Chapter 1When my best friend Harper said she was divorcing her secret husband, I had her back 100%.
The guy was never around.
Three years of marriage and I'd never even seen his face once.
Total deadbeat.
Me and my boyfriend Rhys were basically raising their kid for them.
So that day, I cut my work trip short and rushed to her place.
But outside her door, I heard Rhys's voice:
"Harper, why are you suddenly asking me for a divorce?"
Harper's voice was full of pain:
"We can't keep doing this. Skylar's been with you for seven years. Now she's pregnant. You need to give that baby a real family."
Through the crack in the door, I watched him pull Harper into his arms:
"Harper, you're always thinking about her. What about our daughter?"
"Poppy's my kid too. I can't let her lose her dad!"
"I'll get a fake marriage certificate to fool Skylar. And that thing she's carrying... I'll find a way to get rid of it."
I stood there frozen. My heart went cold.
Looked down at the gift I'd brought for Poppy.
And the concert tickets I'd bought to celebrate Harper's divorce.
For a second, everything blurred.
Then I threw it all in the trash.
...
The argument in the house kept going.
Harper's face was streaked with tears. She shoved Rhys away hard:
"No! How could you do this to Skylar?"
"Getting pregnant is already hard for her, and she already lost one baby."
"If she loses this one too... do you even get how devastating that would be?"
Rhys didn't look guilty at all. He just clenched his jaw.
"I care more about you being hurt than I care about Skylar."
"I promise, this is the last time."
"Once the baby's gone, I'll make her get sterilized."
"Harper, you're the only one I want to have a kid with!"
Harper's eyes went wide, tears just streaming down, shaking her head over and over.
"No. Skylar doesn't have any family. All she's ever wanted is a kid of her own blood."
"How can you be this cruel to her?!"
Rhys's fingers tremble. Then his voice turned cold and hard.
"I don't care anymore!"
"I know you and Skylar are close. She even took a knife for you."
"But all these years you've been pushing me toward her just to protect her feelings."
"Harper, you don't owe her anything. You paid that debt a long time ago!"
I could barely stand.
Had to lean against the wall just to stay upright.
Paid that debt?
Years ago, I saved Harper from her psycho ex.
The guy stabbed me seven times.
I spent three days in the ICU before they brought me back.
Because of that, my reproductive system got damaged.
Had to give up skating—the one thing I loved—and ended up as some low-level office worker.
And now?
The best friend I almost died for is stealing my boyfriend.
And calling it even.
I couldn't breathe.
Tears just kept falling.
But I didn't have it in me to confront them.
I just stumbled home and sat on the couch, staring at nothing until the sun came up.
Rhys didn't come home until noon the next day.
When he walked in and saw how wrecked I looked, he paused, then hurried over.
"Hey, why didn't you tell me you were coming back early? What happened?"
"If Harper sees you like this, she's gonna say I didn't take care of you."
Rhys crouched down and grabbed my hand, his eyes all concerned.
When he mentioned Harper, his tone was totally casual.
His acting was flawless.
My heart just kept sinking.
How many times had he lied to my face like this?
I pulled my hand away.
Was about to say something when I spotted this red mark on his neck.
Even though I already knew everything, I still felt like I was suffocating.
I stared at him.
"Where were you last night?"
"What's that on your neck?"
Chapter 2
Rhys froze for a second, but recovered fast.
He sat down next to me, his tone easy:
"Poppy had a fever last night. Harper couldn't handle it alone, so I went over to help."
"This?" He touched the red mark on his neck. "Must've gotten bit by a mosquito or something."
"Don't tell me you're jealous of her too?"
Rhys looked completely chill. Not even a hint of guilt.
If I hadn't heard him and Harper last night, I'd still be totally in the dark.
I let out a bitter smile:
"From now on, you two shouldn't be alone together anymore."
"She's married, you're my boyfriend. You need to keep your distance. People might get the wrong idea."
Rhys blinked, his smile going stiff.
"She's your best friend. Who's gonna get the wrong idea?"
"Besides, weren't you the one who told me she's having a hard time and I should help her out more?"
Yeah. I did say that.
But I didn't tell him to help her into bed!
Before I could say anything else, Rhys changed the subject.
"Harper told me you're pregnant?"
"I'm sorry, Skylar."
"This baby came at the worst time. We're both in the middle of our careers. We don't have the bandwidth to take care of a kid."
"So... you're gonna need to terminate it."
"And to make sure this doesn't happen again, you need to get your tubes tied."
"Don't worry, it's just temporary."
"Once our careers are where we want them, you can get it reversed."
Even though I'd already heard him say this last night.
My heart still felt like it was being ripped apart.
"Rhys, do you even have a heart? We already lost one baby!"
"And after I got hurt saving Harper, my body's already damaged."
"If I get sterilized now, I might NEVER be able to have kids again!"
Seeing my eyes go red, Rhys hesitated for a moment.
But his voice didn't waver.
"That won't happen, Skylar. We can always do IVF."
"And honestly, if you really want kids that bad, Poppy's Harper's daughter. You can treat her like your own."
I never thought Rhys could be this shameless.
He wouldn't give me a child.
But he wanted me to raise his bastard as my own.
How pathetic did he think I was?
I shot to my feet. Couldn't hold it in anymore. Tears spilled over.
"What if I say no?
"Rhys, you know how badly I've wanted to be a mom."
"And this baby isn't just mine—it's yours too. Don't you feel anything for it at all?"
Rhys frowned, irritation flashing in his eyes.
"Skylar, can you stop being so dramatic?"
"I told you it's just temporary!"
"Tell you what—you've always wanted to marry me, right?"
"Once you get your tubes tied, we'll have the wedding."
"I promise."
Chapter 3
In our seven years together, I'd brought up marriage to Rhys more times than I could count.
But he always said it wasn't the right time. Told me to wait.
And now he was finally willing to marry me—but only if I got sterilized first.
I stood there.
My heart full of sadness and bitter irony.
Suddenly didn't want to say another word.
I pushed past Rhys and headed for the door.
"Where are you going?"
Rhys grabbed my wrist, his brow furrowed tight.
"Every time we fight, you run off. Last time Harper went looking for you, she twisted her ankle and couldn't walk right for a week!"
"Can't you just grow up?"
There wasn't an ounce of concern in his eyes.
Just blame for me, and worry for Harper.
How ridiculous.
This was the man I'd loved for seven years.
I yanked my hand free, a mocking smile on my lips.
"Don't worry. I won't cause her any more trouble."
"You want me to get sterilized? Fine. I'll go right now."
"If a child isn't wanted, it's just sad for them to be born."
Rhys's expression relaxed, his eyes softening.
"I'm glad you're being reasonable."
"Poppy's fever still hasn't broken. I need to get back to Harper's and help out."
"It's just a routine procedure. I don't need to come with you."
I didn't say anything.
Just walked out without looking back.
Lying on the cold operating table, thinking about Rhys's indifference, I couldn't stop the tears.
When I walked out of the hospital, my whole body hollow.
Harper was there waiting.
I don't know when she'd showed up.
Her eyes were red as she grabbed my shoulders.
"Skylar, why would you do something so stupid? Why would you listen to Rhys? Why would you get sterilized?"
"I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. I'm so sorry..."
I looked at the guilt in her eyes and let out a cold laugh:
"Sorry for what? Or are you saying Rhys wanted me to abort the baby and get sterilized because of you?"
Harper's eyes went wide, panic flashing across her face.
"Of course not! I just think he went too far. I feel bad for you."
Yeah. She felt bad for me. And still stole my boyfriend.
Felt bad for me. And played me like a fool this whole time.
I forced a smile. Then from behind me, Rhys's voice came through, sharp with anger.
"Skylar, seriously? You just had to go running to Harper about this?"
"She's got a cold today. And you made her come all the way out here for you?"
"Do you even care about her at all?"
My surgery was a small thing, but Harper having a cold was a big deal—
Big enough for him to come out here and yell at me.
Unbelievable.
"Stop it!"
Harper, afraid I'd figure everything out, put on a show of being upset:
"Rhys! You're the one in the wrong here! If you keep upsetting Skylar, I'm done with you!"
It had always been like this.
Harper would play the loyal best friend, scolding Rhys.
I'd been so stupid.
Never noticed the intimacy hiding underneath it all.
Didn't want to watch them anymore. I turned and left, calling an Uber home.
I collapsed onto my bed, my mind spinning.
Until exhaustion finally dragged me under.
When I woke up, I heard two voices arguing in the living room, low and tense.
"I told you not to make her abort the baby."
"I told you not to make Skylar get sterilized."
"Why didn't you listen?"
"I already felt guilty enough about her losing the last baby..."
"If I hadn't freaked out when I found out you'd gotten her pregnant, you wouldn't have staged that car accident to make her lose it."
I froze.
My mind went blank.
So, it wasn't an accident.
A year ago.
When I found out I was going to be a mom, I was over the moon.
But Rhys and Harper both acted so weird.
Harper seemed lost, and Rhys's smile was strained.
That night, Rhys—who never picked me up from work—suddenly showed up out of nowhere.
I didn't think much of it.
Hell, I was actually kind of happy about it.
But on the way home, the brakes suddenly failed.
The car crashed through the guardrail.
I lost the baby right there.
After that accident, I had nightmares every night.
But it turned out it was all part of his plan.
My eyes burned red.
The rage I'd been holding back exploded. I yanked the door open.
The air in the living room froze.
Harper looked like she'd seen a ghost, her face draining of color.
"Skylar, when did you wake up?"
"I'm sorry. Let me explain. I—"
I didn't say a word. Walked straight toward her and slapped her hard across the face.
After a moment of shock, Rhys realized the truth was out.
He stopped pretending and immediately stepped in front of Harper.
"Well, since you heard everything, I might as well lay it all out."
"What happened with the baby was my fault. We'll make it up to you."
Make it up to me? How?
Could one apology erase all the years of lies?
Could it bring back my child?
Seeing how broken I looked, Harper dropped to her knees, sobbing.
"Skylar, I'm sorry... I was wrong. I know I was wrong..."
"I shouldn't have fallen for Rhys..."
Seeing Harper like that, so small and pitiful, broke Rhys's heart.
He pulled her to her feet, shielding her with his body, glaring at me.
"Enough, Skylar. It's done. Harper already apologized. What more do you want?"
"All these years, we've loved each other but couldn't be together openly."
"She's been suffering just as much as you!"
"Can't you have a little compassion for her?"
I WAS the victim.
But Rhys didn't feel ANY sympathy for me. Just resentment.
I suddenly felt so tired.
This whole thing was ugly and pathetic.
"Fine. I'll have compassion for her. I'll give you two what you want."
"Rhys, we're done."
"From now on, you and her—don't ever show your fucking faces in front of me again!"
