chapter 6

6.

"Of course. You're not just my wife—you saved my life. Even if I lost everything, I couldn't…"

I pressed my palm over his mouth to stop him, memories from my past life flashing by like a reel on fast-forward.

After Liam returned from studying abroad, he used the money Dad had given me to start a business.

With the Yale family's connections, he quickly rose through Ashenmar's social and business circles, becoming one of the capital's rising stars.

He always told me, "Isla, I'm busy. You have to understand—everything I do is for our future."

I believed him. Until the day another woman came to our home and I discovered he had an entire life I didn't know about.

This time, though, his sights were already set on someone else: Chloe.

Would he remain faithful to her?

Lost in thought, my phone rang.

It was Dad.

"Isla, Chloe and Liam are at it again. He even hit her—she nearly lost an eye. Please, talk to her. Tell her to stop causing scenes and just live peacefully with Liam."

I brushed my fingers over the lily petals in the vase, keeping my voice calm. "Dad, I'll do what I can."

In my last life, I swallowed my pride while Liam carried on with a secret lover, even flaunting her in our home.

This time, he was still the same stubborn, unfaithful man.

And with Chloe's fiery temper, how could she possibly endure him?

Chaos was erupting in the Graham family villa.

"Liam, you promised you'd only ever love me!" Chloe screamed, her voice breaking as hysteria clawed at the edges.

"You're fooling around with your secretary—what do you take me for?"

"Chloe, I— I just lost control for a moment. Every successful man slips up. As Mrs. Graham, you should learn to see the bigger picture," he said, struggling to sound calm.

"The bigger picture?" Chloe seized a glass ashtray and hurled it to the floor, shattering it into glittering shards.

"Do you think I'm that pushover Isla? I'm not her! I won't stand for this!" she spat.

In a wild, reckless motion, she snatched up a shard and pressed it to her neck. "Make a choice right now—either I die, or you end things with her!"

Liam's face drained of color. He lunged forward, tearing the glass from her grasp, anger blazing in his eyes.

"Chloe, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me?" She shook free, eyes blazing with fury. "You drove me to this! Who begged Dad to let us be together? Who swore he'd love me and only me forever?"

"Chloe…" Liam closed his eyes, exhaustion etched into every line of his face.

"Lina Reed is pregnant. There's a child involved now. Even if I wanted to break it off, I can't—"

"What?" Chloe shrieked, voice cracking. "You got her pregnant? So tell me, what matters more—the homewrecker's baby or me?"

"Of course you matter more! If you didn't, why would I have helped you poison Mr. Yale, slowly making him sick until he died? I covered for you—didn't I? But now… now isn't the time to compare—"

"Why can't I compare? Liam, you're a coward. Pathetic!"

"Say that again!"

"I said it—so what? You're a coward! Pathetic!" A mocking smile curled on her lips.

"Back when you were brought into the Yale family as a boy, forced to obey Isla's every glance. All those years of silence bred nothing but hatred in you. And when I finally moved against my dad—you did nothing. Because deep down, you understood the truth better than anyone: his heart always belonged to her. Too bad she never cared for you. Now she'd rather marry a man in a coma than be with you."

With a sharp, stinging slap, Liam struck Chloe across the face.

"Chloe, that's enough!" he roared, his voice like a whip. "Someone—lock her in the basement! She can come out when she finally stops causing trouble."