Chapter 1

After leaving the hospital, my husband, Rylen Huff, was in a great mood, but I stayed silent, staring down at my lap.

Not long after the car pulled away, he glanced over at me, his lips curling into a faint smile. "What's wrong? Too happy to speak?"

I looked out the window at the fast-passing streets and replied with a quiet, "Yeah. Well, it hasn't exactly been an easy journey to get here."

Rylen's smile deepened at my words. With one hand on the wheel, he reached over with the other, taking my hand in his.

I looked down at our rings on our ring fingers, and suddenly, the words he'd spoken outside the waiting room crashed back into my mind.

In an instant, my stomach turned, and I quickly pulled my hand away.

Rylen froze for a second before turning to look at me. "What's wrong?"

I lowered my gaze, softly muttering, "Nothing, just not feeling well."

Rylen immediately pulled over. He leaned in closer, his voice laced with concern. "Is your stomach hurting? Are you feeling dizzy? Do you want me to turn back and see a doctor?"

I shook my head.

Still not reassured, he frowned and immediately pulled out his phone, calling the butler, Theo Skinner.

"Make sure the doctor is at the house before we arrive. Have dinner prepared again. Make it something light. Nothing spicy or irritating. Prepare some soup too. Also, change the downstairs carpet to something softer. I don't want Clare slipping."

Rylen had always been a man of few words, but today he was firing off one instruction after another, as if terrified that the slightest thing might go wrong for me.

If this were before, I would've been touched to the point of tears. But now, all I felt was mockery.

Because I knew that it wasn't me he was protecting. It was the baby of my best friend, Jane Holman.

I slouched in the seat, exhausted, and suddenly memories from three years ago flooded back.

Back then, I hadn't married Rylen. I was just a regular employee at Starry Corp.

I had gone to the pantry to deliver some papers to my boyfriend, Eddy Stark, only to catch him pressed against Jane by the coffee machine, kissing her passionately.

Colleagues rushed over at the noise, quickly forming a circle around us.

With red-rimmed eyes, I demanded answers, only for Eddy to turn the tables on me. He claimed I was the other woman and that Jane was his one true girlfriend. He even told me to stop bothering them.

Just when I thought I couldn't be more humiliated, Rylen appeared.

He took off his jacket and draped it over my shoulders, pulling my head into his chest.

"When did my woman become the other woman?"

At that moment, I thought he was just helping me out of a tough spot. Later, I realized that was his first move in pursuing me.

Not long after, we had a whirlwind wedding.

I went from being just another employee to becoming the untouchable Mrs. Huff in everyone's eyes.

Rylen insisted I quit my job and stay home. I took up golf, learned to arrange flowers, and lived the perfect high-society life.

But the more he treated me like this, the more guilty I felt because three years into our marriage, I still hadn't gotten pregnant.

So every time we went through IVF, even when it was painful enough to keep me awake all night, even when I could barely stand after an egg retrieval, I still pushed through, scheduling the next round.

When I found out I was pregnant today, I could hardly hold back my tears of joy.

But never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that my joy wouldn't even last a few minutes before he crushed it with his own hands.

The car slowly came to a stop.

I snapped out of my thoughts and saw Rylen already outside, opening the door for me. He reached in, gently helping me out. His touch was as soft as if he were handling something fragile.

Back at the house, I did as I always did. I sat at the dining table and ate my meal in silence.

When Rylen told me to drink the soup, I did. He asked me to avoid cold drinks, so I pushed the ice water aside.

When night fell, and Rylen was asleep, I quietly crept out of bed and into his study.

I stood in front of the bookshelf, pulling out books one by one. Finally, in the farthest corner, I found a picture of him and Jane.

They looked so young.

Jane was smiling brightly at the camera, while Rylen stood beside her, gazing at her with a look of quiet longing.

It was the perfect snapshot of unrequited love.

I stared at the photo for a moment before calmly returning it to its place.

Since everyone cared so much about Jane, I'd take away the one thing they desired most in three days.