Chapter 2

Her friends were the first to spot Gwyneth. Their eyes widened in shock.

"Gwen!"

"Gwen?"

The smile on Selene's lips froze. She quickly pulled her arm free from Preston's.

Compared to the others, Preston seemed far more composed.

He strode over and took Gwyneth's hand. "Why did you come shopping alone? You should've called me."

When he noticed how cold she felt, he immediately took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

"How could you be so careless? Don't worry. I'm here. You don't need to be scared." He pulled a black card from his pocket and handed it to the clerk. "I'll pay for all the clothes that were ruined. Wrap them up and send them to the Gallagher family estate."

His calm demeanor only made Gwyneth break down harder. "Nothing to explain, Preston?"

"You already saw it." Preston's eyes held something that almost looked like tenderness. "Selene and I are together."

"Since when?" Her voice trembled.

"Two years ago. She got into a car accident and called me. That's when I found out she liked me. Gwen, be good. Just remember that you're still the one I love most.

"Plenty of guys I know mess around with women behind their wives' backs, but I only have Selene.

"Besides, you used to say you wished the three of us could stay together forever. Now we can. Shouldn't you be happy?" Preston said matter-of-factly.

Rage churned in Gwyneth's chest. "Preston, you bastard!"

She stared at the face before her, a face that now filled her with disgust, then raised her hand and slapped him.

The crack of the slap rang through the air.

Blood welled at the corner of Preston's mouth. He wiped it away without the slightest change in expression.

"There. You hit me. Feel better now? Have you had dinner? Are you hungry?" he asked flatly.

"Preston, I want a divorce." Gwyneth could not stand to look at him for another second. She turned to leave.

Selene hurried over and blocked her path. "Gwen, don't go. I'm sorry. I never meant to come between you and Pres. I just couldn't go against my own heart.

"I love him. I've liked him since freshman year, from the moment I first saw him.

"Gwen, we're best friends. We're carrying the same man's children. Our kids can grow up as siblings. Isn't that an incredible coincidence? Please, just accept it."

Rebecca came over to reason with her. "Yeah, Gwen. It is what it is now. There's already a baby involved. Just let it go."

One of Preston's friends spoke up as well. "Didn't you used to joke that if Pres had a brother, you'd have Selene marry into the Gallagher family right alongside you? Well, now she's joining the family through him too, in a way. Isn't that something to be happy about?"

As Gwyneth listened to them, a chill took root deep in her chest and spread through her entire body.

She had met Preston during a graduation trip in their senior year of high school.

They had both been traveling alone, and once they started talking, they discovered an uncanny connection. They had attended the same high school without ever knowing each other, then later earned admission to the same university.

They had similar tastes and shared many of the same interests. Even their SAT scores had been identical. The only real difference between them was their backgrounds.

Preston was the heir to the Gallagher family and everything it controlled. Gwyneth was simply a girl from an ordinary family.

During freshman year, Preston confessed his feelings to her. She accepted and introduced him to her best friend, Selene.

From then on, two became three.

After graduation, Gwyneth moved to his city and settled down. She and Selene opened a ceramics studio together.

Whenever Preston came to pick Gwyneth up, Selene came along too.

Later, Gwyneth married Preston, with Selene and Rebecca beside her as bridesmaids.

She had never imagined that her two best friends would betray her. Even less had she imagined that Preston and Selene had been together for two years without her noticing a thing.

What made it even more absurd was that Preston's childhood friends had once promised her they would keep an eye on him.

All these years, Gwyneth had never treated any of them poorly. She remembered every one of their birthdays without fail. At every gathering, she handled everything herself and made sure everyone was taken care of. She even spent months carefully choosing their birthday gifts.

And in the end, this was what she got in return.

Pain sliced through her chest like a blade. Gwyneth had nothing left to say. Numb and hollow, she turned to leave.

Just as she reached the escalator, Selene suddenly grabbed her arm. "Gwen, if it really bothers you, I'll end things with Preston. Once the baby's born, I'll give it to you. I'll leave the capital and never come back."

"Let go of me! Selene, you don't need to leave. I'm the one who should go."

Gwyneth tried to shake her off, but before she could pull free, Selene suddenly lost her footing and tumbled down the escalator.