Chapter 2

My father had never lost a bet. Facing this expected outcome, he showed no surprise. He simply hummed in acknowledgment, giving a few brief instructions. "Aurora, you are my eldest daughter. This empire still needs you to inherit it."

"What's past is past. I won't argue with you, but there's one thing you must remember."

"Don't take what shouldn't be taken, and don't leave what shouldn't be left behind."

What shouldn't be taken was the child in my womb. What shouldn't be left was the fortune I'd built for Julian. These ten years of pain were the lesson he wanted me to remember.

"I understand, Dad."

After I hung up, Julian was already honking the horn downstairs, urging me to hurry. I got into the passenger seat—the one that had another woman's name written all over it.

On the way, neither of us spoke. He pretended not to notice the distance on my face. I pretended not to notice the suffocating perfume in the car.

When we got out, Julian instinctively reached for my arm to steady me. His rolled-up sleeve revealed a long, jagged scar. For a moment, I couldn't help but feel a pang of melancholy. To be with me, Julian had once taken eighteen knife wounds, barely clinging to life. The man who had once loved me enough to risk his life… how had he become this?

Before I could ponder it further, a woman linked her arm through Julian's. "Julian, you haven't visited me in so long!"

"What brings you here today? Did you argue with your old hag at home, or couldn't your new fling satisfy you?"

It was Chelsea. The most favored of Julian's many mistresses, and the one who had been with him the longest. Chelsea intimately snuggled up to Julian, her ample chest rubbing against him. Julian beamed, ignoring me completely. He magically pulled out a ruby necklace to appease her. "What are you talking about? I'd forget anyone before I forgot my little darling!"

"I saw how fair your skin is, so I specifically bought you this necklace."

"Alright, go entertain yourself for a bit. I still need to take my wife to her prenatal appointment. I'll come find you when I'm done."

He even gave Chelsea's backside a pat before he finished.

Looking at the sparkling necklace, I almost laughed out loud. A man who clawed his way up from nothing truly knows how to be frugal. A single jewelry set, split and given to so many different women. The earrings in my ears burned, stinging my heart. I casually took them off and tossed them into a nearby trash can.

As I turned, I overheard some passersby gossiping about us. They were curious about our tangled relationship. One person leaned in to listen closer, but a friend pulled her back. "Are you crazy? Didn't you see the woman next to him? She's the group's heiress."

Before I could react, Chelsea scoffed. She shot me a disdainful look, her face full of scorn. "What heiress? She's just a useless nobody, kicked out of her family, clinging to the Sterling name!"

"An old, fading wife, only getting a second glance from her husband because of the baby in her belly."

"What's there to be afraid of? I despise parasitic old women like her!"

A parasite? So what did that make Julian, who had built his empire on my back? And what about Chelsea, Julian's kept woman? When did they hook up? Was it the first time I miscarried? Was it when I drank myself to stomach bleeding to help Julian secure a deal? Or when Julian was being hunted by his enemies, and I took a bullet for him, falling into a coma?

It had been too long; I couldn't remember. I only remembered Julian getting involved with this nurse during my hospital stay. Their passion was a raging inferno, their love a whirlwind. During that time, I often received texts from Chelsea. I lay in my hospital bed, pale and alone. Chelsea lay on a different bed, flushed with passion, my husband wrapped around her.

All these years, Chelsea was still this arrogant. It was clear how much Julian had spoiled her.

But it didn't matter. Once I left, they could be together openly and without shame.