Chapter 2

Janelle's POV

For a moment, I heard nothing.

A sharp ringing filled my ears, drowning out everything else as the room tilted violently beneath my feet.

My knees weakened so suddenly that I had to grab the edge of the console table beside me to keep from collapsing.

My fiancée.

She’s carrying my child.

No, I must have heard wrong.

Kennedy wouldn’t—

A bright, cheerful voice shattered the fragile thread of denial I was clinging to.

“Welcome home, sister-in-law,” Fiona said warmly as she stepped forward to embrace Brenda. “I hope your flight wasn’t stressful.”

Slowly, painfully, I turned my head toward her.

My lips parted, but for several seconds, no sound came out.

Then finally, in a voice so thin it barely sounded like mine, I asked, “You knew?”

Fiona pulled back from Brenda and looked at me with faint amusement.

My breathing hitched.

“You knew?” I repeated, louder this time, my voice shaking with disbelief.

“You knew your brother was engaged to another woman, and all this time, you stood in my face pretending nothing was happening?”

Fiona’s expression hardened instantly.

“Hold it right there,” she said coolly. “And don’t stand there spraying outrage at me like you have any right to be offended.”

She moved closer, folding her arms neatly across her chest.

“The other woman here is you, Janelle,” she said, each word sharp and deliberate.

“This is Brenda Kensington, the woman my brother has always loved. You were simply... convenient while she was away finishing her studies abroad.”

Her lips curved into a smile that held no kindness.

“But Brenda is home now, which means your time here is over.”

A soft laugh escaped Kennedy’s mother.

“Over?” she repeated, her eyes dragging over me with naked disdain. “This arrangement should have ended long ago. She has overstayed her welcome.”

The words struck harder than I expected and my throat tightened painfully.

“Mom...” I whispered, tears gathering in my eyes. “I have been good to you. I cook for this family. I clean. I…”

“No,” she cut in sharply, lifting one elegant hand. “I’ll stop you right there. You have been an inconvenience we tolerated because Kennedy allowed it.”

She turned toward Brenda, and for the first time since walking in, warmth entered her expression.

“Now look at this young woman,” she said proudly. “This is a woman worthy of standing beside my son.”

Leonard gave a low whistle and leaned lazily against the wall.

“Do you even know who she is?” he asked.

I stared blankly and he smirked.

“Brenda Kensington, daughter of Richard Kensington, General Manager of Sterling House, the most powerful luxury fashion company in New York”

My eyes widened immediately.

“You’re Richard Kensington’s daughter?”

The slap came so suddenly my head snapped violently to the side.

Pain exploded across my cheek.

My palm flew to my face as shock rooted me in place.

Brenda lowered her hand slowly and adjusted the cuff of her sleeve, looking at me with cool contempt.

“When you say my father’s name,” she said evenly, “you will say it with respect.”

My vision blurred with tears.

I turned toward Kennedy, desperately searching his face for any form of anger but all I found was indifference.

“Kenn,” I whispered brokenly. “You’re going to stand there and let your little mistress humiliate me?”

His jaw tightened.

“Watch your words, Janelle,” he said dangerously.

Something inside me snapped.

“Or what?” I screamed, my voice cracking beneath years of buried pain.

“What have I ever done to you except love you? I gave you everything, Kennedy. I lost myself trying to become the woman you wanted. I cook, I clean, I built your brand beside you, gave you ideas that grew your company, stood behind you without asking for credit, and this is how you repay me?”

My chest heaved violently as the tears poured freely now..

Kennedy walked toward me slowly, his face calm in a way that frightened me more than rage ever could.

When he spoke, his voice was low and cold.

“I never asked for your sacrifice.”

His eyes held mine without warmth.

My lips trembled.

“Please, Kenn, don't do this” I whispered. “I love you.”

His expression did not change.

“But I don’t love you.”

The room went still.

“I never loved you, Janelle. You were a placeholder, someone temporary until Brenda came back. You were available, eager, and willing to accept scraps, and I saw exactly what that desperation made you blind to.”

My legs gave out.

I collapsed to my knees.

Kennedy reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out a thick envelope, and dropped it at my feet.

The papers spilled across polished marble.

“Divorce papers have already been signed since the first day of our marriage. My lawyer will contact you,” he said.

A sob tore out of me.

I crawled toward him and clutched at his shoes, tears dripping onto polished leather.

“You can’t do this to me,” I begged.

“Please, Kennedy, remember our vows. Remember everything we have been through. You know I have nobody. You know you are all I have. Please... please don’t leave me.”

He looked down at me as though I were something beneath him.

“That,” he said coldly, “was your mistake.”

My fingers tightened desperately around him.

“I know this is about my size,” I cried. “I’ll change. I’ll lose weight. I’ll do anything. I’ll become whoever you want me to be. Just please... don’t ruin our marriage”

His face darkened with disgust.

He forcefully shook me off, sending me sprawling backward across the floor.

My shoulder slammed painfully against the leg of a chair, and sharp pain shot through my body.

“So dramatic,” he muttered.

Brenda stepped forward and slid her hand possessively into his.

“Kennedy,” she said softly, leaning into him, “I’m exhausted from traveling, and we have our engagement dinner tomorrow. I need rest.”

Her gaze drifted to me where I lay trembling on the floor.

Her lips curved.

“I don’t want her here when I wake up.”

Kennedy’s jaw hardened as he looked down at me with merciless contempt.

“You heard my fiancée. Pack your things and get out of this house tonight, Janelle. If you’re still here by morning, I will personally have you dragged out.”