Chapter 2

Her question left me completely speechless.

Daisy was Julian's child.

A secret I had fiercely guarded for seven full years.

My marriage to Julian began as nothing more than a cold, calculated business arrangement.

I never expected anything from it. But Julian turned out to be different.

He was attentive, grounded, remembered every little thing I liked, and gave me space.

Day by day, through all those quiet moments together, a terrifying reality set in—

I had fallen in love with him.

So, when the hospital handed me a positive pregnancy test, I was so thrilled. I genuinely believed our marriage could finally cross the threshold into real love.

I rushed to his company without waiting for an appointment.

I didn't even have the receptionist announce me. I pushed his office door right open.

And there he was.

And he saw me.

Only, he wasn't behind his executive desk. He was on the leather couch.

His dress shirt was unbuttoned halfway down. Victoria was curled in his lap in a state of disarray. Her bare collarbone was littered with dark hickeys, her cheeks flushed with post-intimacy heat.

I stood frozen at the door, crushing the sonogram in my trembling fist.

Julian merely glanced up, giving me a dismissive, indifferent look.

"Get out."

"Come back in ten minutes."

I didn't move. I just stared at him in utter disbelief.

Annoyed, he pushed Victoria off him, straightened his clothes, and told her to leave.

Once the door clicked shut behind her, he turned to me, irritated by the interruption.

"What are you doing here?"

"Didn't I tell you to call before coming to the office?"

A million needles stabbed through my heart. I looked at Julian, completely coming apart at the seams.

"Aren't you... going to explain this?"

He scoffed, as if I had just told a ridiculous joke.

"Explain?"

"What is there to explain?"

Julian took a step closer, looking at me with pure condescension, as if I were being utterly unreasonable.

"Evelyn, isn't this what a marriage like ours is supposed to be?"

"I don't police who you sleep with outside, and you look the other way when it comes to me. Plenty of couples in our circle live like this. As long as we keep up appearances in public, who cares?"

"Why are you making a big deal out of this all of a sudden?"

In that single second, my entire world caved in.

The man standing in front of me felt entirely like a stranger. A repulsive stranger.

Dazed, I clutched my stomach and turned toward the door. Behind me, Julian let out a cold, mocking scoff—ridiculing my childish naivety.

When I reached the lobby doors, a figure blocked my path.

Victoria.

She had clearly been waiting for me, wearing the smug smirk of a victor.

"Ms. Moore, got a second to talk?"

A dull cramp pulsed in my lower abdomen. My body felt horribly wrong.

I tried to walk around her, but she spoke, her voice laced with sweet venom.

"Ms. Moore, I know I embarrassed you today. But you need to understand that Julian and I are truly in love."

"Besides... I'm pregnant with Julian's baby."

My footsteps froze.

Victoria hid a smug grin and continued, "You probably didn't know, did you?"

"I was Julian's first love. If my family hadn't gone bankrupt back then, I would be Mrs. Vance right now. So please, be a decent person and stop coming between us. My baby... needs a father."

Before I could say a word, frantic footsteps echoed from behind us.

"What the hell are you doing?!"