Chapter 1 The First Encounter

║3 Months Later. Chicago, Illinois, US║

The bustling nightlife that once felt foreign to me has now become the only place I go every day.

There is no longer an Annalise Gracelyn Keaton who sits at the dining table preparing dinner to welcome her husband home. No more elegant woman in a knee-length dress attending tea parties in Fremont with her husband’s coworkers’ wives. No more Ann who visits her parents every weekend with gift baskets, pretending to live a happy married life.

Now… I live in a freedom I thought I’d never have.

“This is the first time I’ve seen you here. Are you new around here?”

I turned my head when I heard the bartender’s question.

Just after taking a sip of the drink he served, I gave him a faint smile and replied, “Do you remember everyone who comes here?”

“Yes,” the man nodded confidently. “Chicago is a big city, but most of the patrons here come from nearby neighborhoods.”

I gave a brief nod. Honestly, I had just learned there was a decent bar near my apartment. Maybe I should consider coming here more often since I wouldn't have to spend much on taxis.

Oh, but maybe I should also consider exploring more of Chicago and forget about taxi fares for a while.

“So, are you new in town or just a lost traveler?”

“Besides serving drinks, are you also in charge of small talk?”

Damn, the old Ann wouldn’t have dared respond like that to a stranger.

“Anything you want, I can provide,” he said with a small chuckle.

I looked around. This wasn’t a large bar like the ones I’d been frequenting since I arrived in Chicago almost two weeks ago, but it felt nice, with bar counters lined up and a dance floor at the far end. Not many were dancing there, but a few had started to dance wildly after downing several drinks.

I started to consider… should I dance tonight, too?

“Really?” I brought the glass to my lips and sipped it slowly.

I hated the taste of this drink. But alcohol was the only thing that could make me forget the mess I was entangled in lately. At least, I could forget for a moment.

“Yeah, just tell me what you—”

“Stop your yapping, Max. Just make me my usual. You’re wasting time flirting with your customers.”

A man suddenly cut off the bartender mid-sentence as he pulled a chair and sat to my left.

I turned my head and looked at him for a moment.

Unfortunately, he was also looking at me.

“You have beautiful lips,” he murmured softly, eyes fixed straight on me.

I’d heard similar lines from dozens of men I’d met in Chicago or other cities I visited before deciding to come here. But only this man said it seriously like he genuinely meant it—not just to hit on me.

“You have sharp eyes,”

So, I returned the compliment in kind.

He gave a small nod and then took the drink the bartender handed him.

It seemed like he was a regular here, judging by how the bartender knew what he wanted.

“She’s new here,” the bartender said, glancing at me. “I was just trying to be friendly, hoping she’d consider coming back again.”

The man beside me scoffed, “You can leave that job to me.”

“Damn,” the bartender muttered, shaking his head. “You heard what he said, miss?” he looked at me, and I nodded with a brief smile.

“He’s right next to me, of course, I heard.”

“And I see you didn’t mind what he said.”

I shrugged, “He’s just trying to be friendly, isn’t he?”

“His idea of friendly is a little different from mine. You don’t mind that?”

I glanced at the man beside me, then looked back at the bartender, who was still waiting for an answer. “I’d like to find out how far his friendliness goes.”

There was a brief silence between the three of us. Then came a soft grunt from the bartender in front of me. “In that case, I’ll leave you two alone so you can find out.”

Then he walked away to the other end of the bar.

“What brought you here?” the man scooted his chair closer until our arms touched.

I glanced at him for a second—considering whether this man would be my partner for the night or just someone who’d hear a glimpse of my story.

I decided on the latter. “Divorce, miscarriage, and running away.”

The man looked at me intently, then nodded after a moment. “Nice choice. Chicago welcomes you with open arms.”

“I hope so,” I scoffed. “I might have to stay here for a while until I find another place to go.”

“There are plenty of cities in the US, but this one’s the best choice.”

I nodded.

Out of all the cities I’d visited before coming here, I don’t know why I chose to spend most of my money on this one. I even bought an apartment after only seeing it once.

My money was running out, and I needed to find a new job in this city soon.

Maybe I’d had enough fun playing the rich tourist, city-hopping. It was time to start a new life in a new place.

“Can I know why this city is the best?” I gave him a smile after finishing the last sip of my drink.

“You really want to know?”

I felt a hand slipping under the hem of my dress.

That hand traveled upward—higher and higher until I could feel it at the edge of my underwear.

“Yes,” I stared at him defiantly. “Show me, please.”

***

“Ahh,” I couldn’t stop the moan that escaped my lips when I felt a long kiss at the base of my thigh. One of his fingers pushed inside, giving me exactly what I wanted—even though I knew this man knew there was something else I wanted more than just his finger and his lips.

I ran my fingers through his hair and pulled his head up to feel his kiss. Meanwhile, my hand moved hastily to unzip his pants.

“Don’t you think this is a little too fast?” he pulled away from our kiss and looked at me with hesitation.

“I want it fast,” I replied with conviction.

As if that answer alone was enough to erase all doubt from his mind, the man on top of me moved quickly and gave me exactly what I desired.

I knew God must curse me for what I was doing right now—even for what I’d done over the past three months since my divorce.

But maybe… this was the only way I could forget all the foolish things I’d done in the past.

This fleeting pleasure was the only thing that could make me forget that I once cried and faced my greatest devastation when I found out my child died because of my stupidity.

Damn. I couldn’t think about that now—I couldn’t think about my child while I was having sex with a stranger.

That same familiar feeling I’d experienced so often these past three months began to flood my head as my hips moved more wildly. I knew it was coming…

“You’re moving too fast,” the man murmured between my breasts and whatever his lips were on.

I let out a long moan—ignoring his complaint as the climax hit me hard.

Not long after, I also felt the man on top of me reach his own climax almost simultaneously.

The sound of our breathing filling the dark hotel room was the only sign that life existed in this space.

I hated every second that came after I reached climax.

This feeling… it gnawed at me—drowning me in a darkness I thought I’d never fall into again.

“What’s your name?”

I turned my head as I felt the man’s hand move to fasten the back of my dress.

I didn’t actually plan on answering, but one hot kiss on my back made it impossible to keep my mouth shut.

“I only wanted to do this once… for tonight,” I murmured calmly.

The man looked at me over my shoulder, and I could see him clearly in the mirror—unfortunately, facing right at us.

Damn, I could still remember how his body hovered over mine just moments ago and how his hands had roamed across every inch of me.

The faster I got out of this hotel, the better.

“What about one more time tomorrow night?”

Another kiss landed on my neck, and I closed my eyes as his tongue moved in a way that sent a thrill through me.

“You haven’t even told me your name.”

“I mean,” I pulled away and quickly stood to face him fully, “I only wanted to do it once—with you.”

“What?” the man furrowed his thick, neatly trimmed brows. The stubble around his jawline caught my attention—reminding me of the pleasure I felt when his lips trailed down my stomach and lower.

“I only do it once,” I bent down to put on my heels near the TV, “so… we won’t be seeing each other again. And I don’t think we need to exchange names.”

***

The first thing I did when I opened my eyes in the morning was check the time on my phone.

My head was pounding from the alcohol I’d drunk last night.

Well, I’d been waking up like this every day for the past three months because I forced myself to drink every night.

“Shit,” I muttered softly when I saw the date on the screen.

It had been three months since I had a miscarriage after… Alban pushed me down the stairs of our house.

That bastard killed our child—even before I knew I was pregnant.

I didn’t die from falling down those stairs like I had hoped. But that day, I woke up completely broken after my mother told me I’d lost my baby.

It felt like it would’ve been better if I had died—especially after I heard Alban making up a story to my parents about how I ended up in the hospital.

And the worst part?

My parents believed him.

I hated him with everything I had in me… but I couldn’t bring myself to hate the baby I had carried, even if only briefly. And that loss—that unbearable grief—was what made me run away from my hometown.

Unfortunately… there was another issue I had to face after that miscarriage.

It had been three months, and I still hadn’t gotten my period back to normal.

That’s why I made an appointment to see a gynecologist at a clinic near my apartment.

Of course, I woke up late and now I was probably going to miss it.

Well, I wouldn’t be late if I hurried and ordered a taxi right now.

I didn’t need long to get ready, and thankfully, I made it to the clinic just in time.

When they called my name, I immediately walked into the room—it was the OB-GYN’s office.

It felt strange… being here and seeing pregnant women sitting in the waiting area with their husbands.

“Come in, ma’am.” a nurse greeted me as soon as I opened the door. She guided me to the left, where the doctor was waiting.

I felt my face go pale the moment I looked at the person sitting behind the desk—wearing scrubs that fit his body perfectly.

No…

There’s no way I’d mistaken him.

"Annalise Gracelyn Scott? Is that you, ma'am?"

The man looked up, and his dark eyes examined me closely—demanding an answer because I still hadn’t moved since the door closed a few seconds ago.

"Ma'am?"

A woman in a nurse’s uniform touched my arm, snapping me out of the shock that had frozen me in place. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," I nodded as calmly as I could, though I was sure my panic wasn’t well-hidden.

"Then, would you please take a seat in front of me so we can begin the examination?"

The man—the doctor—spoke calmly while gesturing to a chair where I was supposed to sit.

I didn’t know his name, even though I could easily read it on the glass nameplate on his desk.

The only thing I did know was how his lips felt.

Damn it.

How could the man who last night had warmed my body with his touch and kiss now be sitting in front of me—about to examine my most private parts—because it turns out… he’s a gynecologist?