Arielle's POV

Looking back, I realize how foolish I was to be willing to give up my dreams of attending Harvard or Stanford, all for the chance to marry the man I loved and have what I thought would be the perfect result of that love.

Now, the gossip photo that was making the rounds online only showed a blurry side profile of me.

The only thing that stood out was my torn evening gown.

But as long as I didn't admit that Chester had been the one to rip it, who could really do anything to me?

Seeing how calm I was, Penelope started to hesitate.

"You really didn't do anything with my brother?"

I kept my cool, shaking my head. "Do you want something to have happened?"

Penelope's face twisted with anger. "Don't be disgusting! Then explain why you and my brother were in the same hotel? Why does he have all those red marks on his body? And why was your dress torn?"

Penelope might have had some brains, but not much.

I glanced at Chester, who was approaching in the distance, and shrugged nonchalantly.

"It was my birthday last night. Isn't it normal to drink too much and stay at a hotel? I got a little too excited about getting into Stanford and Harvard, went a little crazy, and cut up my own dress—totally normal, right?"

I paused, then added with a smirk, "As for why your brother was at that hotel too, you should ask him. How would I know what he's up to?"

"Plus, it's summer. Mosquitoes are everywhere. Getting a few bites isn't a big deal. Penelope, why do you always jump to the worst conclusions? Maybe you should lay off those trashy romance novels."

I shot a glance at Chester and smirked. "Don't you agree, hm?"

With his hands in his pockets, Chester stood looking dark and unreadable, his expression sharp, as if he were trying to determine whether I was serious or just playing with Penelope.

"Chester, is what she said true? Because those don't look like mosquito bites to me…"

Penelope jabbed her finger at the red marks on Chester's neck, trying to use them as proof that I'd laid a hand on him.

But Chester didn't flinch.

He simply pointed to the fresh handprint still visible on my cheek and asked, "You hit her?"

Penelope's face faltered. She could tell, even if she didn't want to admit it, that Chester had always favored me.

"I didn't want her to lose her sense of boundaries! She's the reason you're the center of all this gossip and ridicule right now! If she really slept with you and then ran off, what would become of our family? I was just giving her a little warning!"

Chester's face darkened, his voice cold as ice. "Penelope, where did all that noble upbringing of yours go? You're grounded for three days. No going out."

I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

Since I'd already decided to distance myself from the McKinsey family, there was no need to pander to Penelope anymore.

Knowing Chester would probably back me up on denying everything, I let out a bitter laugh.

"Penelope, do you really think your brother is someone I could just boss around? I didn't even have the means to do anything. And if something did happen, who knows who was really taking advantage of whom…"

To my surprise, Chester touched the bite mark on his neck and suddenly said, "You didn't?"

His cryptic tone made my eyebrows twitch.

I wasn't the one who drugged him, and I certainly wasn't the one who made the first move.

I was doing everything I could to distance myself from him, so why was he choosing to play along like this?

"Mr. McKinsey, you must be joking. Even if I had a hundred times more guts, I still wouldn't dare lay a finger on you."

Thinking back on everything that had happened in my past life—about our daughter, about him—I just wanted to get as far away from Chester as I could.

Penelope's eyes kept shifting between us, her suspicion growing.

"There's something weird going on with you two."

Chester and I both answered in unison, "Nothing is going on."

A flicker of surprise passed through Chester's eyes, but it disappeared just as quickly.

I limped away without another word, determined to leave this mess behind me.

But before I could get far, Chester grabbed my arm.

"We're going to the hospital," he stated, his tone leaving no room for refusal.

The sudden touch of his hand felt like a burn. I immediately pulled my arm back.

"Don't touch me!"

In front of a stunned Penelope, Chester grabbed me by the waist. I fought to get free, but he was too strong. I smacked him across the face, my anger rising.

But instead of getting angry, Chester actually laughed.

Arielle's POV

Chester's mocking laugh after what happened between us felt just like it had in my past life, cold, dismissive, and dripping with contempt.

It stung in a way I couldn't quite shake off.

No matter how I struggled, Chester carried me to the car like I weighed nothing. My heart raced, not because of his proximity, but because I could feel everything spinning out of my control.

Chester knew exactly who had shared that night with him. He knew it was me.

But what I couldn't understand was, if he hated me so much, why wouldn't he just let me go?

Could it be that he had been reborn, too?

But that didn't make sense. If Chester truly had been reborn, there was no way he would have touched me in the first place.

No, there had to be something else going on here.

I treated him like a venomous snake, avoiding him at all costs.

As I slid into the back seat of the car, Chester watched coldly as I moved from the passenger seat to the back, his entire body radiating an icy hostility I couldn't read.

After a long moment of silence, he rolled up the window and slammed his foot on the gas. We sped off, leaving Penelope behind, stomping her feet in frustration.

"Chester, Penelope can't see us anymore. You can let me out now," I stated.

But Chester shot me a vicious glare, then pushed the accelerator harder, heading straight for the hospital.

That single sharp and cold gaze instantly silenced me.

I thought to myself, 'He's taking me to the hospital. He's trying to make sure I'm not pregnant with his child, right?'

I was fine with that.

But instead of going to the gynecologist's office, Chester carried me straight to the orthopedic department.

"She sprained her ankle. Check for any bone injury," he said, completely unfazed.

I blinked, surprised. 'Shouldn't we be dealing with the pregnancy first?

Wasn't that the priority here?'

The doctor examined my ankle, made his assessment, and referred me to an orthopedic specialist before finally sending us to the gynecology department.

Meanwhile, Chester's face remained as hard as stone, his mood clearly not improving.

"I want medication," he told the doctor in a clipped tone, his words curt and cold.

The doctor, clearly confused, asked, "What kind of medication?"

Chester quickly replied, "She might have gotten pregnant from last night. We need to get her abortion pills."

I felt a sudden sinking feeling in my stomach at the thought. The fertilized egg likely hadn't had a chance to implant yet, but Chester was already eager to eliminate it.

That's how much he despised me and our unborn child.

My poor daughter. Even in my past life, she never got an ounce of love from him. Not even a hug.

I felt a bitter smile tug at my lips as I looked at the doctor.

"Just give me emergency contraception, Doc," I said, my voice flat.

Chester, looking a little embarrassed by the misunderstanding, went to fill the prescription himself. He even poured me a cup of warm water, his hands gentle but somehow strangely personal.

Once I swallowed the pill, he finally sighed in relief.

"Drop any delusions you might have," Chester said, voice cold again. "Since you drugged me last night, I'll let it go this time."

Having lived through this once already, I couldn't help myself. I had to ask.

"What if I told you I didn't drug you? Would you believe me?"

Chester's expression turned even colder. "Shut up. This matter ends here. If you ever pull something like this again, be ready to face the consequences."

"Fine," I replied simply, knowing that nothing I said would change his mind.

My obedient response seemed to catch him off guard. He had clearly expected more of a fight, but I wasn't interested in playing games with him anymore.

...

On the way back, Chester slipped back into his usual authoritative tone, giving orders as if it were second nature.

"In 12 hours, come to my room and take the pill again. In one month, we'll check if you're pregnant. Until your ankle heals completely, you're not allowed to leave the house. I don't want any more scandals, especially ones involving you."

A quick look in the rearview mirror told me everything I needed to know.

Chester's disgust for me was written all over his face.

"Fine," I said again, my voice neutral.

After everything I had endured in my past life, I no longer had any illusions about him.

Chester, however, seemed satisfied with my newfound obedience. He finally looked at me, the tension in his posture easing just slightly.

Halfway through the drive, his phone rang. He put it on speaker without hesitation.

A sugary-sweet voice came through immediately. "Chester, I'm back! Meet me at the usual place!"

It was Lorraine Hartman, his first love, the woman he could never seem to let go of.

The moment Chester heard her voice, his expression melted like ice. The change in him was instant as his whole demeanor softened like a switch being flicked.

They chatted for over ten minutes, exchanging sweet words that made my stomach churn.

Finally, he ended the call, his reluctance almost palpable.

I sighed, trying not to let it get to me.

"Will you let me out of the car?" I asked again.

But Chester ignored me completely, insisting on taking me along to buy roses and a gift.

"You're going on a date. I won't get in the way," I said in a matter-of-fact tone.

When we reached the mall, I flagged down a cab without a second thought and left.

Arielle's POV

But Chester prevented me from leaving, blocking the cab's door.

"Aren't you curious who that woman was? Weren't you always the one following me around?" His voice was dripping with annoyance, as if my indifference was some kind of challenge.

Unfortunately for Chester, having endured so much of his favoritism in my past life, I had long since grown numb to his behavior. The difference between his actions and words hardly affected me anymore. I had no interest in playing along with whatever twisted game he was trying to start.

"Why should I be curious? I've got no interest in being a third wheel. Enjoy your date, Mr. McKinsey."

Chester's expression darkened, his gaze unreadable.

He slammed the taxi door shut, dismissed the driver, and dragged me straight into a jewelry store at the mall.

"Bring out your best piece," he ordered, his tone as cold as ever.

The saleslady, assuming we were a couple, smiled brightly and excitedly fetched a pink diamond. She showered us with compliments, clearly thrilled at what she thought was a romantic moment.

"You two are such a perfect match. You're both talented and beautiful!"

Just as she was about to slide the ring onto my finger, Chester snatched it away with a swift, almost violent motion.

His face was as cold as ice. "She? Worthy of this?"

An uncomfortable silence fell over the store. It was clear now that Chester wasn't keeping me around because he cared. He just wanted to humiliate me.

But I didn't care.

I tilted my chin and broke the silence, my voice steady. "Miss, I'm afraid you've misunderstood. He's my guardian, and we're picking out a gift for his girlfriend."

The mood in the store relaxed a bit, but Chester's chill only seemed to grow thicker, surrounding him like a dark cloud.

Without asking for my opinion, he dragged me off again, this time to the airport.

When we saw Lorraine, I greeted her as naturally as I could.

"Lorraine!"

She beamed, her smile lighting up the room.

Chester, on the other hand, stared at me in disbelief. "What did you just call her?"

I didn't answer, pretending not to notice the storm brewing in his eyes.

Instead, I shoved Lorraine into his arms with a quick, purposeful motion.

"I'll leave you two to it, Chester."

Without a second glance, I walked quickly out of the airport, eager to escape the suffocating tension and distance myself from the mess.

By the time I got home, a video of Chester and Lorraine kissing passionately at the airport had gone viral, making its rounds across social media.

Someone online questioned if the woman's side profile matched the one from earlier paparazzi shots.

Chester's official account posted a simple reply:

[It's her.]

Just those two words, and the entire McKinsey family was thrown into a frenzy.

...

That evening, Lorraine was warmly invited to the McKinsey family home to discuss marriage.

I had planned to stay quietly in my room, away from all the chaos, but Lorraine came upstairs herself to check on me.

Once the door closed behind her, her sweet smile vanished in an instant, replaced by a cold, calculating look as she glanced at my lower abdomen.

"Arielle, I know it was you who spent the night with Chester. Since you're being so sensible, take this pill. I don't want any 'accidents' between me and Chester."

She handed me a pill, and I figured this was probably Chester's idea. Maybe it was his way of slapping me in the face, telling me to give up on him once and for all.

So I said nothing and swallowed the pills without resistance.

Lorraine left shortly after, feeling satisfied. She went downstairs to inform the others that I wasn't feeling well and needed to rest.

Meanwhile, Grace tried to come upstairs to check on me a few times, but Lorraine and Penelope blocked her every time.

Not long after taking the pill, a dull pain started spreading in my abdomen.

I didn't want to worry Grace, so I forced myself to sleep through the discomfort.

In that semi-conscious state, I sensed someone entering my room. A bitter taste filled my mouth, and I suddenly woke up.

It was Chester.

Still half-conscious, I reflexively whined, "Chester, my stomach really hurts… I think I need to go to the hospital…"

He brushed the damp hair from my forehead gently, but his voice was as cold as ever.

"Didn't I tell you to come to my room to take the medicine? Why didn't you? Are you trying to keep that bastard child?"

It was only then that I realized what he had just given me: three more emergency contraceptive pills. The doctor had clearly warned me that no more than two should be taken.

Including the ones Lorraine had given me, I had now taken four.