Chapter 4

Miles, my assistant, arrived in less than half an hour and rushed me straight to the hospital.

Once I was out of danger, Peter wiped his forehead. "Thank God you got here in time. Any later, and I don't even want to think about what could've happened."

I lay in bed, feeling weak. An hour later, I checked my phone. Colton hadn't called once.

The moment Beth needed him, I ceased to exist. He hadn't even remembered he'd promised to send a car.

Whatever I still felt for him faded a little more.

I pushed myself out of bed, but Miles quickly stepped in front of me. "Dr. Vance, what are you doing? You can't—"

"Take me to the house outside the city," I said coldly.

He didn't ask any questions. He simply drove me there.

I'd bought the house years ago, planning to use it for weekend getaways with Colton.

When Beth became ill, I offered to let her recover there.

Colton visited her constantly. I never did. Because of her amnesia, Beth believed I was Colton's lover. Seeing me would only upset her and slow her recovery.

So despite owning the place, I'd never stepped inside.

When the car pulled up, every light in the house was on.

Rows of roses bloomed across the yard.

I walked to the door and knocked.

My mother opened it. The smile vanished from her face the instant she saw me. Her entire body stiffened, and her lips turned pale.

"What are you doing here?"

I ignored her, pushed past her, and walked inside.

Beth was lounging in a chair. Colton sat beside her, feeding her, while a dog rested at her feet.

"Who is it?" Beth asked with a smile.

Then she saw me. Her smile disappeared, and the color drained from her face.

I slowly looked around the room.

I barely recognized the place. Every piece of art I'd chosen for the house was gone.

In their place were wedding photos of Colton and Beth.

My breath caught.

They had taken their wedding photos before Colton and I had even taken ours.

Colton went pale. Even the hand holding the plate began to shake.

"Why are you here?"

Then his eyes swept over me, and his expression darkened. "So now you're pretending to be sick?"

I ignored him and looked straight at Beth.

Without thinking, she stepped behind Colton and covered her stomach with one hand.

Colton immediately moved in front of her, shielding her from me with his arm. "Don't try anything. Come with me now, and I'll explain it to you."

I looked at his arm shielding her and let out a bitter laugh.

My mother stormed over, raising her voice. "What are you doing here?! If it weren't for you, they would've been together years ago! Beth would be the one living at the estate! They have a child now. I will not let you hurt my daughter or her baby!"

Her words stopped me cold.

She had always been like this. We were both her daughters, but she'd never loved us the same.

Still, there was one reason I'd tolerated her all these years. When my father sold me to a casino, she sold our house to buy me back.

She spent years afterward telling me she regretted it.

But I had never forgotten that she'd saved me. I was still grateful.

That was exactly why she'd known that faking her death would destroy me.

She knew where I was weakest and used it against me without hesitation.

Colton shot her a look and pulled her back. "Listen, the baby isn't what you think. Let's go home. I'll explain everything to you later."

Beth's eyes reddened. Her voice trembled.

"Monica, I know you're mad, but please listen to us. When I came back after the kidnapping, I was terrified. Colton stayed with me and comforted me. One night, we had too much to drink, and... it happened."

She burst into tears.

I almost laughed.

So they'd been sleeping together since Beth was kidnapped six months ago.

That night, Colton had taken the ransom money and gone to rescue her. I'd stayed home all night, too worried to sleep as I waited for them to return. They'd even slept together before coming home.

Colton reached for my hand. "All right. Let's go home and talk."

I shook him off. "Enough. What is there to talk about?"

Colton swallowed his anger and forced himself to stay calm. "You have to give me time to handle this. Beth is pregnant now, so we don't need to adopt. She's your sister. The child is related to you by blood. What's wrong with that?"

I burst out laughing.

Related to me by blood? He'd gotten my sister pregnant, and now he expected me to raise their child. What a joke.

"What are you laughing at?" Colton asked.

My laughter stopped. I reached into my bag, pulled out my prenatal report, and held it up. "I'm pregnant too. So tell me, Colton. Do you want Beth's baby, or mine?"