He Chose Her. I Chose to Start Over.

I did not have time to confront Mrs. Wagner; my only thought was for the baby. I held her close, changed her diaper, and fed her.

After I burped her, little Amy gave me the sweetest smile. My eyes burned with emotion, and tears slipped down onto her blanket.

Rachel's child was tended by over a dozen professional nannies. Mine? Mine was abandoned, left without even a drop of milk.

"Don't be scared, Amy. Mommy's taking you away from here."

Suddenly, someone started pounding on the door. The moment I opened it, Harold's hand came swinging through the air.

"Lilly! How dare you bring a bunch of thugs into my house!"

Cradling Amy, I was shoved back into the villa by Harold.

Rachel followed close behind, bundled tightly in layers of designer clothing, surrounded by several attentive nannies.

Inside, the place was a disaster. A few rough-looking men lay passed out on the floor, red-faced and reeking of alcohol. The whole house looked like it had barely survived a wild party.

There were people sleeping in the bedrooms and even in the study. In the master bedroom, five strangers were sprawled out on the bed—some in their birthday suit.

Panic rose in my chest. "It wasn't me! I didn't even step foot inside the house!"

Mrs. Wagner stepped forward, eyes filled with sorrow, her voice trembling, "Mr. Soulman... last night, dozens of hooligans suddenly barged in. They said Ms. Qoss gave them the key and invited them to party…

"They even said the baby was in the way, so they threw her into the security room."

I shook my head furiously, trembling. "I don't even know those people! I was at Rachel's place the whole day. How could I have given them a key?!"

"Exactly… Lilly took care of me all day yesterday," Rachel chimed in with a delicate tone. "Harold, why don't we wake them up and ask?"

She gently tugged on Harold's sleeve.

The storm on his face suddenly calmed. He ordered someone to wake up one of the nearby men.

"Who let you in?!"

The thug rubbed his eyes blearily. "A woman named Lilly gave us a key, said the villa was empty, and told us to have fun… Hey! Bring ten more bottles of booze!"

He was waving my keychain in his hand, my teddy bear charm still attached.

I instinctively reached for my pocket. Empty.

"No, I lost that key. It wasn't me!"

"Still trying to talk your way out of this? Poor Rachel was so worried about you, she insisted on coming home. Otherwise, I wouldn't even know about this disgusting little scheme of yours!

"You clearly wanted to sneak around with these people behind my back!"

His voice grew more impatient, his anger boiling over. He ordered Mrs. Wagner to lock me in the security room.

Behind him, Rachel clung to his arm, pouting sweetly. "Harold, darling, she was just being playful. Why get so mad?"

"She'll never learn unless she's punished. This house is filthy now. Let's stay in the other villa."

The door to the security room slammed shut behind me. Through the glass, I watched them leave in a grand parade.

In the center of it all, Rachel threw me a triumphant smirk.

That night, I finally coaxed Amy to sleep. Then the lights suddenly went out.

It was probably a voltage issue. I turned on my phone and tried to book train tickets.

Then I heard the unmistakable sound of a lock turning.

A figure appeared under the moonlight—it was Rachel.

Without Harold around, her gaze was full of venom.

"You've been divorced, and you still ask for a million? Lilly, I really underestimated how shameless you are."

I immediately clutched Amy and backed away. Alas, the room was tiny, and there was nowhere to run.

"I've done nothing to you, Rachel. Why are you so determined to ruin me again and again?!"

"No reason? If not for you, I would've been the one to marry Harold!"

I frowned. She was not wrong. An orphan like me had no business becoming his wife.

It all started last year, when I happened to save Mr. Soulman Sr. during a sudden heart attack. To repay me, he threatened Harold with his life and forced him to marry me.

Harold had no choice, and we registered our marriage.

There was no wedding. The company's announcement was just a single cold line.

Less than a month later, I was pregnant.

I thought it meant I could finally have a peaceful life, a family of my own. Alas, Mr. Soulman Sr. passed away the week before I gave birth.

With him gone, I lost the only support I had.

So, in Rachel's eyes, I had stolen her rightful place as Mrs. Soulman?

"But you've already gotten everything you wanted. Why won't you leave me alone?"