Chapter 3

Of course, Tracy blocked me from seeing all those texts.

I only knew about them because Lionel told me during one of our dates.

Tracy kept telling me not to let Lionel turn me into a "wild girl" and that I should just settle down and marry Jamie. But behind my back, she was waiting outside a hotel, pretending to be me on social media to add Lionel as a contact.

What she didn't know was that every woman Lionel met at that hotel was actually me. So there she was, waiting for him by the door. When Lionel came out, she rushed into his arms, pretending it was a coincidence.

"You shouldn't feel like you have to marry Shirley just because you slept with her. That's not real love. As her sister, I have to say you two aren't right for each other. You'd never be happy when you're stuck in a loveless marriage."

I hid by the stairwell, watching Lionel's face twist in disgust before yelling for security to drag her out. I laughed so hard I could barely stand up.

Ten days later, Lionel came to pick me up so we could move in together.

Tracy saw the camera feed by the door, rushed back home, and blocked our way just as we were about to leave.

"Shirley, you have to stop this. What you two have isn't healthy—it's twisted. If you stay with him, I'll cut ties with you. And I'll tell everyone in the family about it!"

I held onto Lionel's arm and ignored her, but as Lionel walked past her, she leaned in on purpose, pressing her chest against him.

Lionel immediately stepped back in disgust, and she stumbled into the table beside her.

Even though she had been the one who made the move, she looked at Lionel with a pitiful expression and said, "I knew it! You're just like all the others—chasing after every pretty girl you see. You even try to flirt with your sister-in-law. Don't think I don't know what's going through your head!"

Her act was pure manipulation, just like those pick-me girls who played innocent to hide their schemes.

Lionel pointed toward a few big guys standing outside.

"I'm not into you," he said flatly, "but they might be."

Tracy froze in shock, completely forgetting her "injury". She quickly hid behind me but still tried to sound righteous.

"Shirley, are you really okay being one of his many women? You'll never find true love that way. You shouldn't let him use you to satisfy his needs. You and Jamie should be together. I really think he's the most suitable man for you."

I grabbed Lionel's hand and hurried out before she could keep talking.

After that, it became Tracy's daily routine to either lecture me about breaking up with Lionel or show up in front of him, acting like some martyr for true love.

When she saw me packing my bags one day, she ran over and said, "Shirley, have you finally made up your mind? You can't keep being that incubus's toy."

I really didn't want to argue anymore, so I said casually, "Don't worry. I'm just going abroad for a while."

She brightened instantly and hugged me. "So you finally saw his true colors and want to get away from him?"

I gave a helpless nod, and she kissed my cheek, looking all happy.

"Don't worry. I'll cover for you! I'll tell Jamie you're coming back soon so you two can get married and build something real."

Seeing how happy she looked, I didn't have the heart to tell her the truth.

Lionel had cleared his schedule so that we could finally take our honeymoon trip. But halfway through our world tour, I found out I was pregnant.

As soon as Lionel heard, he brought me back home so I could rest.

Not long after, we accidentally walked into the wrong private dining room at a restaurant—and there was Tracy, whom I had blocked not long ago.

She was tangled up with some flashy businessman from our social circle, kissing like nobody was watching. When she saw us standing in the doorway, she scrambled to fix her clothes, her eyes wide as she stared at my belly.

Then, she shouted furiously, "Shirley! Didn't you get divorced from Lionel? What's with your belly?!"