Chapter 1

I was hemorrhaging during a difficult labor, but my husband, Julian, who’d promised to be the first to welcome our baby, was nowhere to be found.

The attending doctor looked around nervously. "Where's Director Stone? If he doesn't sign the consent forms now, the patient is at risk of bleeding out."

My body was weak, but I managed to call Julian. All I heard was the breathy moan of his ex-girlfriend on the other end. "Oh, Julian, you're so amazing."

When he finally answered, his voice was sharp with annoyance.

"What woman doesn't suffer during childbirth? Why are you being so dramatic?"

"Stella's depression has gotten worse. I'm her doctor, how could I just leave?"

Julian wasn't just my husband; he was the director of this hospital. But all his love was reserved for Stella, his first love, the one he could never get over.

Whenever she was around, there was no room for me in his eyes.

He never showed up, not even after the surgery was over.

I touched my empty belly and finally decided to sign the divorce papers.

When I slowly opened my eyes, my best friend, Talia, was gripping my hands, her face etched with worry.

After a moment of hesitation, she spoke softly.

"Rosalind, your baby... didn't make it. It was an emergency, they had no choice but to..."

A wave of dizziness washed over me. I closed my eyes as tears streamed down my face.

Just then, a man in a delivery uniform walked in with a bouquet of flowers and a takeout container. He smiled.

"Ms. Vance, this is a gift from Mr. Stone. He told me to tell you, 'You worked hard, honey. I love you forever.'"

I stared at the already wilting flowers in my hand and let out a bitter, mocking laugh.

Talia opened the takeout container. It was a spicy hot pot.

She snatched the flowers from my hand, threw them furiously into the trash, and cursed Julian.

"That Julian is a complete asshole! Spicy hot pot for a woman who just gave birth? And these dying flowers? This is a fucking joke!"

I pushed myself up, my body still trembling with weakness.

Talia held my hand, her eyes filled with a mixture of pity and rage.

"Rosalind, don't be sad. A man like that isn't worth your tears. Does he think he can just brush you off with this cheap crap? Has he forgotten how he got to where he is?"

Her words were like a needle in my heart, the pain spreading silently through my entire body.

Every day felt like a year, but I didn't see Julian until the third day of my hospital stay.

He was dressed in a sharp navy-blue suit, his hair perfectly styled, as if every strand had been meticulously arranged.

In our three years of marriage, he had always worn casual clothes, sometimes not even bothering to shave.

I used to tell him that clothes make the man, but he’d always say, "A doctor's job is to save lives. Who has time to dress up?"

I guess I just wasn't the one he wanted to dress up for.

I was so lost in thought that I almost missed Stella standing behind him.

Her dark blue hospital gown was loose on her, but it couldn't hide her slender figure.

Julian stepped forward to help me sit up, but when he saw the postpartum discharge beneath me, his face twisted in disgust. He held his breath, forcing himself to help me change the sanitary pad.

I laughed at myself internally, the bitterness overwhelming as I questioned him.

"You abandoned me to be with another woman while I was giving birth. You show up three days later, and now you're trying to play the part of the devoted husband?"

Julian's brow furrowed, and he immediately blamed me.

"Rosalind, I was wrong that day. But you're fine now, aren't you? What difference does it make if I was here or not?"

"How can you be so selfish? You know how severe Stella's depression is. Shouldn't I have been taking care of her?"

I sneered, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Of course, you should have. You took such good care of her that she was screaming about how amazing you are. I just wonder if she was talking about your medical skills, or something else."

Julian's face darkened, clearly angered by my words.

He stood up, glaring down at me.

"Rosalind, you're being unreasonable! No wonder Stella is so afraid of you."

"She feels so guilty that you might misunderstand, she insisted on coming to explain things to you herself. She even refused treatment until she could."

As he spoke, Stella shuffled forward, her body trembling as if I were some kind of monster.

"Rosalind, I didn't mean to call Julian away. My condition suddenly got worse that day, it was an emergency. If you're going to blame someone, blame me. Please don't make things difficult for Julian."

What a classic, manipulative act. And of course, Julian fell for it completely.

He stepped out to take a call, but not before instructing me.

"Rosalind, talk to Stella nicely. Don't act like a jealous shrew and upset her."

I was stunned for a moment, only snapped back to reality by Stella's taunting voice.

"Look at you, Rosalind. With that sallow, haggard face, how could you ever be worthy of Julian?"

"I suggest you be smart and give up your position as the director's wife. Don't wait for me to have Julian throw you out of the house before you start crying."

My eyes locked onto hers as I responded coldly.

"I heard you were swindled by some old man overseas. You lost everything just to divorce him and escape back here."

"I guess you're the expert on divorce. Why don't you teach me how it's done?"

Stella's expression changed instantly, her face twisting with a flash of rage.

She raised her hand to slap me.

But just as her palm was about to hit my cheek, she suddenly stopped.