Love Disappears Before Dawn

As I stood shivering, drenched and humiliated, Noah took off his coat and began walking toward me.

But a few steps away, Fiona suddenly sneezed. Instantly, he turned back, draping his coat over her shoulders and holding her hands close to his chest to warm them. My brother quickly instructed the housekeeper to prepare ginger tea for her.

I let out a bitter laugh and trudged back to my room alone, ignoring the cold that seeped through my soaked clothes. After what felt like hours, Noah entered my room, carrying a bowl of ginger tea that had already gone cold.

"Lauren, I know you’re my childhood sweetheart and fiancée," he began, his tone heavy with supposed guilt. "But Fiona sacrificed herself for your sake… I can let you stay by my side, but the title of Mrs. Radford will only ever belong to Fiona. It’s what we owe her."

I stared at him; the man who once swore to love me for a lifetime was now reduced to a stranger spouting lies. The sheer irony made me laugh inwardly.

Be Davian Sinclair’s mistress to repay the Hartley Family for raising me? Fine.

But to become Noah’s mistress, for what? For love?

The bond we shared as childhood sweethearts had shattered the moment he chose Fiona over me. I swallowed my pride, pointed at the door and demanded he leave.

Noah didn’t move, but Fiona waltzed into the room with a bright smile.

"Lauren, are you still mad? My two brothers acted impulsively earlier, but only because they wanted to stand up for me. We’re family—why hold grudges over something so trivial?" Her voice dripped with faux innocence as she stepped closer.

"Here, let me feed you the ginger tea. You wouldn’t want to catch a cold."

Before I could react, Fiona reached for the spoon in my hand. In the tussle, a few drops of the tea splashed onto her hand. She gasped dramatically, her eyes welling with tears as she looked at me accusingly.

"Why do you hate me so much, sister? I know I’m just a driver’s daughter and don’t deserve to be a Hartley Family foster child, but I’ll leave soon. I won’t threaten your place in their hearts anymore—why keep making things difficult for me?"

"Enough, Lauren!" Noah exploded, shoving me aside. "Fiona’s already suffered enough! Why can’t you just leave her alone?"

Noah pushed me away with one hand. My feet were unsteady; I stumbled and fell to the floor, shards of broken porcelain embedding into my hand. Blood trickled down my palm, but Noah didn’t spare me a glance. Instead, he and my brother fussed over Fiona, fretting over her nonexistent burn.

As my blood dripped onto the cold floor, I looked up to see my mother standing at the top of the staircase, her face dark with anger.

Finally, I let my frustrations spill over. "Mom…"

"Silence!" she snapped, cutting me off. She dismissed the housekeeper who tried to help me, then strode forward with a cup of tea in hand. Without hesitation, she splashed its contents onto my face.

"Fiona lost her father—she’s already suffered enough! And you still dare to bully her? What would people say about the Hartley Family if this got out?"

"Lauren, how could you repay the Hartley Family’s kindness with such ingratitude?"

The blood from my palm continued to pool on the floor, draining away the last remnants of warmth I felt for this family.

I raised my head and looked toward the living room's centerpiece—a spot that once displayed a family portrait of all of us together. Now, it held only my father’s framed photograph.

When my father was alive, I was the little princess of the capital, envied by everyone. My brother, Jason Hartley, doted on me and Noah worshipped the ground I walked on. My life was filled with luxury, jewels and endless affection.

The only hardship I ever faced was the serious illness that struck me at eighteen. Back then, my brother ignored all objections to donating his kidney to me while Noah knelt before the temple altar until his knees bled, praying for my recovery. When I finally recovered, both men were shadows of their former selves—pale, weak and drained. I still remember Noah, feverish and limping, pressing a talisman into my hand.

"As long as we’re here, Lauren, you’ll always be happy."

But now, as I sat on the cold, hard floor, bleeding and alone, that promise felt like a cruel joke.