Masuk“You were only ever a replacement for her.” Those words destroyed Serena Cole’s marriage long before the divorce papers ever arrive. When Serena agrees to marry billionaire Damian Cole, she knows she can never compete with the memory of the woman he truly loved. Still, Serena accepted the cold marriage because her family needed saving, and because somewhere along the way, she began falling in love with her husband. Their unexpected pregnancy changes everything. For a brief moment, Serena believes they finally have a chance at becoming a real family. Until Damian’s first love returns. Old feelings rise and doubts grow. The man Serena trusted slowly becomes cruel enough to break her completely. Abandoned during the darkest moment of her life, Serena leaves the marriage believing she lost both her husband and her baby forever. But years later, Damian comes face to face with a little boy who looks exactly like him. Now the woman who once chased after his love has stopped looking back and Damian realizes too late that he destroyed the only family he truly wanted.
Lihat lebih banyakSerena’s pov
The soft hum of the Bentley filled the silence as we drove away from the hospital.
I rested my hand on my stomach and smiled to myself again.
The baby had been active throughout the appointment. Even the doctor laughed when the little kicks refused to stop during the scan.
“Your baby is very strong already,” the doctor had said with a smile and ever since then, Damian had not stopped grinning.
I turned slightly to look at my husband beside me. His expensive black suit still looked perfect even after spending half the day at the hospital with me.
He caught me staring.
“What?” he asked softly.
I shook my head with a small laugh. “Nothing.”
“You’re smiling at me.”
“You’re smiling too.”
“That’s because my wife is carrying my child.”
Warmth spread across my cheeks immediately.
Even after months of marriage, Damian still affected me in ways I could not explain.
He reached for my hand and kissed the back of it slowly. “You looked beautiful in there today.”
I laughed quietly. “Really? I have been looking very tired lately.”
“Yes. You are glowing, baby.”
I rolled my eyes softly, but my heart still skipped.
At the beginning of this marriage, I never imagined moments like this would exist between us.
When I married him, people whispered behind my back. They said I was only a replacement for the woman he truly loved. Even I believed it sometimes.
Especially during the first few months when Damian stayed distant then, but things had changed slowly after I got pregnant.
He became softer with me, protective and more attentive.
Sometimes I caught him staring at me whenever I wasn’t looking, and every single time, my heart betrayed me.
Because I loved him now.
The car slowed at a traffic light, and Damian glanced down at my stomach again.
“Did you see how hard the baby kicked?” he asked proudly.
I smiled. “Very hard.”
He leaned closer. “That’s because our child already knows how powerful the Cole family is.”
I burst into laughter. “You’re impossible.”
He smirked and kept rubbing circles over my fingers.
“I want to buy more clothes for the baby,” he suddenly said.
I blinked. “More?”
“We barely bought anything yet.”
“We already filled one entire room.”
“And it’s not enough.”
I shook my head, smiling. “You’re becoming obsessed.”
“I am obsessed.”
The way he said it made my stomach flutter.
His phone buzzed suddenly inside his pocket, but he ignored it without even checking.
That surprised me.
Work usually came first for Damian. Billion-dollar meetings, investors, calls from different countries. His world never stopped moving but today, he had turned everything off for me.
For us.
“I’m a little tired,” I admitted quietly.
His expression softened immediately. “Then we can go home.”
I looked at him for a moment before shaking my head. “No. Let’s shop a little.”
“Are you sure?”
I nodded.
Truthfully, I wanted this day to continue.
I wanted to stay inside this happiness bubble a little longer.
He smiled instantly. “Good.”
The Bentley pulled into the underground parking garage of Cole Grand Mall twenty minutes later.
The luxury shopping center belonged to Damian’s company, which meant employees straightened the second they saw him walking in.
“Mr. Cole.”
“Good afternoon, sir.”
“Welcome back, Mr. Cole.”
He barely acknowledged any of them. His hand stayed firmly against my lower back as we walked slowly through the shining marble floors.
“You’re treating me like glass,” I teased.
“You’re carrying my child, Serena.” He deadpanned.
I looked away quickly before he noticed my face turning red again.
We entered one of the luxury baby stores on the top floor. Soft music played quietly through hidden speakers while expensive baby items lined the shelves.
Tiny shoes.
Designer blankets.
Mini suits.
Small dresses.
Everything looked adorable.
Damian immediately picked up a tiny black baby tuxedo.
“This one.”
I stared at him. “The baby is not going to attend a business meeting.”
“You don’t know that.” He shrugged.
I laughed again.
God.
I had never seen him like this before. So relaxed and happy.
A sales assistant quickly approached us with a bright smile. “Good afternoon, Mr and Mrs Cole.”
Damian nodded once before turning back toward me.
“What about this one?” I asked, holding up a soft cream-colored baby outfit.
He looked at it carefully before smiling. “Cute. The baby would look beautiful in that.”
The words warmed my chest instantly.
Our child.
I carefully placed the outfit inside the shopping basket while Damian continued walking beside me.
Everything felt perfect.
I found myself smiling every few seconds like a fool.
Maybe this was what happiness truly felt like. Sometimes, I have this unknown fear that he is going to leave me but with this moment, I don’t think he will.
I picked up another small outfit and turned toward Damian excitedly. The onesie trembled in my hands when I ran my hands through it.
“Look at this one,” I said with a laugh. “Tell me our baby won’t look ridiculously cute and tiny in this.”
But Damian did not answer.
My smile faded slightly when I noticed his attention was no longer on me.
He stood completely still beside the display shelf, staring ahead at something across the store.
I followed his gaze, just to check what took his attention. That’s when I saw her.
She was tall, elegant and beautiful. Lilliana Laurent.
The woman people once called the love of Damian’s life and the woman who left him years ago.
For a second, my chest tightened but then I forced myself to relax and plastered a smile on my face.
It was fine.
We were fine.
Damian loved me now and things were different.
I looked down at my wedding ring and smiled faintly to myself.
We had built a life together. I had nothing to fear.
Lilliana turned slightly as if she finally noticed him too and just like that, the universe forgot about me.
Damien began walking straight towards her and u froze.
“Damian?” I called softly.
He did not stop.
At first, I thought maybe he simply wanted to greet her politely before returning to me.
But he kept walking faster to her.
“Damian,” I called again.
Still nothing.
Panic slowly crept into my chest as I shifted from leg to leg in the store.
His shoulder rammed into mine when he walked past me, hard.
The force sent me stumbling backward.
A frightened gasp escaped my lips as my balance disappeared completely.
“Oh my God!”
A sales assistant rushed forward and grabbed me before I could hit the floor.
“Ma’am!”
The shopping basket slipped from my fingers. Tiny baby clothes scattered across the polished floor.
My heart pounded violently and my hand immediately flew to my stomach.
“Damian,” I whispered shakily.
But my husband never looked back, neither did he stop to check on me.
I lifted my head slowly and froze.
Damian had already reached Lilliana and she was already in his arms.
Serena’s POVThe old digital phone on the bedside table vibrated against the metal surface again. The screen lit up, casting a pale light over the dark linoleum floor. It was the third time the Cole family legal team had tried to reach the line within the last hour. The mechanical buzz echoed through the small recovery ward, sounding loud and rhythmic in the quiet room.Every single time since I got the call from Lilliana, I have been ignoring their texts and calls, for my peace of mind.I did not reach out my hand to answer it. I simply watched the screen blink until the battery warning flashed and the device finally went completely dark. I was done taking any more calls from the Cole family. I was done listening to the voice of my husband's assistants, his mother, or his lawyers. Every word they spoke belonged to a world that had already destroyed everything I owned.Even Lilliana had a say in what happens with my life, I was truly not a lucky person. She had complete control over m
Liliana’s POVI stood in the private waiting suite of St. Jude’s Hospital, listening to the quiet beep of the heart monitor. Damien was asleep on the leather sofa in the corner, his face pale and his expensive suit jacket draped over a chair. I had spent the last twenty-four hours making sure he did not leave this room. I stayed by his side, wiping my dry eyes with tissues and whispering about our lost future whenever he woke up.A sharp vibration rattled the mahogany side table. Damien’s personal phone was lighting up with an incoming call from the billing department of the city clinic.I glanced at Damien. His breathing was heavy and even. I picked up the phone quickly, stepped out into the quiet, carpeted corridor, and slid the green bar across the screen."Damien Cole’s line," I whispered."Hello, this is the desk administrator from the municipal women's emergency clinic," a woman’s voice said over the line. "We have a patient here, Serena Cole. Her emergency surgery is complete,
Serena’s povThe transition from a tense room to absolute chaos happened in a single heartbeat.I was standing near the edge of the bed when the first sharp, tearing pain ripped through my lower abdomen. It was not a dull ache. It was a violent, white-hot sensation that made my knees instantly buckle. I gasped, my hand flying to my stomach as I collapsed onto the carpet."Serena?" Damien’s voice cut through the air, his tone losing its usual cold edge.Before I could answer, a warm, thick rush of fluid soaked through the fabric of my clothes, spilling onto the light-colored rug. I looked down, my vision blurring as the unmistakable, deep crimson stain expanded rapidly. I was hemorrhaging. The sheer volume of blood was terrifying, pooling around me on the floor within seconds.The private doctors Damiano kept stationed in the adjoining wing of the estate burst through the doors, their heavy medical bags clattering against the floor. The lead physician, a gray-haired man who had worked
Serena’s POVA rough hand gripped my shoulder and shook me violently. My eyes snapped open, and my heart began to hammer against my ribs. The freezing air of the servant's quarters hit my bare skin immediately. A stern housemaid stood over my narrow iron bed, her face set in a deep scowl as she stared down at me."Get up," she said, pulling the thin wool blanket off my body and tossing it onto the floor. "Mr. Cole is waiting for you. You need to move right now."I sat up slowly, my head spinning from the sudden movement. My stomach felt completely empty, and a dull ache throbbed in my lower back. I reached toward the wooden dresser to grab my canvas bag so I could take my vitamins, but the maid grabbed my wrist and pulled me toward the door."There is no time for that," she muttered, her grip tight and cold. She pushed me out into the dark stone corridor.Damien stood in the main hallway just outside the door to the servant's wing. He did not say a word about my tangled hair or my bar
Serena’s povThings felt different after the dinner with Liliana.I noticed how Damian became quieter around me afterward.He still kissed my forehead before leaving for work every morning.He still asked if I had eaten.He still made sure the drivers moved carefully whenever I sat inside the car.
Serena’s povI barely slept that night.I stayed awake in the large bed alone while the clock beside me kept moving slowly but Damien never came back.Every sound outside made my heart jump for nothing.I stared at the empty side of the bed and kept thinking about Liliana and the way he left me beh
Serena’s povI sat there frozen while Damian held another woman in his arms.The sales assistant still had one hand around me to steady me, but I barely felt it.Everything around me sounded distant because I could only see my husband. I could only see my husband.Damian’s head was lowered slightl
Serena’s povThe soft hum of the Bentley filled the silence as we drove away from the hospital.I rested my hand on my stomach and smiled to myself again.The baby had been active throughout the appointment. Even the doctor laughed when the little kicks refused to stop during the scan.“Your baby i












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