Chapter 1

Seeing that I was blind and that I had come alone for an abortion, the doctor stated with concern, “An abortion isn’t a minor procedure. Where’s your family? Should I call them to be with you?”

I shook my head. “I don’t have a family.”

My parents died in a car accident ten years ago, and after that, the Pitt family took me in. My parents and the Pitts had been close friends for years, so Connor and I grew up together like childhood sweethearts. Back then, he promised he would always take care of me. However, everything changed after June Austen appeared.

June had a bold, vibrant personality, and Connor was drawn to her without even realizing it. From that moment on, he became her constant protector. Even after June got married, he still loved her.

During that car accident, both June and I were in the same car. We had been on our way to an international painting competition. I had always believed the accident was what took my eyesight, but it turned out that the one whose eyes were injured was June.

To cure her, Connor took my sight. All these years, the kindness he showed me was nothing more than guilt and compensation. And yet, I mistook it for the salvation of my life, thinking it was love. How ironic.

Lowering my head, I signed my name on the surgery consent form. Half an hour later, the procedure was over. I lay in the hospital room under observation when my phone suddenly rang. The caller was Connor.

“Faye, where are you? Why didn’t you bring a servant with you? I’ll send someone to pick you up. You can’t see. It’s not safe for you to be wandering around alone. I’m worried about you.”

His voice was full of urgency, but I could no longer feel any sincerity behind it.

Suppressing the emotions rising in my chest, I replied calmly, “I felt a little cooped up at home, so I came out for a walk. I’m heading back now.”

After hanging up, I got up, got changed, and left the room.

While handling the discharge procedures, I accidentally walked straight into someone. Just as I was about to fall, a pair of hands quickly caught me.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize you were blind,” the man apologized hurriedly.

I shook my head in his direction, signaling that it was fine. However, he didn’t let go of me. Instead, he gently opened my eyelids and examined my eyes, muttering to himself.

“Your condition is actually very treatable. All you need is a cornea transplant, and you’ll be able to see again. Why has it been delayed for so long?”

My breathing hitched for a moment.

Worried, I asked, “Are you saying I’d be able to see again?”

“Yes,” he replied. “I’m a new ophthalmologist at this hospital. Your eyes can definitely be treated.”

My mind buzzed, and my thoughts drifted back to two years ago.

During the six months after the accident, Connor took me to hospitals all over the country and even abroad, trying to cure my eyes. Every doctor we saw said the same thing: my eyes were too severely damaged, and my vision would never return. Yet now, someone was telling me that my condition could be treated.

A bold thought slowly formed in my mind. Could it be… that Connor had been preventing me from restoring my eyesight all along?

When I returned home, I pretended nothing was wrong. The moment I stepped inside, Connor pulled me into his arms.

His deep voice was filled with concern. “It’s freezing outside, and with your condition, you shouldn’t be going out alone. Next time, take the driver and a servant along with you. Otherwise, I’ll worry.

“You must be hungry, right? Let’s eat first. I had the cook make your favorite grilled branzino.”

Before I could respond, he scooped me up in his arms and carried me toward the dining room.

At the dinner table, Connor carefully removed the fish bones from my portion the entire time. Only after I set down my utensils did he begin eating. However, his attentiveness no longer felt the same to me.

After dinner, he claimed he had a company meeting and left in a hurry. I took out my phone and searched for the name of Connor’s company before reading the latest news.

I couldn’t see the screen, so I relied on the phone’s voice reader to read the text aloud.

“Tonight, Pitt Group spent a huge sum at auction to purchase painter June Austen’s latest work…”