On the day after proposing to me, Edward Harrington takes his first love, Lily Monroe, on an overseas trip. All that's left is a note on the nightstand.

"Lily has been wanting to travel to Marinova for the longest time. I'll spend a few days with her there before coming home to marry you."

As I stare at the low-quality ring Edward has purchased from a convenience store at the very last minute, I can only smile silently.

Well, it turns out that the so-called "a few days" ends up being 1095 days.

Three years later, Edward and Lily return to the country in a high-profile manner. The first thing Edward has done is to seek me out and request that I become their bridesmaid.

"Audrey, I couldn't resist Lily's charms, so I slept with her once. But she got pregnant right away."

Guilt flickers across Edward's face. "The doctor said Lily can't get an abortion. Otherwise, she won't be able to get pregnant anymore."

Upon noticing my silence, Edward suddenly leans down and starts peppering kisses down the side of my neck.

"The wedding is just a show for the elders in our families. Trust me, Audrey. Once Lily gives birth to her baby, I'll divorce her and marry you right away."

That's when I shove Edward off me forcefully. Then, I roughly dab a piece of wet tissue over the patch of skin Edward's lips have touched.

Scott Miller, my CEO husband, is extremely domineering and possessive. It's only thanks to him being on a business trip these few days that Edward has the chance to get close to me.

If Scott were to find out about the truth, neither Edward, Lily, nor their unborn child can think about surviving at all!

Edward Harrington frowned in displeasure when he noticed the disgust on my face.

"Audrey, what's with that look?" he asked impatiently.

"Didn't I leave you a note explaining everything? Lily needed to get away, so I took her to Marinova to help her relax. We'll get married when I get back. It's just three years. What's the big deal?"

When he saw the icy look on my face, he stopped short. After a brief pause, he deliberately softened his tone in an attempt to comfort me.

"I know it wasn't fair to make you wait three years. That's on me."

He took a step closer.

"That's why I'm making you our bridesmaid as compensation. You'll see the whole wedding up close. Lily and I are just putting on a show. Once the baby is born, everything will go back to normal. You're the only one I love."

I stared at that smug, self-righteous expression plastered across his face, and a wave of nausea crashed through me.

I covered my mouth, suppressing the nausea, but a scoff slipped through my fingers.

"Edward, what makes you think I'd wait for you?"

Edward's gaze dropped to my ring finger.

The diamond ring on my hand reflected dazzling sparks beneath the lights.

His expression darkened completely, and he let out a mocking laugh.

"Audrey Calloway, are you seriously trying to play hard to get with me now?"

He lifted his chin and gave the ring on my finger a smug, dismissive look. "Do you really think putting some fake glass ring on your finger is enough to get a reaction out of me? Wake up. Even the ring I casually bought for you before I left was worth more than that cheap thing. Stop playing these pointless games and behave yourself."

Behave yourself.

Those two words hit me like a wave, dragging me back years into the past.

It had been winter back then too, but the cold had felt even harsher than it did tonight.

We had just gotten off work at the restaurant and were walking past a jewelry store downtown.

Through the massive display window, a diamond ring caught the light and sparkled so brilliantly that it stopped me dead in my tracks.

Edward looked at it too, but his eyes weren't on the ring. They were locked on the terrifying string of zeros dangling beneath it.

He wrapped his fingers around my freezing hand and held on so tight that my fingers hurt. His voice trembled as he said, "Audrey, when I finally have enough money saved up, I'm going to buy you the most beautiful ring in the world and ask you to marry me. I'll make sure everyone knows you're the most precious person in my life."

The freezing wind cut against my face, but my heart burned hot like a flame.

My eyes stung with tears as I nodded.

"Okay. I'll wait for you, no matter how long it takes."

And just like he promised, his business took off. Then, one night, he tossed a velvet box at me like it was nothing.

Inside lay nothing but a cheap, shoddily made ring grabbed from a convenience store clearance shelf.

He didn't bother to kneel. He just propped himself against the doorframe and flashed that lazy smile.

"Wear this for now. I'll get you a better one later."

The very next day, he flew to Marinova with Lily to see the blue ocean and skies she had always dreamed of.

The anger and humiliation I had buried instantly rushed back to my head.

Just as I was about to tell him to get lost, a slap came swinging toward my face.

"Audrey, how dare you seduce Edward again!"

I saw it coming. A split second before Lily Monroe could touch me, I raised my arm to block her.

Without a moment's hesitation, I struck her across the face.

Lily clutched her swollen cheek as tears streamed down her face.

"How dare you hit me!"

The moment Edward saw that, fury exploded across his face.

"Are you crazy?" he roared and immediately pulled Lily into his arms, carefully checking the injury on her face.

When he looked back at me again, his eyes were as cold as blades.

"Lily's pregnant. How could you hit her that hard? What if something happens to her? Can you take responsibility for it?"

Lily leaned weakly against his chest, crying even harder.

But when her gaze flicked toward me, the venom and smug triumph in her expression were unmistakable.

Just as Edward was about to say something else, my phone rang.

It was Ray Cullen, Scott Miller's secretary.

I swiped to answer the call, and a respectful male voice came through.

"Mrs. Miller, Mr. Miller just finished his meeting and specifically asked me to remind you..."

The moment Edward heard the voice on the phone, shock flashed across his face.

In the very next second, he strode forward, snatched my phone out of my hand, and ended the call before I could even react.

"Audrey," he said mockingly, waving the phone in front of me. "You've really come a long way, haven't you? Your tricks are getting more convincing by the day. Did you actually pay people to stage this whole act? Now you've even figured out how to fake phone calls, spinning some fairy tale about a rich husband."

He smirked, making no effort whatsoever to hide his contempt. "Do you really think fooling yourself like this is getting you anywhere?"

I was so furious at his shameless confidence that I actually laughed.

"Edward Harrington, are you really this delusional? Do you honestly believe you're important enough for me to waste time hiring actors and staging a show just for you?"

I looked at him coldly.

"I, Audrey Calloway, don't have the spare time to fight over a pile of trash."

Edward's expression darkened on the spot. The veins in his temples throbbed, standing out sharply against his skin.

Lily said through her sobs, "Audrey, I know you've always hated me. Back then, I was young and stupid. I let greed get the better of me and copied your jewelry design ideas…"

Then she made a show as though she was about to lower herself to her knees before me.

Edward panicked immediately.

"Lily! What are you doing? You're pregnant!"

Lily pushed his hand away.

"It was me. I took your jewelry designs and passed them off as my own in the competition. That gold award should have been yours. And because of me, you lost your job… For all these years, the guilt has been eating away at me…"

She sniffed hard, as though she had just made the most heroic sacrifice of her life. "I'll tell everyone the gold award was yours. I'll clear your name and apologize to you publicly."

She paused, then pleaded humbly, "I don't want my reputation or career. None of it matters anymore. All I'm asking is that you walk away from Edward. Let my baby have a complete family."

She made another attempt to kneel, but Edward reacted first, pulling her tightly into his arms.

A surge of anguish and rage exploded from within him.

"Did you hear that? Lily already apologized to you. What else do you want? How far are you trying to push her? Have you completely lost your conscience?"

He grabbed my wrist hard enough to hurt.

"Audrey, that's enough!"

He stepped closer and pointed a finger directly at my face.

"Stop putting on this pathetic act already! If you keep causing trouble like this, even the last bit of feelings I have for you will disappear completely! Don't push me!"

I violently shook his hand off and immediately wiped my wrist in disgust.

I honestly wanted to ask him where all that confidence and audacity came from.

Just as I was about to speak, my phone rang again.

This time, it was the custom ringtone for our family doctor, Dr. Drake Hilton.

Edward didn't even glance at the screen. He just reached for my phone, ready to kill the call again.

"Don't touch my phone!" I snapped, lunging forward.

We grappled for the phone, and in the chaos, I accidentally switched on the speakerphone.

"Mrs. Miller, this is Dr. Hilton."

Dr. Hilton's delighted voice came over the line.

"Your blood test results are out. Congratulations, you're pregnant. I've already shared the good news with Mr. Miller."

After that, the rest of his words blurred into nothing. I couldn't hear a thing.

I didn't even notice when Edward reached over and ended the call again.

My mind had already gone completely blank, overwhelmed by joy and disbelief.

Scott and I had been married for more than two years, and all this time, we had hoped for a child of our own.

Now, our wish had finally come true.

I instinctively placed a hand over my lower abdomen.

Edward stood frozen in place, unable to process what he had just heard.

Lily, on the other hand, looked positively delighted when she realized I was carrying another man's child.

I lifted my gaze and swept it coldly across them. All I felt now was disgust.

Even looking at them felt like bad luck, and I wasn't about to let their filth come anywhere near the child I had waited and prayed for all these years.

I snatched my phone back and dialed a number.

The call connected almost instantly.

"Mrs. Miller."

The man on the line was the butler, Arthur Sterling. His respectful voice came clearly through the phone.

I calmly said, "Arthur, I'm at the cafe in the downtown mall. There's a man and a woman here harassing me. Please send the villa's bodyguards to pick me up right away."

Edward's expression darkened completely.

The satisfaction in Lily's eyes disappeared instantly, giving way to jealousy she could not hide.

"Audrey!" Edward roared, staring at me with bloodshot eyes.

"It's only been three years, and you've turned playing pretend into a fine art. You're getting scarily good at it!"

He stepped closer, pressing toward me again. "Forgive me, but wasn't it you who declared you would wed no one but me? After hearing about Lily's pregnancy, you immediately got yourself pregnant with another man's baby?"

He scoffed, feeling absolutely certain of himself. "Do you think spinning these lies and putting on this show is actually going to work? What, you think this will make me regret leaving you?"

He shook his head and sneered. "Let me tell you, it's useless!"

For a moment, the past came rushing back, blurring the edges of my memory.

Back then, I really had loved him desperately. I believed every word he said and treasured every little thing he gave me.

However, that version of me had died three years ago, buried beneath countless nights of crying myself to sleep alone.

Now, I was standing here as Mrs. Miller.

Arthur seemed to catch the commotion through the phone. He anxiously said, "Mrs. Miller! The bodyguards are already on their way! I'll notify Mr. Miller immediately!"

"There's no need to disturb him. It's just a minor issue. Just send someone to pick me up," I interrupted calmly.

The moment I ended the call, a cold look crossed my face.

"Fine. I see you really enjoy putting on an act, pretending like it's all real," Edward hissed.

His expression darkened, growing sharp and menacing.

"Good. I'll play this game with you to the very end. Let's see how long you can keep this act up," he said, fixing his gaze on me as he dialed 911.

"I'm calling to report a crime! A woman here is making false claims. She is even harassing and threatening me. Please send someone here as quickly as you can!"

He stared at me with a chilling smirk. "True or not, the police will get to the bottom of it. I'm curious to see how you'll try to talk your way out of this one."

I didn't even frown. Instead, I gave him the faintest smile.

"False claims? Threaten you?"

Truly, ignorance was bliss.

I could not be bothered wasting another word on him and simply waited calmly.

Perhaps because we were in such a busy commercial district, the police arrived even before the villa's bodyguards.

"Who called the police? What's going on here?"

The officer's cold gaze swept over us.

Edward spoke up first.

"Officer, it was me. I made the call. This woman threatened to have her bodyguards come here and harass us. I have reason to believe she's involved in fraud."

The officer turned toward me, examining me carefully.

Without the slightest trace of panic, I met his gaze steadily.

"I am the legal wife of Scott Miller, the president of Miller Corporation. Edward and Lily have been harassing and insulting me. Even after I clearly rejected them and informed them of my identity, they continued causing trouble and even falsely reporting me to the police in an attempt to slander me."

The two officers were visibly stunned. A flicker of caution appeared on their faces.

After all, the name Scott Miller carried absolute authority and an unfathomably deep background in Roschelton.

Edward froze at the sound of Scott's name. His face went pale with fear.

Lily subconsciously covered her mouth in shock.

Right then, four men in black strode into the cafe.

They stopped in front of me and bowed respectfully in unison.

"Mrs. Miller, Arthur sent us to bring you home."