Chapter 2

Of course.

To Shane, no one could ever be more important than Rose.

Not me. Not even our child.

Even when I lost the baby, even after the procedure, when I was still bleeding and weak, Shane chose to stand by her. To protect her.

Me and our baby together couldn’t compete with one Rose.

So why did he marry me?

Why drag me into this mess, pull me into the mud, only to leave me there alone?

The overwhelming sense of injustice hit me like a wave. My throat tightened, my vision blurred with tears.

When Shane saw me crying, he hesitated for a moment, his hand twitching as if he wanted to reach for me. But Rose stopped him, slipping her arm through his.

She smiled faintly, her voice soft but cutting.

“Claire, you can’t just cry and expect your mistakes to disappear like magic.”

“You’re not a child anymore. You need to grow up.”

She turned to Shane, her expression filled with mock indignation. “It’s fine if she takes out her anger on me, but how could she let people spread such awful things about you? Shane has been nothing but devoted to you. He’s never even looked at another woman since you got married, and he tells everyone how much he loves you. What more do you want?”

Her tone turned pitying, almost condescending. “Shane’s been like a brother to me ever since my parents died in that car accident. He’s just looking out for me, that’s all. If we really had something going on, do you think you’d even be in the picture?”

Word by word, she painted me as some petty, jealous wife who couldn’t tell the difference between friendship and an affair.

I looked at her, my chest tightening as my mind flashed back to the baby I’d lost before it even had the chance to live.

The anger hit me like a spark in dry wood, burning away all reason.

I raised my hand and slapped her with everything I had.

The sound echoed through the room as Rose’s head snapped to the side, the mark of my hand blooming red across her cheek.

Before I could take another breath, Shane shoved me hard, nearly knocking me off balance.

“Have you lost your mind?” he yelled, his eyes filled with fury.

I met his gaze, my voice cold and trembling with emotion. “Shane, you will never understand what we lost today.”

He froze, blinking in confusion, as if he wanted to ask what I meant—but Rose cut him off.

She clutched her face, glaring at me with tears in her eyes. “Claire, I’ve held back again and again because you’re Shane’s wife. But that doesn’t mean I’ll just let you humiliate me. First, you hit me. Then you spread disgusting rumors about me. What’s next? Are you going to try to kill us?”

She sniffled, her voice dripping with venom.

“No wonder you can’t have a baby. A woman as cruel and spiteful as you? Karma’s just paying you back.”

Her words hit me like a knife to the chest.

I thought of the ultrasound, the tiny flickering heartbeat on the screen. The doctor had said the baby was healthy.

I thought of the evening I had planned, how I’d been so excited to tell Shane he was going to be a father.

We were supposed to have dinner together that night. I’d chosen a quiet little restaurant, imagining his reaction when I told him the news.

But then Rose called.

She was crying, her voice trembling as she told Shane her cat was sick. She begged him to come.

“It’s raining,” she’d said. “And I’ve already lost my parents. I can’t lose my cat too.”

Shane didn’t hesitate. He grabbed his keys and told me, “Claire, you’re not like Rose. She lost her parents when she was just a kid. Her cat is like family to her. Dinner can wait, but Rose needs me right now.”

And then he left.

I stood there in the rain, stunned, heartbroken—and completely alone.

Moments later, as I tried to cross the street, a delivery bike came out of nowhere. I didn’t even see it until it was too late.

I was knocked to the ground, clutching my stomach in pain.

The driver called for an ambulance. Shane didn’t. He was already gone.

I was taken to the hospital, where they told me I’d lost the baby.

And while I lay in the cold, sterile hospital bed, bleeding and broken, Rose posted a picture of Shane holding her cat, smiling at her like she was the only thing that mattered in his world.

The memories hit me all at once, like a dam breaking.

I snapped.

Rose ducked behind Shane, clutching his arm like a scared little girl. “Shane, help me!”