Chapter 1

Eden Castle and Cedric Rivers had been together for eleven years.

Just when she thought they would grow old together, Cedric went and cheated on her. He had been cheating on her for three years with a girl who looked just like her, only the girl was much younger than Eden.

Eden assumed this was as bad as it could get, then it got worse.

Her son Mateo gave her a letter announcing that he was severing ties with her. He blamed Eden for ruining what was supposed to be a happy family.

Eden was crushed as she signed the divorce agreement. However, she decided she never wanted anything to do with the pair of father and son again.

Chapter 1

“Priscilla, please draft a divorce agreement for me.”

As soon as Eden said so, Priscilla, who was on the other end of the phone, felt her jaw drop.

“Eden, Cedric loves you! Both of you worked so hard to get to where you are today. Why the sudden divorce? Has there been some kind of misunderstanding?

“Besides, you two have been together for eleven years! Your son Mateo is seven years old! Are you sure you’re going to walk away from all of that?”

Eden stared outside her car window at the three figures strolling in parallel. A wry and cynical smile greeted her lips.

“Cedric has been cheating on me. With a model.

“For three years.”

The girl he was cheating on her with looked just like her. She was a model, the very occupation Cedric forbade Eden from in the past.

For the last three years, Cedric had been the girl’s benefactor. She lived just across the street from their house.

It was only yesterday when Eden caught on.

Priscilla was struck speechless on the phone. Meanwhile, Eden turned to look outside the window again.

The young model Amelie Hepburn was holding Mateo’s hand while strolling down the street. Both of them wore a beaming smile while Cedric followed behind the whole time.

He was nothing but agreeable and attentive. He would pay for everything before handing the shopping bags to his bodyguard.

Everything he did for Amelie was with a degree of tenderness that Eden never realized he had in him. She could feel something twitching inside her when she looked at his behavior.

Soon, hot tears streamed down her cheeks. She wiped them away candidly and waited until she had calmed herself down enough to stop sobbing before she made another phone call.

“Forget about hiring a new director for the orphanage, I prefer to do it myself.

“I’ll be there next month.”

With that, she rolled up the car window, hung up, and sped home.

When she got home, she found herself shivering uncontrollably. Even after she turned on the heater and snuggled under the covers, she could not stop shivering from the relentless cold.

Just as she felt herself slipping off to sleep, Cedric came home.

After entering the room, he cradled Eden into his arms from underneath the covers and frowned when he touched her forehead, “Why are you sleeping so early? You look pale. Are you feeling unwell?”

He proceeded to angle Eden’s face toward her and pressed their forehead together to check her temperature.

It was a familiar gesture for him. They had dated for four years and had been married for seven. He could sense the subtlest change in Eden’s mood and would look after her attentively every time.

This time was different. The moment Eden felt Cedric's temperature and caught a hint of his scent, she recoiled away from him instinctively.

By the time she realized what she had done, she saw Cedric staring at her with a confused look on his face.

“It's nothing.” She stammered and felt her voice coming out raspy, “I’m just a little tired.”

Cedric let the matter drop without giving it much thought, “Eat something before you sleep. I got you your favorite food.”

Then, she followed Cedric to the table to find that he had already opened the lid of each takeout container.

While reaching over for the spoon, the oversized clothes she wore accidentally clapped against Cedric's trench coat, which was hanging on the back of his chair.

The trench coat slipped off the chair and dropped to the ground with a thud. Then, a plastic bag fell from one of its pockets.

For a moment, it felt as if time came to a standstill.

It was as if something had cracked. Cedric’s relaxed mood took on a sudden, ominous transformation as he erupted with anger.

“Eden! What are you doing to my things?

“What happened to basic respect?! Even if we're married, you should have an idea of basic manners, shouldn’t you?”

Eden’s face turned so white it felt as if it could blend into the wall behind her. Before she could react, Cedric angrily snatched the condom from the floor.

Since he was so agitated, he accidentally knocked over the bowl of piping hot soup, which spilled all over Eden’s hand.

The air in the room was so cold it stung the throat. The only sounds that could be heard were Cedric's rapid breathing and Eden's barely audible gasps.

After what seemed like an eternity, Cedric seemed to realize he may have reacted dramatically and began to stammer an awkward explanation.

“It was a friend who slipped it into my pocket as a joke. I was worried you’d get the wrong idea, so I got a little agitated and raised my voice.

“Did you burn your hand? Let me see.”

The spilled soup had already cooled down by this point, leaving only a thin film of oil on her slightly reddened hand.

After a brief inspection, Cedric went straight for the cabinet to get the first-aid kit before carefully bandaging the burned spot. He did it with the same amount of attention he always did in the past whenever she accidentally got injured.

The only difference this time was that, before he had even finished treating the wound, his phone rang. The ringtone was a specially customized ringtone.

Then, the messages began pouring in as if there had been an emergency.

Eden could sense Cedric growing stiff. She did her best to conceal the bitter look in her eyes.

“Do you want to check the messages? Maybe it's something important.”

As soon as she gave the hint, Cedric reached for the phone with immediate relief.

His eyes lingered on the screen for a long time while his gaze slowly darkened. Suddenly, he exhaled before looking at Eden apologetically.

“Eden, there seems to be a problem with the birthday present I ordered for you. I’m going to have to speak to them tonight to hash things out. I’m sure you know how much I want you to have a truly special and precious present.

“The soup has cooled down, and the burn isn’t too bad. Take care of yourself, alright? I'll be back before you know it.”

With that, he shoved the cotton swab into Eden's hand before hurrying out of the house.

Before leaving, he took the trench coat.

Eden felt a faint burning sensation in her hand while she watched him depart. However, the pain in her hand was nothing compared to the pain she felt in her heart, like ten thousand needles stabbing at her.

After being with Cedric for eleven years, she knew him like the back of her hand.

Perhaps even he never realized his habit of speaking faster whenever he was lying.

Furthermore, he used the exact same excuse just yesterday. Perhaps love did have a way of making people lose their heads.

After she finished treating the burn, she had all but lost her appetite. She decided to check if Mateo was asleep.

When she approached the door, she heard an excited voice coming from inside, “Amelie, is Daddy there yet?

“Don’t you worry, I will be the protector of your love! I will make sure you and daddy can be happily in love together and chase away my useless mommy!”

Amelie cackled at Mateo’s innocent remark. Her grating laughter pierced into Eden’s ears and made her heart throb again.

Chapter 2

Eden was overwhelmed by exhaustion and slumped to the ground. Then, she closed her eyes and buried her head between her knees.

She spent the entire night sitting rigidly at the edge of her bed, repeatedly puzzling over where it had all gone wrong.

Cedric was the one who initiated the courting.

He had a crush on Eden and treated her well.

Back in school, he would ask the teacher to assign him a seat next to Eden. He was attached to her like a shadow during lunch and dinner, bringing her food while helping her blend into his group of friends.

At one point, Cedric even ditched his favorite subject so he could be in the same class as her. He took the same courses as Eden’s, so he had more reasons to be with her.

Eden never responded to his advances until their senior year of high school, when there was an earthquake.

During the evacuation, she sprained her ankle and could not run out of the building. Cedric, who had made it to the outdoor playground, noticed she was missing and frantically ran back to the school building despite the teachers’ caution. Then, he rescued her and heroically carried her downstairs.

While he was bringing her down the stairs, an aftershock caused a worn-down mural to collapse. His first thought was to pull Eden into his arms to shield her.

The mural struck him on the head and made him bleed profusely.

At the hospital, he continued to comfort and reassure Eden despite the jaw-clenching pain. That was when he asked Eden to date him if she was moved by his gesture.

Eden said yes.

Cedric seemed completely stunned by the response. When his mind finally registered what she said, he yanked out the IV tube and ignored the shooting pain so he could pull her into his arms. He was both laughing and crying at the same time while promising to treasure her forever.

Later on, they got into the same university. Their love story continued to blossom like a fairy tale, attracting a large following.

Cedric was aware that Eden was insecure about her relatively lowly background as an orphan. During her junior year, he prepared a grand proposal to publicly display his commitment toward her.

They had dated for four years until their graduation when Cedric opposed the objections of his family and pressure from the others to give Eden the wedding of the century.

Just like that, Eden went from a lowly orphan to the esteemed Mrs. Rivers overnight. It was a title that many would kill for.

They were married for seven years and had a seven-year-old boy together. Life was wonderful, like a fairy tale.

Then, something happened six months ago. Cedric’s behavior suddenly changed.

He began to fall into a habit of using work as an excuse to stay out all night. Then, there were the constant business trips coupled with an increasingly perfunctory attitude toward Eden.

Even when Eden tried to initiate intimacy, he would not respond.

Over time, Mateo began to resent his mother and blamed her for Cedric’s absence. He complained that the reason her mother could not keep her father loyal was the reason their happy family had dissolved.

Eden tried to assure herself that it was only a phase, that Cedric was too busy with work, and things would settle down eventually.

Six months later, she received a seventy-minute-long video.

As it turned out, Cedric's infidelity had begun much earlier than she had expected. The video was a montage recorded over three years, containing over seven hundred different scenes, each of them with Cedric and Amelie naked.

Their bodies were intertwined. All of it happened on the countless days and nights she spent in self-doubt.

Then, a sudden knock at the door pulled her out of her spiraling state. She wiped away the tears blurring her vision and swallowed the lump in her throat before numbly dragging herself to the door.

Priscilla greeted her at the door.

Priscilla did not offer any words of comfort, nor did she ask further questions. Instead, she curtly handed over a drafted set of divorce documents.

Eden barely even inspected its contents. All she did was flip through them briefly as a gesture of formality before turning to the signature section to sign her name.

She signed her name swiftly and decisively.

Chapter 3

After he left, Cedric spent the next few days at the office.

Every night, he would text Eden punctually at ten o’clock. The messages were kept very brief each time.

“I’m busy. Take care of yourself and Mateo.”

Eden did not try to ask what he was doing as she would in the past, since she was very much aware of what he was up to. She focused on work instead of troubling herself over it.

Mateo's birthday was coming up. In the past, the family of three would gather and celebrate with a cake baked by Eden. It was a simple but fulfilling way of celebrating their child growing another year older.

This time, Eden and Mateo waited until ten o'clock at night, but Cedric was still nowhere to be seen.

Mateo turned to Eden and sounded very grumpy.

“Is Daddy not coming back yet? Call him and ask, the cake is melting.”

With that, Eden reached for her phone and called Cedric for the fifth time.

After ringing for what seemed like forever, he finally picked up.

Cedric read her mind before she could even ask, and said, “Eden, I’m not coming home tonight. You… ah!

“You celebrate Mateo’s birthday with him, alright? I’ll make it up to him when I get back. That’s all for now, don’t wait for me.”

His voice sounded somewhat muffled, and his tone was odd. He seemed to be speaking hastily and hung up immediately before Eden could even get a word in.

As soon as the call ended, Mateo went up to her.

“Is Daddy coming home?”

His face instantly darkened when Eden informed him that his father was not coming home. He angrily threw the present Eden had given him on the floor and screamed at the top of his lungs.

“Useless! You’re useless! You’re the reason Daddy won’t come home!

“Just because you didn’t have a Daddy and Mommy growing up doesn’t mean you have to take away my Daddy from me! You’re disgusting!”

His high-pitched voice shot into Eden’s eardrums like a banshee’s shriek. It made her head throb violently, and her ears would not stop ringing.

She looked at Mateo with a completely astonished expression, too lost for words.

Mateo seemed completely oblivious to the impact his words had. He continued hurling insults at her.

“Why do I have such a useless mother? Why are you my mother?!

“My friends have mothers who are lawyers or doctors, but you don’t even know how to do anything! All you do is spend time with a bunch of poor and grimy kids. Other people have grandparents, but you don't even have a home! Have you ever thought about what other people think of me?”

His face became contorted with rage. It was a jarring contrast with his otherwise childlike face. Then, he angrily smashed the present before stomping back to his room.

The door slammed shut.

A minute later, he stormed out and tossed a piece of paper at her.

“I’m cutting ties with you! You’re not my mother, you piece of trash!”

Then, he knocked over the cake baked by Eden before fleeing back to his room.

Eden stood still with a blank look on her face. Soon, her blank gaze turned to sorrow when she read the words written on the paper Mateo had thrown at her.

It was titled “Severance Agreement”.

“I, Mateo Castle, voluntarily cut off my ties with my mother.”

Right underneath the distorted, illegible handwriting was a fingerprint stamped with still-wet blood.

Eden stared at the paper in disbelief for what felt like forever. She felt completely pinpricked and numb; voices were droning around her.

She could faintly hear the conversation coming from the room.

“Amelie, when are you going to marry Daddy? I want to be your page boy.

“My mommy is useless. She can’t even get Daddy to come home. If you were my mommy, Daddy wouldn’t do this. It would be a dream come true if you were my mommy! I dream of you being my mommy all the time.”

Eden felt her blood turning turgid in her veins, followed by a cold shiver. Maybe it was true, maybe her existence alone disgusted Mateo.

She was ashamed of her background just as much as of her job. She couldn’t even keep her husband around for her son. That must be why Mateo would not stop fawning over Amelie and curse at his own mother.

With these thoughts in mind, she smiled cynically at herself.

Then, she numbly dragged her feet back to her room, where she grabbed a pen and signed her name on the severance agreement. She folded it neatly before tucking it into a gift bag.

Then, she put the gift bag into the pile of presents Mateo had received.

She was sure Mateo would be very pleased with it once he opened it.

Chapter 4

It was the next morning when Cedric returned home.

He reeked of alcohol. Amelie was the one who took him home.

When she brought him to Eden, she made a point of tugging at his collar to reveal the suggestive marks on his clothes.

Then, she whispered to Eden, “We partied a little too hard and drank more than we should. Sorry for making you take care of him, thank you!”

Then, she let out a faint sigh and shrugged before strutting off in her high heels.

Her footsteps were haughty and bore a candid bounce. It was clear that she was gloating.

Eden sheathed the calculating look in her eyes and closed the door before dragging Cedric to the bed.

Though he was drunk, he was not completely out of it yet. However, when Eden flung him into the bed without a care in the world, he could feel his head spinning along with a violent ringing in his ears.

He frowned from the discomfort and began breathing heavily to relieve the drowsiness.

Before he could even catch his breath, Eden returned to the room.

He instinctively reached out, expecting to be handed a glass of honey lemon juice, only to find it was a pen instead.

“Don’t sleep yet, Cedric.”

Eden remarked while flipping to the signature section, “I want a divorce. Sign the agreement.”

Cedric frowned impatiently and seemed annoyed by the interruption. He clicked his tongue irritably and signed his name while barely keeping his eyes open.

“Another donation to an orphanage?

“If you want something, just get the card from me. What’s this about an agreement? Do you think I don’t have the money?”

It was clear he did not catch what she said.

Eden did not bother explaining. Instead, she stood silently and watched as he signed the document.

After it was done, Cedric folded the document and handed it back to her before collapsing onto the bed again. He rubbed his temples to ease the headache.

In the past, Eden would have proactively offered to massage his temples to help him with the headache without him having to ask. Now, though, she only inspected the document before walking off with it.

Moments before she left, Cedric strained his eyes open again. He felt a pang of unease growing inside him, but he was too exhausted to process what was happening. With that, he quickly fell asleep.

When he woke up, it was already evening.

As soon as Cedric stepped out of the room, Mateo ecstatically ran up to him and wrapped himself around his leg.

“Dad, you haven’t granted my birthday wish yet!”

Mateo had been waiting outside the room since the moment Cedric came home. Not wanting to disturb his father’s rest, he respectfully waited until Cedric woke up.

When Cedric gave him an approving look, his smile widened. Then, he shot a look at Eden, who was just stepping out of the kitchen.

“I want to change my surname.

“I want to take Daddy’s surname! Or maybe I can take Amelie’s…”

“Enough of this nonsense!

“Do you think real life is some kind of cartoon? You can’t just change your surname on a whim! You’re seven years old, use your head!”

Cedric cast a look at Eden while reprimanding Mateo. It was only when he noticed her blank expression that he dropped the aggression in his voice.

Cedric had such a scare that sweat poured from his forehead. Suddenly, he felt the headache and drowsiness disappear.

“Ask for something else…”

“Okay, I want to go out and eat with Daddy, but without Mommy! Is that okay?”

A hint of hesitation flashed in Cedric's eyes. He quizzingly looked at Eden and was greeted by an otherwise indifferent and nonchalant look in her eyes.

She gestured, “It’s fine, Cedric. Give him what he wants.

“He's seven, old enough to know what he wants.”

A trace of doubt flickered in Cedric's eyes.

He had a feeling Eden had changed.

When did she become so lenient?

Chapter 5

When Cedric and Mateo went out for dinner that night, Eden headed out as well.

She met Priscilla at a restaurant right under her apartment, where she handed over the divorce papers. She asked Priscilla to process them as quickly as possible.

Priscilla flipped through the divorce papers and sighed after verifying the signatures of both parties.

She did not have much to say after that. After hastily finishing her food, she prepared to head off to work.

After finally taking care of what had been weighing on her mind this entire time, Eden breathed a sigh of relief. She did not see a point in lingering around and proceeded to grab her bag to leave as well.

Just as they were about to leave together, Priscilla mentioned she needed to use the restroom. She slung her bag over Eden's shoulder and asked her to wait outside.

After Eden stepped out of the private box, she rounded the corner where a waiter brushed past her. The waiter opened the door to an adjacent private box, where the sound of conversation spilled from inside.

“Daddy, let's go out and have dinner together again! I want to eat with Daddy and Amelie!”

Amelie squealed, “Oh, I love spending time with you, too, Mateo! Come sleep over at my place again next time, I’ll make you and Daddy some cake!”

"Oh, aren’t you all a family?”

The waiter remarked, “You all look so alike, I thought you were a family!”

The waiter's comments amused Mateo and Amelie, and they giggled.

Cedric had just finished replying to a text message. He frowned and got ready to interrupt them when he glanced up and made eye contact with Eden through the door crack.

“Eden?” His first thought was to chase after her to explain what was happening. Just as he was about to say something, a look of horror came upon him and made him shut the door before covering Amelie’s face.

Guilt flashed in his eyes. Before he could even get a word out, the shrill voice of a child interrupted him.

“You’re following us!?

“Didn't you promise to let us have dinner by ourselves? Why are you following us like a creep! Don't you have anything to do with your time?!”

Mateo was glowering with hate. Then, he squeezed through the door gap and shoved Eden with all his might.

Eden was caught off guard by the sudden attack and stumbled several steps backward. Thankfully, she braced against a wall just in time to prevent a fall.

“Mateo! How could you talk to your mother like that?

“Who said you could push your mother? Where are your manners?”

Cedric frowned sharply and stepped forward to help Eden while telling Mateo off.

Mateo had always regarded Cedric with respect, but underneath that respect was fear. This was the first time Cedric had scolded him, and he turned deathly pale while his anger deflated in an instant. He zipped his lips and stayed silent after that.

“Oh, he’s just a kid.”

Amelie remarked with a dainty voice while emerging from the private box to hug Mateo. She chuckled as she defended him, “Mateo is a boy. There’s no need to hold something like that against him. He’s too young to know what’s right and what’s wrong.”

Amelie and Eden did look alike.

Now that they were standing next to each other, the resemblance was accentuated.

What was more notable was that she was wearing Cedric’s coat.

Cedric did not expect Amelie to boldly reveal herself. He felt his heart drop and turned to Eden to try to stammer an explanation.

“Eden, this is Amelie. She’s a new model signed to our company. We were just having dinner to talk about a project.

“I lent her my coat because she said she was cold.”

Eden suppressed her emotions and shoved away Cedric’s hand that was placed on her waist.

She replied in a benevolent tone as if she believed Cedric wholeheartedly, “It's alright, I know.

“I’ll let you all finish your dinner. I have something to do, so I'll get going.”

Right at that moment, Priscilla returned and called out, “Eden, the agreement you signed…”

Before she could finish her sentence, she locked eyes with Cedric.

She immediately fell silent and turned visibly stiff.

“What agreement?” Cedric caught the tail end of what she was saying.

Eden casually rolled up the document while stating nonchalantly, “Nothing. Just some paperwork to finance another orphanage.

“Anyway, enjoy your food, everyone. We’ll make a move.”

She remained indifferent throughout the entire interaction.

Even after being insulted and attacked by Mateo.

Even after confronting Amelie, who looked just like her and was wearing Cedric’s coat, she did not seem upset in the slightest.

Not even a hint of emotion.

Cedric breathed a sigh of relief, but could not shake off the restless feeling even after some time passed.

Eden was too stoic about it.

He had a nagging feeling that something was slipping from his grasp. Something he could not place.

It was an uncomfortable feeling.

Chapter 6

Cedric lost his appetite after Eden left.

He ignored Amelie's attempts to flatter him and even tossed the coat into the trash can when she handed it back to him. Then, he got up and shot her a disdainful look as if she were scum.

“What did I tell you? Have you completely forgotten?

“Amelie, don't try to play any games with me, and don’t get any funny ideas. You are nothing.”

With that, he ignored her pleas and apologies while dragging the now pale-faced Mateo out of the restaurant.

Without a word, he started the engine and drove straight home.

Eden was already home by the time they arrived.

The image of Eden leaving them in the restaurant continued to haunt Cedric for what seemed like ages. He could not help but ruminate over it, which only agitated him further.

Now that he had seen her safely at home in one piece, his agitated mood was finally settling down.

He tried to make amends for the guilt pulsing inside him. After digging in his pockets, he found a small gift box to his surprise.

Without the slightest bit of hesitation, he opened it and handed its contents to Eden. It was a necklace.

“Eden, I bought you a New Year's gift.”

He slowly approached her and affectionately leaned in until he was inches away from her ears. He smiled charmingly while he presented the necklace to her.

The piece of jewelry dangled in the air in suspense, as if it, too, was waiting for Eden to be impressed.

After waiting a long time without receiving the expected reaction, Cedric pulled away in confusion, “Don't you like it?”

“You just gave me this necklace last month. It was for our anniversary.

Cedric's heart skipped a beat, and something tremored in his eyes. It was only then that he bothered to look at Eden’s collarbone and noticed she was already wearing a necklace that looked just like the one he had in hand.

They were completely identical.

At last, he remembered. It was Amelie who told him the necklace looked good on Eden and that she wanted one for herself, too. He did not think much of the request and got one for her.

His assistant had just passed him the necklace that afternoon, but he had completely forgotten about that because of the commotion in the restaurant. His mind was haunted by Eden.

Cedric panicked for an instant but managed to quickly regain his composure since he had been doing this for three years. Without a word, he snatched the necklace back and tossed it into the trash.

“The clerk at the jewelry place must have made a mistake. Never mind that, you deserve something better anyway. I’ll get you something better at an auction next time.

“Let's go shopping in the next few days. It's almost New Year's, I’ll get you whatever you want.”

Eden forced a smile and agreed perfunctorily.

Meanwhile, Cedric was too distracted to notice the eerie stillness in the corner of her eyes.

Four days later, he took Eden to a nearby shopping mall.

The entire time, he enthusiastically presented everything he could get his hands on to her, which included jewelry, clothes, shoes, and bags. However, Eden was hardly interested that she would only regard them stoically.

Regardless, Cedric bought everything she walked past or so much as just briefly glanced at.

The onlookers were filled with envy. They gasped and showered Cedric with praises.

“He's loaded! I wish I had a man this rich and handsome!”

“They say a man only splurges on what he loves. Mr. Rivers must love his wife!”

Eden could not help but note these remarks with intensified sarcasm.

When they entered the next store, Cedric planted himself on the couch and cast a glance to the side, only to notice a familiar figure that made him freeze.

It was Amelie.

Her eyes were seething with red, and she was fixing an intent look at him. Those were eyes that refused to yield. She was not afraid of being caught.

He gritted his teeth and cursed under his breath. Then, he said something to Eden to excuse himself to the restroom downstairs.

He left in such a hurry that he barely noticed Eden tailing him shortly after he left.

It did not take long for Amelie to catch up to him, either.

The moment they met, Amelie ignored the dirty floor and got on her knees to wrap her arms around his legs to plead.

“I’m sorry, Cedric, I know I made a mistake.

“Please, I beg you, give me another chance! I was so stupid! From now on, I promise to keep my distance and never show myself in front of Eden again. I’ll be here whenever you need me, alright?

“I promise I’ll keep quiet, please don’t leave me.”

Though it had only been a few days, she had lost a significant amount of weight, and there were dark circles underneath her eyes. Her voice trembled as she cried, and she was visibly shaking out of fear.

Cedric looked at her pitiful expression for a long time before he let out a deep, exasperated sigh.

Her defeated voice, coupled with her appearance, reminded him of Eden more than he’d like to admit. He had a soft spot for her.

“Seeing as you’ve been with me for three years, I’ll look past this incident.

“This won’t happen again.”

As soon as he said so, Amelie threw herself into his arms. She kissed his cheeks while still sobbing.

“I know, I'll be good from now on. I promise!”

Cedric had always been fond of how forthcoming and obedient Amelie was. He smiled, hugged her waist, and waited for her to calm down before opening the door to leave.

Just as he stepped out of the bathroom, a shadow loomed over him. The moment he looked up, his pupils dilated in an instant, and the color drained from his face.

“Eden, what are you doing here? How long have you been here?”

He intentionally raised his voice in hopes that Amelie would hear him and stay inside the restroom. He hardly realized how shaky his voice was out of sheer nerves.

Thankfully, Amelie got the hint and stayed hidden.

It felt as if the air was sucked out of the place.

Eden stared at him for what seemed like forever. With hands clenched so hard that they were bleeding, she smiled.

“The bathroom upstairs is under maintenance, so I had to come down here.

“Let me wash my hands, then we can go.”

Chapter 7

Over the next few days, Cedric seemed to be more available than ever. He spent every waking hour by Eden's side as if he were trying to find out if she had caught on to anything yet.

Meanwhile, Eden’s behavior was otherwise ordinary. There was nothing implying any kind of disturbance.

Cedric knew Eden’s personality. She was not the type to suffer idly. Naturally, she would not be so calm if she had heard something.

With that in mind, his worries slowly subsided.

Soon, the New Year rolled around.

Since Eden was an orphan, the question of whose parents’ house to visit for New Year's was not necessary.

On New Year's Eve, Cedric took her and Mateo back to his parents' home for a family dinner to usher in the new year.

Cedric suddenly stiffened the moment he entered the house. Eden was puzzled by his reaction and peeked inside only to see Amelie.

She was sitting in the living room next to Cedric’s mother.

“Amelie!”

Mateo was overjoyed to see her. He immediately shrugged off Eden's hand to run to Amelie.

“Please stay! Spend the New Year's with Daddy and me. We want you here!”

Cedric’s mother greeted them kindly, “Oh, you all came just in time! This here is Ms. Hepburn. She’s a posture coach. Since it's so late, I told her to stay for dinner.

“The more people, the merrier, after all! I’m sure you young people will have something to talk about.”

Mrs. Rivers did not notice the way Cedric's face turned pale and continued to shower Amelie with compliments. Eden stayed silent the entire time, but could not deny that she found Mrs. Rivers’ reaction very amusing.

Mrs. Rivers had always looked down on her because of her lowly background and occupation.

Upon learning about Cedric’s new girlfriend, she eagerly invited the lady to their house to spend New Year’s without even bothering to find a suitable justification for it.

During dinner, Mateo pushed Eden away and positioned himself between Cedric and Amelie. They began to chatter away.

Mrs. Rivers was very attentive and made sure Amelie had enough to eat. She restlessly encouraged her to spend the New Year's with them while also urging her to share toasts with Cedric.

Finally, she successfully convinced her to stay the night by claiming that she treated Amelie as her own daughter.

The entire time, she hardly spared a glance at Eden.

With that, Amelie spent the night at the house.

While Eden and Cedric were watching Mateo play with firecrackers on the first floor, she put on a lacy nightgown and passed by them five times.

She claimed she was getting water from the kitchen each time. Furthermore, she would make a point of slowing down and greeting them daintily.

Eden did not react, but Cedric's breathing grew heavier as time went on. His eyes were glued to his phone the entire time while he typed furiously on the keyboard.

Eden glanced at the screen with a wry look that was well concealed in the dark of the night.

Around midnight, Cedric's phone rang several times.

He could not resist the temptation and proceeded to read the messages.

After fixing an intense look on the screen for what seemed like ages, he took a few deep breaths and suppressed the lustful look in his eyes. Then, he set aside his phone and shut his eyes to sleep.

Half an hour later, he turned over for the fifth time and opened his eyes.

He took a look at Eden and observed the steady pace of her breathing. Then, he sighed and slowly got up to tiptoe out of the room.

As soon as he stepped outside, Eden heard someone whispering. She opened her eyes; she was, after all, wide awake the entire time.

“What are you doing here?”

“I missed you. I was waiting for you to come out.”

“Are you crazy? Aren't you afraid of getting caught?”

“Isn’t this what your mother wanted?”

“Quiet, don’t wake Eden. Where’s your room?”

After some more rustling and murmuring, the sound of a pair of footsteps slowly faded into the distance.

He was in such a hurry to go that he barely even shut the bedroom door.

There was a deathly still look in Eden’s eyes. She resigned and stepped out of the bed to close the door.

Chapter 8

Before Eden managed to close the door, she heard the muffled moan of a woman.

“Keep it down!” Cedric hissed while covering her mouth.

“What's there to be scared of? Everyone's asleep, it’s more exciting like this.

“Besides, don't you like it when I scream?”

This seemed to be good enough to convince Cedric, who no longer protested.

Eden stole a glance down the hallway and realized that Cedric, in his haste, hadn’t even properly closed the door in Amelie's room.

She effortlessly spotted Cedric.

Cedric’s face was flushed red. It was a complete departure from his usual cold demeanor.

Then, she looked at Amelie, who was pinned under him. There was a mix of tenderness and passion in her eyes.

The look in Cedric’s eyes was exactly the same as the one he used to reserve for Eden.

It had been ages since Cedric looked at her so longingly and intently.

It was at this point that Eden had to accept that Cedric still had the capacity for love in him, only it was no longer for her.

She was convinced her heart had completely expired, but now it started to beat and twitch again.

A terrible, throbbing pain shot through her chest. She had forgotten how suffocating this pain could be; it was choking the breath out of her.

All along, she thought she was immune. However, witnessing his infidelity in person was another degree of pain.

Finally, she blinked away the tears and looked away before closing the door and burrowing under the covers.

Despite her best attempts, she could still hear faint sounds slipping through the cracks underneath the door. She was not sure whether to attribute it to her sensitive hearing or if it was simply because the couple was getting too loud.

Each sound they made pierced into her ears.

The next morning, she went downstairs with an extremely ashen face.

Cedric approached her and asked cautiously, “Did you sleep well last night? Was the fireworks too loud?”

She was in no mood to go through the song and dance with him. All she did was shake her head and comment disinterestedly, “No, I went to bed early and had a nightmare.”

Cedric was relieved by how nonchalant she sounded.

Suddenly, the guilt and unease of his unscrupulous actions from the previous night caught up to him. He did not want to stick around any longer and immediately announced he was taking Eden and Mateo home.

Eden did not object since staying any longer would likely make her lose more sleep. Her scalp was tingling, and all she wanted was to get some rest.

Before they left, Amelie suddenly put a hand over her mouth and then alertly clutched her stomach.

All the color drained out of her face while she cried out, “Agh! My stomach hurts, it hurts so bad…

“It's coming in waves… Oh my god! I… I’m bleeding…”

Cedric frowned. A thought suddenly came to him and stirred up a mix of emotion in his eyes. Then, he shoved a set of keys into Eden's hand before rushing forward to carry Amelie in his arms.

“Eden, why don’t you drive home first? Be careful.

“I’ll take Amelie to the hospital and be right back.”

With that, he carried Amelie straight to the garage. Meanwhile, Mateo trailed behind them without needing to be told to follow.

Eden gripped the car keys tightly with a cynical glint in her eyes. She deemed that if she drove home in this state, she was more likely to get into an accident than not.

With that, she set the keys aside and hailed a taxi home to catch up on sleep.

Then, she was rudely awakened by Mateo screaming at her. Her body felt sore all over as well.

Chapter 9

“Did you know Amelie is pregnant?!

“She’s having twins! I won't be Daddy's only child anymore! Then I’ll have nothing left!

“Can't you just divorce Daddy and leave already? If you leave, Daddy will come home! Amelie told me she'll treat me like her own son. That way, I’ll be the eldest son and still get to keep everything for myself!

“Stop being so selfish, Mom! You know nobody likes you, so why do you keep clinging to Daddy anyway? Leave for my sake, won’t you?!”

Mateo's voice was sharp and piercing. He made his point very quickly and decisively to Eden.

It was not difficult for her to connect the dots and understand what Amelie’s stomachache was about.

Twins.

“You’re going to be the death of me, Mom!

“I’m going to throw myself off the building if you don’t leave. You want to try me? Daddy is going to hate you, and Granny is going to chase you out!”

Eden was stunned into silence for several seconds. Then, Mateo dropped his toy hammer and ran to the balcony, where he hovered one leg over the ledge with only one hand gripping the railing. His face was contorted with rage and hate.

Eden suddenly lost the strength to speak. She stared at Mateo, who was threatening to end his life just to get rid of her, and felt swept over by a wave of exhaustion and lethargy.

After a long silence, she finally spoke, “Fine, I'll go.”

It was bound to happen sooner or later.

She never planned to stay anyway.

Thereafter, Cedric wore a smile on his face everywhere he went. His usual menacing aura had melted away due to sheer joy.

It was no surprise that any man would be glad to have a few more children.

He was home less often than before, but whenever he did come home, he would bear countless gifts. He would prattle on and on about the things he would do for Eden, even though he never intended to fulfill them, all just to make up for his guilt.

Eden neither exposed him nor played into it.

After a long wait, she finally received a call from a staff member at the orphanage.

“The paperwork for the handover of the orphanage is sorted out. You can start working any time now. When would you like to come in?”

Eden sat on the couch and thought for a moment before answering, “Tomorrow.”

Suddenly, Cedric’s voice came out of nowhere, “What’s tomorrow, Eden? Are you going to be busy?”

He approached and habitually pulled her into his arms.

“Nothing important, just meeting a friend.”

Cedric noted with a nod and was just about to speak when his phone rang. After he answered the call, the look in his eyes shifted dramatically.

After hanging up, he hastily left behind instructions while preparing to leave.

“Eden, there’s something I need to attend to at the office tonight. Make sure you get some rest.

“I’ll be back as soon as I’m done. Once I come back, I’ll take you on a trip, alright? It’ll be just the two of us.”

With that, he turned and left.

He was home for less than five minutes before being called away by Amelie. It went to show how possessive she was.

Eden kept a calm composure until Cedric was out of the house. Then, she slowly got up and started to pack her luggage.

The same night, a package arrived.

She opened it, which contained two divorce certificates.

When she held them in her hands, she felt a heavy, sinking feeling. A month ago, when she first decided to file for divorce, the fact still stung her. Now that it had been finalized and while looking at the certificates, she felt nothing but relief.

The past month had been incredibly tiring. At last, she could get away from all this chaos, leave everything behind quietly, and do something meaningful for once.

Then, she called over Mateo, who had been sulking and ignoring her the entire time. She proceeded to show him the divorce certificates with what seemed like sweet relief.

“Mateo, this is what you wanted.

“Your father and I are divorced, and your father has full custody of you. Amelie will be your new mother soon.”

Mateo had been spewing curses and insults at her for so long. He must be glad to finally get what he wanted.

However, he seemed completely taken aback.

Eden smiled faintly and interpreted his reaction as him being struck silly with joy.

Then, she handed him the divorce certificate and said, “Why don’t you hand this present to your father?

“From now on, you two are free from me.”

With that, she saw no reason to stick around. After carefully putting away her divorce certificate, she dragged her already packed luggage and left the house.

She got into the car and drove away.