I snapped.

Seeing the look in my eyes, Ethan froze immediately. "Fine. I won't come closer. Just take it easy. Let's just talk, okay?"