I walked into our apartment on Lexington Street and froze. This place was supposed to be my home. I was supposed to raise children and grow old here, but now it turned into something unfamiliar and suffocating.
I willed my feet forward, passing the large dining room and entering the master bedroom. My breaths became shallow, and I could no longer restrain the tears gathering in my eyes. Hot drops streamed down my cheeks as I mindlessly threw my clothes into the old suitcase. Perhaps it was fortunate that I had so little. The sooner I could leave this apartment, the better.
My vision became blurry, and the ugly crying sounds ripped through my throat again and again, but I kept moving, hectically grabbing my documents from the study room and tossing them into my bag. I stopped by the desk and started emptying the bottom drawers where I kept my papers. Then I moved to the upper ones, throwing the pile of letters—
Shit. It wasn't my drawer but Kenneth's… I wiped my tears off my eyes and reached for the pile I had just thrown. I was supposed to put them back into the drawer, but then I noticed that all those letters were addressed to me and they were all from Luxton Law Firm. “What the hell?” I muttered, staring at the sealed envelopes.
I had never seen any of those letters, nor had I heard about Luxton Law Firm before. Had he kept those letters hidden from me on purpose, or had he forgotten to tell me? Had he hidden anything else? I ground my teeth. Only yesterday, the thought of going through his things wouldn't have even crossed my mind, but now, I simply pulled out his drawer and threw its content onto the floor. Among the meaningless pieces of paper, I saw two prescriptions. Both of them were signed by Doctor Rogers and had my name on them.
A shudder coursed through me. I didn't recognize the names of those medicines, and I sure as hell hadn't taken either of them. Why did Kenneth have those prescriptions? What kind of drugs had he gotten behind my back and in my name?!
Heart pounding, I tossed the prescriptions into my purse. Then I cleaned up the mess I made, hurriedly grabbed the rest of my stuff, and all but ran out of the apartment.
***
My first night in a cheap hotel turned out to be horrible, but luckily, I could afford one thanks to the money I earned working part-time jobs while Kenneth studied at Harvard and later, when we moved back to New York. I had never told him about it, and he hadn't asked. Back then, I thought that he respected my privacy by not asking where the money for the rent was coming from. Now I knew that he simply didn't care.
My heart was still madly aching. My eyes were swollen, and my cheeks were red and as salty as the bottom of the Dead Sea. But I had to get myself together. I needed a new job and an apartment, but I also knew that before I “moved on” and thought about my future, I had to investigate the things I had found in Kenneth's drawer.
Forcing myself out of the bed was hard. Dragging myself to the bathroom was even harder, but even if I turned into an embodiment of heartache, I had to at least pretend that I was all right. I combed my long brown hair and tied it into a ponytail. Then I used my best skills to cover the swollen eyes and dark shades under a decent layer of concealer. It took me a while, but when I left the bathroom, I started to resemble a human being. And, after I dug up my only presentable skirt and jacket from my suitcase, I restored enough confidence to walk out of the room…
A few hours later, I entered the John Pearson Clinic, but instead of going to the fourth floor where Doctor Rogers had his office, I headed to the second floor to visit someone who used to be my good friend.
Sucking a sharp breath, I walked to the reception desk. “Um… is Doctor Raven Bryce at work today?”
The redhead receptionist offered me a kind smile. “I will have to check, but I think—"
“I'm here.” I heard my old friend's voice behind my back.
I turned around and couldn't stop the smile from spreading across my face. Unlike my smiling lips, my eyes filled with tears. I hadn't seen Raven for more than five years, and it was my fault. Kenneth never liked her, and I foolishly cut our contact because he didn't want me to see her.
I looked at Raven's inch-long black hair and her golden eyes. She hadn't changed a bit, maybe except for a new tattoo on the side of her neck. She folded her arms across her chest and scanned me from head to toe. “What do you want, Lilly?” Her tone was awfully cold, but I deserved nothing less.
I bit my lip and blinked back my tears. “Um… Can we talk?” I asked softly.
Her brows rose. “Talk? You come here after five years, and you want to... talk?”
My hands fisted at my sides, and I lowered my head. “I'm sorry, Raven. I know that I'm not able to fix things between us, and I'm not asking for your forgiveness, but I just”—I swallowed a lump in my throat—“really need to talk to you. I need five minutes… Please?”
She stepped closer, her brows knitting in concern. “What happened?”
My bottom lip began to tremble. “Kenneth divorced me.”
She drew a deep breath before turning to the receptionist. “Mia, if anyone asks, I'm out for lunch.” Then she grabbed my hand and started dragging me through the long corridor. “You're buying me lunch,” she stated. “And then you're going to tell me everything about that asshole you decided to marry.”
Twenty minutes later, we were sitting in the clinic's cafeteria. Raven was eating chicken salad while I was drinking my third cup of coffee and telling her about my pathetic marriage.
“I'm going to kill that fucking jerk the next time I see him.” Raven stabbed the piece of chicken breast with her fork.
A soft smile tugged at my lips. “It wasn't all bad. There were days when he—” I cut myself off as I met her meaningful glare. “But he is a hell of a jerk,” I admitted.
“Glad you finally see what I did from the beginning,” she scoffed.
I drew a ragged breath. “I was wrong about so many things…” A single tear fell down my cheek.
“Can't argue with that.” She chuckled, shoving another piece of salad into her mouth. “You were even friends with that stupid rich girl, Kathrine.”
I rolled my eyes at the thought of that ginger-haired bimbo with fake boobs. “I was never friends with her. She was the one who said that we were friends, but I never admitted it,” I corrected.
Raven snorted and shook her head. “I wonder why she wanted to be your friend in the first place... No offense.”
“None taken,” I assured and let out a heavy sigh. “And unfortunately, I know why... She wanted to get close to Kenneth. I even caught her once when she tried to seduce him.”
Raven's mouth opened. “What a bitch! Tell me that you punched her for it.”
I bit my lip and shook my head. “Never got the chance. She just stopped showing up all of a sudden.”
Raven leaned back in her seat and gave me a crooked smile. “I bet that it wasn't a one-time thing. I bet that she tried to move on him before that.”
“Go ahead and name all the mistakes I made,” I challenged.
“Nah.” She dismissively waved her hand. “My break is far too short to do it.”
I almost smiled at that… almost. “When I came here today, I actually wanted to ask you about something.” I fixed my eyes on her.
“Go ahead,” she said while chewing a cherry tomato.
Drawing another shaky breath, I reached into my purse and pulled out the two prescriptions. “I found this in Kenneth's drawer when I was packing my things. I've never seen these prescriptions before, and I wanted to ask if you know these drugs.”
Raven looked at the two pieces of paper and frowned. “You said that you wanted to have a baby, right?” When I nodded, she worked her jaw. “The first prescription is for contraceptive pills.” She drew a deep breath and locked her eyes on me. “The second prescription is for the abortion pill.”
My breath halted, and my whole body began to rattle. I saw Raven's mouth moving, but I couldn't hear anything aside from the constant, high-pitched tone in my ears. My shaking hand snatched the second prescription, and I looked at the date.
“Two days before my miscarriage,” I breathed out as the horrifying realization came. I looked at Raven as the tears streamed down my cheeks. “They killed my baby.”
I remembered that day. I had found out that I was pregnant just a week earlier. Kenneth seemed to be anticipating that baby as much as I did. That day, he said that he had some urgent matters to discuss with his father. He left early, but he prepared an herbal tea for me. He said that it would help the baby. God… Had he put the pill in that teapot?I felt sick. I clamped my hand over my mouth and tried breathing through my nose. My head was spinning, and my heart painfully hammered against my chest. I didn't notice when Raven sat beside me and started rubbing my back.“Breathe, Lilly,” she whispered. “You need to calm down and breathe.”Calm down? How could I possibly calm down? I could admit my defeat. I could heal my broken heart in time. I could forget that I had ever loved that bastard. But this? I wanted this baby! I would have raised it even if I'd had to do it alone!“Lilly, this is only the prescription. You cannot be sure that he actually bought the drugs or that he gave them
I moved slightly and felt the softness of the mattress under me. My head rested on a comfortable pillow, and I was covered by a warm blanket. I took a deep breath, inhaling a masculine, slightly citrusy scent. Somehow it made me peaceful, but the quickly returning awareness shattered my moment of bliss.I opened my eyes and realized that I was in an unfamiliar bedroom. I jerked up to a sitting position and noticed an auburn-haired woman sitting by my bed. She was wearing a navy blue suit and a black button-up shirt. “No need to be afraid,” she said, offering me a soft smile as her green eyes drifted up and down my body, studying me. “I'm Jackie. I'm a doctor. Darren called me over after he brought you here.”My brows knitted. “Darren?”A nervous chuckle escaped her. “Right… Um… Awkward.” She scratched her head. “Darren is the guy who saved you from being hit by a truck. When you fell unconscious, he—idiotically—decided to take you to his apartment instead of behaving like a normal hum
My heart skipped several beats as I stared at him. What was he saying? Stay with him, as who? His guest? His companion? His lover?“You seem surprised,” he noticed.Well, of course I was. We knew nearly nothing about each other—I certainly knew nothing about him—and making such a proposal sounded ridiculous. Of course, his offer was tempting. I would soon be penniless, and staying in his penthouse could help me save some money as I looked for a job, but how could I trust a man I had just met?When I stayed silent for a few more seconds, he motioned his chin at Selene, and she brought our dinner. “Bon appetite,” she sang, placing a deliciously smelling plate in front of me.I smiled and muttered a thank you to her before shifting my gaze back to Darren. He watched me with an intensity that left me breathless. I didn't think I could swallow anything at all… maybe except for the water, because my mouth turned awfully dry. I gulped down my glass and sucked in a sharp breath.“Can you blam
Two Years LaterI took a deep breath and formed my lips into a bright smile. Back straightened, I slowly climbed the stairs in my four-inch Jimmy Choo stilettos. The silk layers of my blue gown danced around my feet with every step I took. Two years ago, I would have hidden myself from the bright flashes accompanying me as I walked to the main entrance. Now I faced them with confidence.The choice I had made back then changed everything. That night, I said goodbye to Lilly Sanders and embraced my new identity. I had learned that my father hadn't abandoned me, but he admitted that he had made a grave mistake by letting me stay with the woman who had grown to hate him—my mother. He didn't know that Mother had left me when I was fourteen, and I wasn't aware that he had been sending money for me every month until I had reached eighteen years old. Guess my mommy dearest fooled both of us...Becoming my father's daughter had been more than a little challenging. Certainly, William Hayes woul
My heart began to pound as I locked my eyes on Darren's sapphire irises. The tingling feeling spread throughout my body as if reminding me of the longing I felt. I almost forgot that I was still in Kenneth's grasp. My ex-husband twisted to look over his shoulder, slightly loosening his grip. “I'm talking with my wife. Fuck off,” he hissed. A dark smirk tugged at Darren's lips. “Ex-wife, as I recall.” He stepped closer and grabbed Kenneth's forearm. “Let. Her. Go.” Kenneth winced, releasing my hands and swinging his fist. Darren moved faster than my eyes could register. Not only did he dodge Kenneth's hit with ease, but, a second later, he had Kenneth with his face all but pressed against the wall and his arm painfully twisted on his back. I gasped as my ex-husband groaned and cursed. “Hands off!” he let out a muffled growl. Darren huffed out a chuckle and stepped back, releasing him. “I suggest you disappear. Otherwise, I will rethink my initial idea of breaking your arm.” Kennet
Restlessness held me in tight clutches. Could my father truly be responsible for Darren's father's death? Instead of trying to get some sleep, I turned on my laptop and started searching for anything related to Darren Knight and his father.It didn't take long to find out that Ellard Knight, the former CEO of Eques Gold Corporation, died five years ago. Darren's father was on his way home from a medical conference in Paris. He was on board his private jet when it exploded. The investigators found traces of explosives and confirmed that it was a bomb that caused the explosion, yet the police had never found the one who planted it.Of course, the lack of hard evidence didn't stop the rumors from spreading, and those said that Ellard Knight and my father had a huge argument the night before. According to some, my father had threatened Ellard's life, saying that he would make him regret it. Others also claimed that they had seen my father bribing one of the technicians at the Paris privat
The ginger-haired bimbo stood a few feet away from me. Her lips were curved downward, and her arms folded across her chest. One of her feet in Louboutin pumps nervously tapped against the floor. Her two friends stood half a step behind her, mimicking her disdainful expression, even though I was quite certain neither of them knew me. “You surely have the audacity to show up here,” Kathrine scoffed. “Your pathetic accusations caused Doctor Rogers a lot of trouble. Thankfully, Kenneth vouched for him.” “Of course he did,” I spat, rage seething through every pore of my skin. “He was Kenneth's accomplice after all.” I knew I shouldn't have lost my composure, but this matter kept awakening raw pain and uncontrollable anger. Kathrine stepped closer. She nonchalantly smoothed the lapel of her lilac jacket, making sure the diamond on her finger would sparkle enough to be noticed. “Why are you here, beggar?” I had to admit that I underestimated the size of her stupidity. Even after everythi
For the past two years, I had been dreaming of the possibility of sending that bastard Nicolas Rogers to prison. Certainly, Kenneth was equally guilty, but he wouldn't have killed my baby if it hadn't been for Doctor Rogers giving him the pill.I talked about it many times with my uncle—Norton Hayes—who aside from being the General Director of Hayes Laboratories, was also an excellent lawyer. Unfortunately, we both knew that with the prescriptions written in my name, all I had was my word against his. But that was before I realized Doctor Rogers tricked his female patients more than once…Two days later, Raven informed me that I could visit the woman she had operated on. Her name was Mary Lewis. I showed up in her room with Uncle Norton. She turned out to be a petite blonde with large blue eyes. Her face was pale and nearly lifeless, and those large blue eyes stayed completely still as we walked toward her bed.“Doctor Bryce said that you wanted to talk to me.” Her voice was barely lo