Kara thought she had met her soulmate, but it turned out that the girl who had donated her heart to her when she had a heart attack was the one Bennett truly loved.

It explained why he always liked to feel her heartbeat.

She thought it was just a kink he liked, but it turned out that Bennett was actually thinking of another woman.

Kara wiped away her tears and shakily stood up. She wanted to find Bennett and confront him.

She made her way up the spiral staircase. Just as she was about to enter the bedroom, she heard his friends talking inside.

"Bennett, you're not really going through with this, are you? Don't forget our original goal. Kara took Natalie’s heart, and she should pay the price! Just playing with her feelings would be too easy for her."

"Didn't Natalie freeze her eggs back then? I think Kara should be the one to carry a child for you and Natalie, so she can atone for her sins!"

"That's a good idea. That way, Bennett can still have an heir with Natalie. Then, once the kid’s born, he can toss Kara aside."

Kara froze, her blood turning cold as she listened to their laughter and taunts.

She shivered and felt the chill go deep into her bones.

Yet deep inside, there was still a flicker of hope. She waited for Bennett’s response. After a while, his voice could be heard.

“Be careful. Don’t let Kara hear about this. I’m just enjoying the feeling of Natalie’s heart beating for me. As for surrogacy, that’s a good idea. It’s what she owes Natalie!”

The others burst into laughter.

Kara felt as though she had fallen into a pit. Through the door crack, she saw Bennett’s face flickering in and out of view. It was as if she had never known him at all.

Her sharp nails dug into her palms, but she couldn’t even feel the pain.

Kara left the villa. She felt lost and broken.

It was raining outside.

The rain soaked her dress, and her hair clung to her forehead and face. She walked aimlessly, like a wandering soul, until the sudden sound of her phone ringing startled her. It was Bennett calling.

She hung up again and again, and when she hung up for the 108th time, she received a message from the orphanage director, Marilyn Carter.

“Kara, remember that overseas businessman I told you about? He’s sent someone to inquire again. He said that if you agree, he’ll immediately transfer a mansion worth over 100 million to you, and the wedding gift is still up for discussion. Will you agree? Let me know what you think.”

The rainwater made her phone screen wet, and Kara’s frozen fingers tightly gripped the phone. She returned Marilyn's call.

“Marilyn, I agree to the marriage proposal you mentioned."

“Alright then! I’ll have him contact you.”

Kara lowered her eyes, concealing the emotions in them, and forced a smile. “Okay. Once I finish up things here, I’ll go overseas with him.”

She ended the call with a bitter smile.

Bennett, the powerful man in Crestmoor, controlled everything in the country. As long as she stayed here, she would never escape his grasp.

So, she decided to marry abroad.

From now on, they would be apart and never meet again.

After making the decision, Kara felt all her strength leave her, and she collapsed heavily onto the ground. She splashed water everywhere.

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a hospital.

"Kara, you're finally awake! Do you know how scared I was?" Bennett exclaimed, pulling her into his arms as if he were trying to merge her into his very being. He only released her when she was nearly suffocating. His eyes were red with worry.

"What happened? Why didn't you answer my calls? If it wasn't for our phones being linked for location tracking, I wouldn't even know what happened to you!"

Bennett, usually rebellious, showed unusually deep concern.

So now he was worried?

What would his reaction be if he found out she was marrying someone else?

Kara wearily withdrew her hand and smiled faintly, though her face was a bit pale. "You called me? I didn’t notice. I went out to buy medicine since there wasn’t any at home. I might have put my phone on silent."

"You two really are something!

"On New Year's Eve, when you went missing, Bennett almost called the police. He gathered our friends and drove around Crestmoor all night looking for you. If they hadn’t found you, he probably would have done something drastic!

"Knowing about your heart condition, he even booked an entire floor in the hospital and summoned the top cardiologist with a helicopter to treat you. You had a fever for three days, and he didn’t sleep for those three days. He stayed by your side the entire time!"

If this had been in the past, Kara would've been touched and would've cupped Bennett’s face, urging him to get some rest.

But now, Kara merely asked listlessly, "It was just a little rain. Was it really necessary to call in a cardiologist?"

"Ahem–"

Several of Bennett's friends exchanged glances and then quickly left to give them space.

Bennett called the doctor, and after a thorough check-up on Kara’s condition and confirming there were no issues, he finally let out a sigh of relief.

After the doctor left, Bennett hastily took out two capsules from a medicine bottle. "Kara, take these heart supplements. They’ll help protect your heart. You haven’t taken them for the last few days since you were unconscious. You can't skip them now."

The two capsules lay silently in Bennett's palm. What was once sweet now felt like poison.

Kara’s eyes reddened. "I don’t want to take them now."

"You have to. I know your condition better than anyone. You’ve been out in the rain, had a fever, and if your emotions get too stirred up, your heart won’t be able to take it! You have to take them. I’ll feed them to you."

Before she could say anything else, Bennett decisively placed the capsules in his mouth, then cupped her head with his hands and kissed her forcefully.

He was domineering, pushing her to swallow the capsules, and only then did he release her. "Babe, you’re the best."

Kara struggled to suppress the lump in her throat.

Was that 'babe' meant for her or was it meant for Natalie?

It turned out that many things had been apparent even eight years ago.

Bennett had fallen in love with her at first sight. From that moment on, he had been by her side, following her like a shadow. Every morning, after breakfast, he would make sure she took two capsules for her heart.

He insisted on supervising her to sleep before 10 o'clock every night, warning her not to stay up late or it might cause heart issues.

To take care of her, Bennett even got a nutritionist certification, fearing the high-fat and high-salt meals at the cafeteria would add extra stress to her heart.

It turned out that all of that wasn’t for her. It was because of the heart that was beating inside her.

"Kara, why is your face so pale? Is your heart bothering you? I see your heart rate is rising! What kind of incompetent doctors have you been seeing? I’m going to get them!"

The heart monitor emitted a series of beeps, and Bennett’s expression changed. He rushed out like a gust of wind.

Kara looked down and saw the heart monitor on her finger. She endured the aching feeling in her heart as she removed the device, tossing it away like she was discarding the past and all the love that had once filled her.

Three days later, Kara was discharged.

Bennett organized a gathering to help her shake off the bad energy, and just like after their public announcement, he couldn’t wait to introduce Kara to the people in his social circle.

Kara didn’t want to go, but she couldn’t resist Bennett’s pleading.

Anyway, she was about to leave soon. She wanted to see what Bennett could come up with next.

"Oh, are you Bennett's future wife? You're truly beautiful. No wonder Bennett is keeping such a close eye on you. We’re playing truth or dare. Care to join?"

As soon as Kara arrived, a woman with long, wavy hair pulled her inside.

Kara instinctively turned to look at Bennett, who furrowed his brows slightly.

"Kara’s heart is weak. Take it easy–"

"We know, Bennett. This is the first time we’ve seen you so concerned about someone besides my sister. Too bad my sister passed away when she was only fifteen. She was hit by an overloaded truck, and there wasn’t even a complete body left."

The woman, Vanessa Johnson, pretended to wipe away a tear, not caring that the entire room had gone quiet. She pulled Kara into a booth.

However, Kara couldn’t stop hearing Vanessa’s words echo in her ears.

She didn’t even know what the game was anymore until Vanessa nudged her shoulder. Kara clearly heard her ask, "Bennett, you lost this round! Let’s have a truth question. Is your true love here with us today?"

Kara instinctively looked at Bennett.

His face was shrouded in the amber glow of the light, making it hard to see his expression. Someone in the know nudged Vanessa and whispered, "Vanessa, don't stir up trouble. Bennett just made his relationship official. Of course, he loves his girlfriend. There's no doubt about it!"

"This question is pointless. Let's move on to the next round!" Someone urged them to continue.

Kara tuned out their banter, keeping her eyes fixed on Bennett. It felt like an eternity had passed before he let out a soft chuckle, picked up his glass, and downed his drink in one go.

"What a ridiculous question. I can't even be bothered to answer it. I'll take the dare."

Kara was speechless.

Although she had braced herself, she still felt a chill down her spine.

She made an excuse and left for the restroom.

Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she noticed how pale her face was. Her eyes were tinged with redness as if she had suffered a great grievance. She lowered her gaze, forcing herself to swallow the bitter ache rising in her heart. Just as she turned to leave, someone blocked her way.

Vanessa leaned leisurely against the restroom door, a cigarette between her fingers, and smirked.

"So, you're the woman Bennett chased for eight years? Kara, right? I heard you had heart surgery eight years ago. The heart beating inside you belongs to my sister. Did you know that?

"Do you really think you've turned into some kind of Cinderella? If not for my sister's heart, he wouldn't even look at you. You're nothing more than a vessel."

Vanessa flicked the ash from her cigarette. Her tone was laced with mockery. "Oh, and do you remember that guy back in senior year who hid behind the door to scare you? Do you know what happened to him in the end?"

Vanessa smiled.

Kara's face turned even paler.

Back in her senior year, a boy had played a prank on her by jumping out from behind a door to startle her. Bennett had stormed forward in a rage, throwing punch after punch at the guy until he fell to his knees and begged for mercy. He was nearly dying.

Later, Kara heard that the same guy had been robbed and stabbed more than a dozen times.

Kara felt ice-cold blood rush through her veins. "That robbery… Bennett arranged it?"

"A vessel should know its place. Your only job is to keep my sister's heart healthy. Stay out of everything else."

Vanessa tilted her head back and laughed.

When Kara returned to the room, the game of truth or dare was still ongoing.

This time, Bennett lost again.

The question was 'Do you love your current girlfriend?'

Standing just outside the door, Kara clearly heard Bennett scoff.

"Love Kara? She's just a vessel. How could I possibly love her? Stop asking stupid questions."

"Hahaha, of course! Bennett's photo album is still filled with pictures of Natalie. He spends every night on his secret Facebook account reminiscing about her. A guy like him? How could he ever fall for someone else? Hey, wanna bet? I'll mess with Kara a little, and I guarantee Bennett won't even object!"

"Really? I thought after chasing her for eight years, he might've developed some feelings."

Vanessa returned at the perfect moment. Just as Kara was about to turn and leave, Vanessa shoved her forward, forcing her back into the room.

The next round began. This time, Kara lost.

One of Bennett's close friends poured out 88 shots and grinned. "Well, looks like you have no choice but to take the dare! Either drink all 88 shots, or do 10 push-ups!"

"Only ten? That shouldn't be too hard, right? You should pick the push-ups, Kara. I heard you're allergic to alcohol."

Kara stared at the shots lined up on the table. Her throat clenched.

She lifted her head and looked at Bennett. "Bennett, should I drink or do push-ups?"

Kara had been allergic to alcohol from a young age. Drinking would make her break out in painful red rashes all over her body, but doing push-ups would mean putting strain on her heart.

She left the choice to Bennett.

He picked up a shot glass, brought it to her, and spoke in that same gentle tone.

"Babe, be good. You have a heart condition. Even one push-up could make you unwell. Drink these, and I'll take you straight to a doctor."

"Okay, I get it."

Kara let out a small, bitter laugh. She tilted her head back and tried to hold back her tears.

But they fell anyway, slipping down her cheeks and mixing with the harsh burn of the alcohol. It tasted salty and bitter all at once.

She kept drinking, glass after glass.

By the time she was almost done, red rashes covered her arms, itching and stinging unbearably.

And still, she kept going.

She didn't stop until Bennett cursed under his breath and snatched the glass from her. He scooped her up in his arms.

"All you do is drink. Why don't you just drink yourself to death? Somebody get the family doctor, now!

"And bring her heart medication! Kara's upset. Her heart might act up!"

Seeing how worried he seemed, Kara finally closed her eyes.

A vessel should indeed know its place.