Chapter 5

Watching their twisted shadows on the glass, my mind drifted back to the life we used to share.

Growing up as an orphan, I put myself through college on full scholarships and graduated at the top of my class. Donovan first saw me speak at a campus career fair, later claiming it was love at first sight. He spent two relentless years pursuing me. He brought me coffee every morning, walked me home in rain or shine, and memorized every tiny preference I had. In my cramped dorm room, we decorated a tiny pine tree for our first Christmas. We didn't have any gifts to exchange, but we had each other.

No one had ever loved me like that before, so I finally said yes.

After we started dating, I discovered he was the illegitimate son of the Mercer family. His mother had been just one of the chairman's many mistresses. Driven by a bitter shame about his roots, he built his own company from scratch right after graduation. Donovan was determined to prove to his family that he could succeed without their money or their name. I stayed right by his side through every late night and risky gamble, helping him build a tiny startup into a thriving business empire.

To everyone around us, we were the golden couple—a perfect match destined for a happy life. We were each other's salvation.

But everything started to unravel the moment pregnancy changed my body beyond recognition.

After seven years of trying, I finally got pregnant. It was our long-awaited Christmas miracle. Donovan insisted I quit my job to rest, and that was when he hired Chloe. With her angelic face and perfect curves, she sprawled across his office couch on her very first day, complaining about feminine cramps. I warned him to keep his distance, but he brushed me off, calling me hormonal, jealous, and crazy.

Then, the little things started appearing: women's slippers under his desk, pink keychains, and loose makeup powder tucked into his drawer. The night after our company Christmas party, he came home with a dark hickey bruised into his neck.

I screamed at him, demanding the truth, but he just stared at me like I had lost my mind.

"Are you done? Go to bed."

The man who had once loved me was gone, replaced by a cold stranger who resented the woman I had become.