Chapter 1

When I was seven months pregnant, I went to the baby boutique to pick out some supplies for my unborn child.

Peering through the shelves, I froze. My husband, Frank, was leaning over, gently brushing a stray lock of hair from a strange woman's forehead.

"Do you know Mr. and Mrs. Byres too?"

The sales assistant asked casually, her head down as she scanned my items.

"Honestly, everyone envies Mrs. Byres. They’ve been married for three years, and Mr. Byres has never had a single scandal."

"They were high school sweethearts, and now they have a son and a daughter. They’re the ultimate power couple."

I gripped the edge of the counter, my knuckles turning white.

A son and a daughter? A power couple?

But the "Mr. Byres" she was talking about was my husband—the man who told me he was an orphan!

Seeing my pale face, the sales assistant asked suspiciously, "Do you actually know Frank Byres?"

She looked me up and down, her eyes lingering on my cheap, oversized maternity dress. A flash of contempt crossed her face.

"If you have any dirty ideas about him, I suggest you forget them."

"Mr. Byres is a devoted family man. He wouldn't even look at a woman like you."

She shoved the shopping cart forward, pushing me back. I instinctively covered my belly, trembling.

Then, I heard her whisper sneeringly to another cashier:

"Look at her. Her eyes are practically glued to Mr. Byres. She probably wants to be his side chick."

"With that cheap look, who knows if she even knows who her baby's real father is."

A side chick?

I stood there, paralyzed, unable to speak.

Just this morning, before Frank left, he had kissed me gently on the forehead.

He told me his company was swamped and asked me to rest at home.

But could two people in this world really look so identical? Down to the exact same scar at the corner of his left eye?

Frank told me he got that scar from a fall when he was a kid.

If he already had a family, a wife, and children...

Why did he marry me? Why did he tell me he loved me?

He had turned me into a disgusting, cheap mistress in everyone else's eyes.

I wanted to run over and demand answers.

I had told him my story. My mother took her own life after being abandoned as a rich man's mistress.

I, Audrey, would rather marry a beggar than ever become someone’s side piece.

Why did he lie to me?

Suddenly, a wave of dizziness hit me. My foot slipped, and I almost fell to the floor.

Hearing the commotion, Frank turned around. His eyes widened when he saw me, and he rushed over.

"Audrey! Oh my god, are you okay? Why are you so careless?"

Panic was written all over his face. He held me tight, trying to soothe me.

But the expensive, tailored black suit he was wearing was definitely not the cheap work uniform he wore when he left this morning.

"It's okay, it's okay. I’m taking you to the hospital right now."

I grabbed his wrist, my voice cracking.

"Frank, are you hiding something from me?"

At my words, panic flashed through his eyes.

"What are you talking about, babe?"

"Did you misunderstand something?"

His eyes darted away, but he quickly recovered his composure.

"That woman, Mrs. Byres, is just a client. We ran into each other and chatted for a bit."

"I didn't expect you to see us. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have let you misunderstand."

"I promise this will never happen again."

Frank looked so sincere, his voice so steady.

I looked past his shoulder. The elegant "Mrs. Byres" stood there quietly, showing no intention of arguing.

If they were really husband and wife, she wouldn't just stand there in silence, right?

Before I could think further, Frank lifted me in his arms and rushed toward the hospital.

Dazed, I remembered that he had held me just like this when we first met.

Back then, my mother had just committed suicide. My greedy uncle was trying to force me to marry a creepy sixty-year-old man to pay off his debts.

I did everything I could to escape.

Frank was the one who rescued me from the rain, paid my hospital bills, and gave me a place to stay.

He told me his parents were dead, his relatives had stolen his inheritance, and he was working hard to build a life from scratch.

We fell in love in a tiny, cramped rental apartment.

Even though he was broke, he was polite and intelligent, and he eventually got a decent job at a firm.

I had my doubts, but I never pushed him.

Until the day he knelt down with a ring.

"I swear to God, Audrey, I will cherish you forever."

He privately arranged our marriage license and took care of all the paperwork.

After we got married, he handed his entire salary over to me.

Every time he came home, he brought me little gifts—chocolates, pastries, or a single rose.

He loved me so deeply. How could it all be a lie?

At the hospital, the doctor looked at my ultrasound and wrote a prescription.

Then, he smiled at the anxious Frank.

"Both mother and baby are fine. She just needs bed rest."

Frank let out a long, ragged breath and gently touched my swollen belly.

"Thank God you guys are okay."

He crouched down, pressing his face against my stomach, whispering softly:

"Hey, little one, be good. Don't stress your mommy out."

I saw tears glistening in the corners of his eyes.

Frank had been nothing but good to me. He was my savior.

I thought to myself, maybe the store clerk was wrong. Maybe she just saw Frank standing next to Mrs. Byres and assumed they were married.

I shouldn't doubt him.

Relieved, I went home to rest.

But the next morning, right after Frank left, our front door was violently kicked open.

I rushed to the living room and saw yesterday's "Mrs. Byres" walking in with a group of burly men.