Chapter 1

When Cassian York opened the door to the house, he heard two voices coming from the bathroom—a man's and a woman's.

"I've been holding back for so long that I feel like I'm about to burst."

"Hey, stop being so impatient, you horny man. I'm still showering…"

Cassian felt as though he had been struck by lightning. All the color drained from his face. The woman who spoke at the end was Lydia Nixon, his girlfriend.

They'd been classmates during their time at medical college and had been together for two years now. After graduating, they both joined Rivershire Hospital as intern doctors. Both were still waiting to receive a full-time position.

Never would Cassian have expected Lydia to betray him. When he heard the moans coming from the bathroom, he seethed with rage. Balling his fists, he marched toward the bathroom. He was itching to see who the man was!

However, once he got to the bathroom door, he stopped. So what if he saw the man? Would that change anything?

Despite only being separated by a door, Cassian felt as though he and Lydia were separated by an entire ocean. He decided against confronting her. After all, they'd been dating for a while now. He wanted to maintain some level of dignity for both of them.

Taking a deep breath, Cassian was just about to leave when the two people inside the bathroom began talking again.

"Hurry up. Cassian is about to get home from work. We're screwed if he sees it."

"So what if he sees us? I'm not afraid of him."

Cassian frowned. The man's voice sounded a little familiar.

Lydia said, "You're such a daredevil… By the way, did you talk to your dad about me getting the full-time position?"

"Don't worry. My dad's the vice president of the hospital. All he has to do is give the word, and you're a shoo-in for the full-time position."

It was Shawn Goff!

Cassian immediately confirmed the identity of the man inside the bathroom.

Shawn was a surgeon at Rivershire Hospital. Since his father, Donald Goff, was the vice president of the hospital, he was overbearing and constantly threw his weight around.

From the day Cassian joined the surgical department, he heard plenty of gossip involving Shawn. There were stories such as Shawn forcing his pregnant girlfriend to abort the baby, seducing a married woman, and even forcing himself on the pretty nurses…

Basically, Shawn was a bastard!

"Lydia is hooking up with a bastard like Shawn just so she gets a full-time position? Is that worth it?" Cassian murmured to himself as his heart ached.

Meanwhile, inside the bathroom, Lydia asked, "Is Cassian going to get a full-time position as well?"

"That's not happening," Shawn declared. "I asked my dad. There's only one available position for your batch of interns. Everyone else will have to wait till next year."

"He received a perfect score during the employment examination, and he's performed well throughout his internship. Most importantly, Dr. Frost thinks highly of him, " Lydia said.

"So what if she does? It's no use. My dad's the one with the final say," Shawn declared. "But I did hear from my dad that Dr. Frost spoke to him, asking to give Cassian the full-time position. I don't get it. Why does Dr. Frost treat him so well? Do you think they've got something going on?"

"Don't be silly! Why would someone as beautiful as Dr. Frost be interested in Cassian?"

"You're right. Dr. Frost always looks so severe. She keeps everyone at arm's length. I bet she's not even interested in sex."

"Well, did you ask your dad who's getting the position?"

"Did you even have to ask? You, of course! What a poor bastard Cassian is. Not only is he not getting a full-time position, but he's getting cuckolded, too."

"Why? Do you pity him?" Lydia asked.

"Pity, my ass!" Shawn snorted. "What a dumb fool he is. I can't believe he didn't bother sleeping with you even after dating you for two years. One would think he's a monk."

"Oh, stop. Let's not talk about him."

"Why? You feel bad for him? That makes sense. You guys did date for two years…"

"Don't be ridiculous. Why would I feel bad for a fatherless bastard like him?" Lydia scoffed derisively.

Outside the bathroom, Cassian's breath hitched when he heard that. His face turned red, and his eyes were blazing.

A fatherless bastard…

It was a rude way to say it, but Lydia was right. He had indeed been born out of wedlock, and that was precisely why his mother, Jasmine Chandler, had been kicked out of her family.

This was Cassian's deepest, most embarrassing secret. He'd only ever revealed it to Lydia.

"Cassian's a fatherless bastard? What do you mean? Hurry up and tell me," Shawn urged.

Lydia replied, "To this day, Cassian has no clue who his biological father is."

"That's impossible. He doesn't even know who his father is? Are you sure he's not lying to you?"

"He really doesn't know."

"Who did his mother have sex with to have him then?" Shawn asked. "Even if she had sex with a dog, she should at least know its name…"

The vein along Cassian's forehead began to pop. They'd crossed the line by involving Jasmine. He would never allow anyone to insult her. Outraged, he kicked the door open.

When the bathroom door flew open with a loud bang, the two inside immediately scrambled in fright. Shrieking, Lydia quickly grabbed a towel to cover herself.

Alarmed, Shawn hurriedly clambered to his feet inside the bathtub. However, when he saw Cassian standing in the doorway, all of his anxiety vanished. Chuckling, he remarked, "Look who's here, Lydia."

After glancing toward the doorway, Lydia was stunned. "When did you get back, Cassian?"

"I've been back for some time now. Sorry to interrupt your fun," Cassian said, his expression stormy as he did his best to rein in his anger.

Lydia tried to explain, "It's not what you think, Cassian. I—"

"I just saw you with my own eyes, Lydia. Don't tell me you want to claim that everything I saw was a lie? I never thought you'd do such a thing, Lydia!"

Lydia was mortified at first, but that soon turned into rage. Instead of attempting to explain herself, she retorted coldly, "I must've been blind back then. Why else would I agree to go out with a loser like you? In the two years we've been together, all you've ever given me is a stupid bracelet. You even claimed it was a family heirloom. Hah!"

Removing the white sapphire bracelet from her wrist, she tossed it at Cassian and said, "From now on, we're going our separate ways. You and I no longer have anything to do with each other!"

Cassian stared at Lydia in shock as a chill gripped his heart. When did the woman he loved turn into the person before him now?

Putting an arm around Lydia's waist, Shawn said with a grin, "Hey, punk. Interested in seeing a live performance? Lydia and I can put on a show for you."

"Go to hell," Cassian snarled before punching Shawn in the face, breaking his nose and drawing blood.

"The fuck? How dare you hit me? I'm going to kill you!" Shawn roared as he pummeled Cassian with punch after punch.

Shawn was over six feet tall and a whole head taller than Cassian. Moreover, he was fond of the gym and had a pretty sturdy build. Cassian was no match for him at all. In next to no time, Cassian was beaten to the ground.

"A fatherless bastard like you dares to hit me? You've got a death wish, fucker!"

After a while, Shawn finally grew tired. He stomped on Cassian's hand, breaking two of his fingers.

Cassian howled in pain before blacking out.

"Was that all he could handle? And yet, he still had the audacity to hit me. What a useless piece of trash!"

Shawn spat on Cassian, not noticing that some of the blood trickling from Cassian's fingers had seeped into the white sapphire bracelet…