A year ago, when Bailey Knight's side girl, Lucy Day, showed up in front of me, causing a scene, he had his people beat her until she lost the baby and tossed her out.

Then he groveled before me for three straight hours, begging me to forgive him.

Looking at the man I'd loved for ten years, looking so pitiful and broken, I eventually caved.

Later, I caught Lucy sneaking around Bailey's villa in the suburbs, so I had her thrown out again.

Three days before our wedding, Bailey grabbed me by the neck and shoved me up against the railing on the second-floor balcony, yelling so hard that his voice broke.

"We already took Lucy's baby once! She can't handle it happening again. She's fragile. You're a woman—how can you not understand that?

"I've given you the title of Mrs. Knight. I'd give you my life. Isn't that enough? Why can't you just accept her?"

The next second, his secretary ran up to say they'd found Lucy.

He shoved me down the stairs. The pain when my arm snapped made me feel like my whole body was being torn apart.

But he didn't even look back.

Staring at the cold, heartless man in front of me, I felt something inside me go completely dead. I picked up my phone and called Arnold Greenwood.

"I don't wanna marry him anymore. Come get me."

On the other end of the line, Arnold Greenwood went completely silent for a second.

"Where are you?"

"At… Bailey's house," I said, my voice shaking from the stabbing pain shooting through my arm. Cold sweat ran down my face.

"Stay there. Don't move. I'm coming right now!"

His voice faded in my ears, and before I could say anything else, everything went black.

When I opened my eyes again, all I saw was the blinding white hospital ceiling and Arnold's angry face.

There were dark shadows under his eyes. He looked like he hadn't slept all night.

"Hey. How do you feel?"

I shifted, and a wave of pain shot up my right arm, making me suck in a breath.

"The doctor says your right arm is shattered. Even if it heals well, you'll never hold a paintbrush again."

Arnold's eyes were red as he muttered under his breath, "You're one of the smartest people I know. How could you let Bailey waste ten years of your life?"

I forced a weak smile that hurt more than crying. I didn't even have the strength to argue.

"That moron… I swear I'll end him right now!" Arnold stood up, ready to storm off.

I quickly grabbed his arm. "Don't. Please, I'm begging you."

I didn't want anything to do with Bailey anymore, and I sure didn't want Arnold dragged into it.

Arnold looked at my pale face, then slammed his fist against the wall. "Fine. You just focus on getting better."

He left so fast that he forgot his phone.

I got up to take it to him. Limping past the VIP ward area, I froze when I saw someone I never expected—Bailey.

He was clutching a test report, walking quickly.

We ran right into each other. His eyes landed on my arm in a cast, and for a moment, he looked stunned.

"Cynthia? What are you doing here? What happened to your arm?"

I turned slightly, avoiding his gaze. "It's nothing."

He frowned and reached out like he was going to check my arm.

I stepped back, out of his reach.

"Are you still mad at me?" he asked, hesitating. "Come on. Let me see. How did you hurt yourself?"

I couldn't believe he had the nerve to ask. Without answering, I tried to walk around him.

But he moved to block me and grabbed my other hand. "Okay, I admit I overreacted. I shouldn't have said those things to you.

"But you have to understand me, don't you? I didn't know she was pregnant last year. And to calm you down, I went too far with her…

"We were both wrong. Now it's time to make it right. Lucy's got anemia from her current pregnancy, and I remember you two have the same blood type. You should donate to her."

My mind went completely blank. I stared at him, not believing what I'd just heard. "Can't you see the state I'm in? And you want me to give her my blood?"

"It's just an arm injury," he said, trying to pull me along. "Donating blood won't kill you."

Before I could react, Bailey yanked my arm so hard that it felt like it might pop out of the socket.

He said, "Since you have the same blood type as Lucy, you should donate your blood to help with her anemia. Saves me the trouble of ordering blood. You had a part in her losing the baby the last time, so you have to donate."

I had a part? He had ordered Lucy to be beaten half to death to please me. Somehow, that was my fault, too?

While he was pulling me, my already weak body lost balance. I hit the cold, hard tile floor with a loud thud, my casted arm slamming right into it.

"Ah!"

The pain was so sharp it ripped the breath right out of me, and my tears spilled before I could stop them. I curled up on the floor, unable to move for what felt like forever.

"What game are you playing now?"

Bailey's eyes flickered when he saw me crying—half-worried, half-annoyed.

He gave a cold laugh. "Faking it to get my attention, huh? You think I'd fall for that again?"

His assistant finally spoke up, voice low. "Mr. Knight, I think Ms. Palmer's injury is real. Before you left, you accidentally pushed her down the stairs."

Bailey froze, something like guilt flashing across his face. But just as quickly, his tone shifted back to blame.

"I admit I was wrong to cheat. But Lucy has been through a lot, and she's pregnant. If you hadn't kept going after her, would this have happened?"

"Bailey," I said, forcing myself to meet his eyes through the pain. I gave him a bitter smile. "The wedding's off."

The air went dead still as Bailey's face twisted in disbelief.

That was when a soft voice floated from the doorway.

Lucy stepped out slowly, one hand on her stomach. She looked at me on the floor and gasped with a hand over her mouth, as if she'd just walked in on some terrible scene.

"Cynthia, what…"

She glanced at Bailey, then at me, before lowering her head and speaking in a small, trembling voice, "Are you two fighting because of me? I'm sorry. I'm so sorry… I just… I lost my baby back then, and I was so heartbroken that I didn't want to live anymore, so Bailey…"

Her performance was Oscar-worthy, and my stomach churned just watching it.

The second she mentioned the baby, Bailey's expression softened. He stepped forward, shielding her protectively with one arm, patting her back.

Then he turned to me, his voice rising in anger. "Why are you so stubborn? If it weren't for trying to calm you down, I wouldn't have hurt her!

"Lucy lost her baby once, and she lost her will to live. I fought so hard to pull her back from that edge, and now you've pushed her there again. If she died right now, it would be on you. You'd be a murderer!

"This is life and death. Your blood type matches hers. This is our chance to make things right. Once she's stable, I'll marry you."

Before I could respond, he hauled me off the floor and shoved me toward the doctor to draw blood.

The cold needle pierced my skin. Even that tiny movement hurt so much that I couldn't even flinch. I just sat there, numb, watching my blood slide through the tube into the bag.

Lucy rested her hand on her slightly rounded belly, eyes glittering with the pride of someone who'd just won.

When it was over, I was so weak that I couldn't even stand.

Lucy came over holding a cup of steaming water, all smiles as she helped steady me. "Thank you for saving my baby. Here, drink something warm."

She tilted the cup toward me. Then, with a bend of her wrist, the boiling water poured straight onto my chest.

My neck burned red in an instant.

Lucy stumbled backward and fell, the glass cup in her hand hitting the floor with a loud crash.

"Wh-why did you push me, Cynthia? Bailey, the baby… my baby!" she cried, tears streaming down her face.

"What have you done?!" Bailey's eyes blazed like they could burn me alive. He helped Lucy up and, in the next second, stormed toward me.

His hand came down hard across my face.

Smack!

The sound echoed down the hallway.

My cheek flared with heat, swelling right away. I could taste blood at the corner of my mouth, my ears ringing.

"You're so cruel! Lucy's pregnant! She came all this way to bring you water, and you pushed her? How could you be so evil?"

He didn't give me one second to explain. My guilt was already decided.

It felt like a knife had been driven straight through my heart. I lifted my head. "Can't you see she fell on her own?"

Maybe my hopeless expression made him hesitate, because I saw him gulp, and for a moment, a trace of doubt flashed in his eyes.

But then Lucy tugged lightly at his sleeve. "Forget it. Maybe she didn't mean it."

Just like that, his face hardened again. He frowned at me, disappointment dripping from every word.

"Once Lucy has the baby and has something to live for, I'll send her away. Just apologize to her. After she gives birth, she'll still let you raise the baby. We can go back to being happy like before."

I couldn't believe this was the man I'd loved for ten years.

My chest ached like it was being cut into pieces.

I didn't even have the strength to answer. I curled on the floor, breathing hard, every part of me hurting.

Bailey's irritation snapped, and he kicked the table beside us.

"What are you even pretending for? I can't believe the woman I've loved for ten years could be so cruel! If I'd known, I'd rather never have met you!

"Cut the act and take some time to calm down. I don't want the baby's adoptive mother to be some crazy woman.

"The wedding's still on. I'll send someone to pick you up. I'm staying with Lucy until she gives birth."

He scooped Lucy up and started walking away.

Tears blurred my vision.

He used to frown if I so much as cut my finger. Now, my arm was broken, and he didn't even care.

I didn't love this man anymore.

"Sure, the wedding will go on three days from now, but you won't be the one I marry!"

Bailey froze for a second, shocked. He had never seen me so sure of myself.

Lucy, though, smiled like she'd already won. "Even if you're jealous, you shouldn't joke like that. Three days isn't much time. Where are you gonna find a new groom? Unless you plan to pull some random guy off the street and marry him?"

Bailey gave a short, cold laugh, looking at me with even less warmth. "Spare me the drama. After the wedding, as long as you behave, the three of us will live just fine.

"During Lucy's pregnancy, you should help take care of her. She's weak, and she's carrying my baby. You should know your place. Lucy accepts having you around; can't you learn from her?"

I was shaking with anger, almost laughing at how ridiculous it was.

But before I could speak, a cold, sharp voice rang from the end of the hallway.

"Who do you think you are? You wanna have my fiancée cook and clean for free for you two, like some nanny?"