Chapter 4

When Eve woke up again, she found herself lying in a hospital bed. The person sitting by her side was not Sean but the family’s housekeeper.

“Ma’am, you’re finally awake,” the housekeeper said, still shaken. “I was the one who brought you to the hospital. I made the oat milk myself. I swear to God, I didn’t put any soybeans in it.”

Eve slowly closed her eyes. A thin tear slid down the corner of her eye.

“I know.”

The housekeeper had made the oat milk, so she was absolutely certain there were no soybeans in it. Yet when Eve collapsed, the housekeeper still chose to believe that it was an allergic reaction and rushed her to the hospital. However, where was Sean? The man who had once promised to love her for the rest of his life had left her alone at home, waiting to die.

Mandy was in the hospital room right next door. Late that night, when Eve got up to use the restroom, she saw Sean standing beside Mandy’s bed, keeping watch over her.

He used to do the same for Eve whenever she was sick. A man of his status was always busy, with endless responsibilities and obligations. Yet every time Eve fell ill, he would cancel all his work and stay by her side. He would pour her water, cook for her, and coax her into taking her medicine…

Thinking of those memories, Eve’s eyes reddened. She could not understand how something once so beautiful had turned into this.

“Sean, I’m about to die,” Mandy said weakly from the bed, tears clinging to her lashes as she leaned into his arms. “Before I die, I want an answer. After all this time, did you ever love me?”

Sean fell silent for a long time.

“Even just a little would be enough,” Mandy sobbed. “Sean, I’m not asking for your whole heart. If you’ve ever felt even the slightest bit of affection for me, I could die with no regret.”

Looking at Mandy’s tear-streaked face, Sean’s heart ached. As if he could no longer suppress his emotions, he reached out and pulled her tightly into his arms.

“Mandy, of course I have feelings for you,” he said softly. “Forgive me. I can’t tell you that I love you because I already have Eve. I can’t betray her. But if Eve didn’t exist, I could tell you this: you would be the woman I love most in this world.”

Eve felt as if someone had punched a hole straight through her heart and squeezed it. She lifted her hand to touch her face, only then realizing that tears were already streaming down.

She had once believed that Sean was only with Mandy for the thrill of it. She had thought there was nothing between them but desire—no love. However, how could there be no love? When Mandy collapsed, coughing up blood, his eyes had been filled with panic and concern. When Mandy placed the rosary, one that Eve had once knelt step by step to beg for, into such a filthy place, he had not said a single word of blame. The scales in his heart had already tipped long ago.

Eve turned away, tears falling as she walked off. She had barely taken a few steps when her phone suddenly vibrated. Mandy had sent her a video.

Below it was a message that read: [Everything he once gave you, he has also given to me.]

Eve tapped on the video, and a lively wedding scene appeared on the screen. At a glance, she recognized the venue. It was the very place where she and Sean had held their wedding. Not only was the location the same, but the decorations, the layout, and even the smallest details were identical.

For a brief moment, Eve almost believed the video was footage from her own wedding. However, that illusion was shattered the second Mandy, wearing a white wedding gown, appeared on screen.

Eve gasped.

“Mandy, I’ve heard from Sean that you’re pregnant with his child, and twins at that,” Sean’s mother said warmly in the video, holding Mandy’s hand with obvious affection. “I’m so happy! You’re truly a great blessing to the Baker family! Even though you and Sean can’t legally get married, I promise you this: everything Eve has, you’ll have too. And everything she doesn’t have, you’ll have as well.”

As she spoke, Sean’s mother removed the emerald bracelet from her own wrist.

“This is the Baker family’s heirloom,” she said with a smile. “It’s an antique, something once worn by royalty. There’s only one of these in the Baker family. It’s passed down only to the daughter-in-law.”

With that, she slipped the bracelet onto Mandy’s wrist and said, “Mandy, you’re the only daughter-in-law I acknowledge.”