CHAPTER 1

The blueberry muffin was still warm against my palm, the sweet, buttery scent mingling with the crisp morning air. I took a massive bite, closing my eyes in pure bliss as the sweet berries burst on my tongue.

"Girl, I’m telling you, it’s going to happen today," I said around a mouthful of pastry, pressing my phone tighter against my ear as I navigated the busy sidewalk.

On the other end of the line, my best friend, Maya, let out a squeal that nearly ruptured my eardrum. "I know! I just know it! Liam is finally getting the Senior Director position! Oh my god, Chloe, you’re going to be the girlfriend of a Senior Director! We are going out tonight to celebrate. Drinks are on you!"

I laughed, a bright, bubbling sound that felt entirely natural. I was practically floating. "Drinks are on me," I agreed happily. I looked down at the white bakery box tucked securely under my arm. Inside were six massive, premium blueberry muffins—Liam’s absolute favorite. I had stopped at his favorite bakery across town just to get them.

"He’s been working so hard," I gushed, adjusting the strap of my tote bag. I caught my reflection in a storefront window and smiled. I was a big girl, proudly taking up space in my favorite emerald-green wrap dress that hugged my thick thighs and full bust. Liam used to tell me he loved my curves, that I was his beautiful, soft goddess. "I just want to surprise him. He’s been so stressed about the final presentation."

"You’re too good to him," Maya said affectionately. "Seriously, Chlo. You bake for him, you do half his marketing reports, and you look gorgeous doing it. He’s a lucky man."

"I love him," I said simply, my heart doing a little flutter at the thought of his smile. "I’ll let you go, I’m at the building. Wish me luck!"

"Go get him, tiger!" Maya cheered, and the line went dead.

I pushed through the heavy glass doors of the corporate high-rise, the cool blast of air conditioning hitting my skin. The lobby was bustling with employees, but I kept my head high, clutching the box of muffins like a trophy. I swiped my keycard at the elevators and rode up to the fourteenth floor, my stomach doing happy little flips.

The marketing department was already buzzing with nervous energy. I smiled at the receptionist, keeping my voice low so I wouldn't jinx anything, and made my way down the hall toward Liam’s office.

His door was slightly ajar.

I slowed my steps, a playful smirk on my lips. I was about to push the door open and surprise him, maybe even feed him a piece of muffin right there at his desk, when a voice drifted out into the hallway.

It was Liam. But he wasn't on a conference call. He was laughing.

And he wasn't alone.

I paused, peering through the narrow crack of the door. My breath hitched in my throat. Liam was sitting on the edge of his mahogany desk, his arms crossed, looking incredibly smug. Standing between his knees, looking up at him with adoring eyes, was Bella. She was a twenty-two-year-old intern, petite, stick-thin, and notoriously ruthless.

My stomach gave a violent little lurch, but I told myself to calm down. They were just talking.

"I just don't know how much longer I can pretend, Bella," Liam was saying, his voice dripping with a casual, sickening cruelty I had never heard before. "She’s suffocating me. Literally and figuratively."

Bella giggled, a high, tinkling sound that made my skin crawl. "But Liam, she does all your groundwork. She’s basically your personal assistant."

"She’s a workhorse," Liam corrected with a dismissive sneer. "A literal beast of burden. And have you seen her eat? It’s actually disgusting. She waltzes in here with her muffins and her cupcakes, thinking she’s some kind of size-fourteen goddess. But she’s just... heavy. Clumsy. Suffocating."

The bakery box in my arms suddenly felt like it was filled with lead. The air in my lungs turned to glass.

"Every time she hugs me, I feel like I’m being swallowed by dough," Liam continued, rolling his eyes as Bella laughed harder. "She takes up so much space. I look at her and I just see... blubber. I’m only keeping her around until the board votes today. Once I get the Senior Director corner office, I’m dumping the cow. I need a woman who actually takes care of herself. Someone like you, Bella."

Bella blushed, stepping closer to rest her manicured hands on his chest. "Ew. Do you actually have to sleep with her until then?"

Liam sighed, wrapping an arm around her tiny waist. "I close my eyes and think about my promotion. It’s a small price to pay for the corner office. Besides, she’s so desperate for my affection she’d do anything I say. She’s completely oblivious."

My heart wasn't just breaking; it was shattering into a million jagged pieces, slicing through my insides. The man I loved. The man I had cooked for, stayed up late with, and given my heart to. He didn't just dislike my body; he was repulsed by it. He was mocking me.

A hot tear spilled over my lashes, tracking through my foundation. My trembling fingers lost their grip.

The white bakery box slipped from my arms.

It hit the hardwood floor with a loud, pathetic *smack*. The lid popped open, and the premium blueberry muffins rolled out, squishing against the polished floorboards.

Liam and Bella both jumped, snapping their heads toward the door.

They saw me.

I stood frozen in the doorway, my chest heaving, my face wet with tears. I waited for the panic. I waited for him to jump up, to push Bella away, to stammer out an apology, to tell me it was a joke.

But Liam didn’t look guilty.

He didn't even look scared.

Instead, his jaw tightened in sheer annoyance. He didn't pull away from Bella. He just stared at me, his eyes sweeping over my tear-stained face and the emerald dress that hugged my thick hips, his lip curling in that exact same sneer he’d used seconds ago.

"Chloe," Liam said, his voice flat and cold. He didn't move to help me. He just looked at the ruined muffins on the floor, then back up at my face. "Really? Eavesdropping? I told you I needed space this morning."

"I... you..." I choked out, my voice barely a whisper. The betrayal was so absolute, so violent, that my brain couldn't form a coherent sentence.

"Look, you heard me," Liam said, his tone shifting into a cruel, casual dismissal, as if he were talking to a subordinate who had messed up a spreadsheet. "I was just being honest. You need to hear it, Chloe. You need to lose weight. You’re embarrassing yourself, and frankly, you’re embarrassing me. Now clean up this mess and get to your desk. I have a presentation."

Bella smirked, resting her chin on Liam’s shoulder, looking at me like I was a bug she wanted to squash.

I couldn't breathe. The room was spinning. My hand, trembling violently, drifted down to rest flat against my stomach. Beneath my palm, beneath the soft curves he so deeply despised, a tiny, secret life was growing.

I had spent the entire morning planning how to tell him the good news. I had bought the muffins to celebrate.

I looked at the man I thought I was going to marry, my hand resting over the baby he had just called a mistake, and the world went dark.