"I found a recipe online and followed it to the letter. If it's not to your liking, I can whip up another batch, no problem."

I did not object, and she took that as her cue.

As Joanna reached for the soup on the table, the sleeve of her blouse slid up, revealing the pink scars of a burn on her arm.

Shane's expression turned stern, and he quickly took the bowl from her, turning to me with a coaxing tone.

"Come on, chicken soup's good for you. It will help you heal."

I met his gaze, my voice flat as I said, "I can't have chicken soup, remember?"

Shane was momentarily at a loss for words.

Beside him, Joanna's eyes brimmed with tears. "Ms. Smith, I've been making you chicken soup every single day you've been out.

"If there's something you're not happy with, just tell me. Please don't take it out on Mr. Jackson."

The bodyguard added his two cents from behind, saying, "That's right. Ms. Rogers has been slaving over a hot stove for hours every day, using only the best ingredients.

"They say she even got sick a few times today handling the chicken."

I remained silent, just lifting my eyes to Shane.

"Must I drink it?"

Shane let out a resigned sigh, as if dealing with a petulant child. "Lily, don't make this difficult."

With that, he spooned up some of the shiny broth and guided it to my lips.

I swallowed down the tears, forcing myself to drink the entire bowl of revolting chicken soup.

At last, Shane looked pleased.

He adjusted the blanket around me with a gentle touch and murmured, "I'll be right outside. If you're not feeling well, just call out for me."

However, in the dead of night, a sharp pain ripped through my belly, jolting me awake.

Without thinking, I cried out for Shane.

At the sound, Shane snapped to alertness, ready to burst through the door.

However, before he could act, a heart-wrenching scream echoed from Joanna's room.

Her voice was faint and desperate.

"Mr. Jackson, my stomach hurts so much, and there's so much blood!

"Please, come save me. I'm afraid for the baby..."

Joanna crumpled to the floor, clutching her belly, her eyes wide with terror as she looked up at Shane.

Shane's panic spiked, and he moved to take Joanna away.

"Shane!"

The pain left me too weak to talk. I could only gasp out a plea.

"Save me..."

Shane's heart raced as he saw my agony.

He almost stayed, torn by the memory of the child in Joanna's womb and the intense, tangled love they had shared for three years.

However, as he wavered, Joanna's eyes brimmed with tears again.

"The doctor said Ms. Smith's stomach pain is just a normal reaction to taking too much medicine.

"Ms. Smith, I know you're scared of losing Mr. Jackson and want to draw his attention, but I'm truly in pain. Please, just let me have this moment. You can punish me any other time."

With those words, Shane's hesitation vanished.

He turned to me.

"Lily, cut it out. Your stomach pain is normal. I'll call the doctor."

Then, holding Joanna, he strode away without a backward glance.

The ward was eerily quiet, but the pain inside me was screaming loud enough to drown out the silence. I listened to the sound of his footsteps growing fainter, and despite my best efforts, tears betrayed me again, trickling down my cheeks.

I had been waiting for what felt like an eternity: half an hour, to be exact, and not a single doctor had shown up. With all the strength I could muster, I kept hitting the call button, over and over.

My vision started to blur when, finally, a flurry of doctors rushed in. As darkness edged in, their murmurs reached my ears: "Mr. Jackson is really overreacting, isn't he? All that fuss for a bit of fetal movement?"

When I came to, a nurse was by my bed, hanging a new IV bag with a frown. "You're up? What did you eat last night? You know you've got to watch it with certain foods when you're on meds."

"You were close to going into shock. It's fortunate we got to you in time."

I nodded, my voice barely a whisper when I asked, "Did anyone come by after I passed out?"

The nurse looked surprised. "No, no one."

I could not help but laugh at that. "Can you tell me where Joanna's room is?"

Once the drip was done, I made my way to Joanna's floor. Stepping off the elevator, I bumped into Shane, his arms laden with snacks. He rushed over, guiding me to a seat.

"Lily, you shouldn't be up. How's your stomach?

"When I got back last night, you were asleep. I stayed by your bed all night. I just went to grab you some breakfast. What are you in the mood for?"

I did not call him out on his lie. Instead, I just pointed at the mini pies.

Shane bit his lip and said, "Those are for Joanna. She asked me to pick them up. Maybe pick something else?"

I gestured toward the soy milk.

"Lily, this is also..."

"Got it, I know."

I interrupted him, not in the mood for more talking.

Shane's eyes widened in panic, and he clasped my hand.

"Don't get it wrong. I just want her to recover quickly to look after you."

"I get it." I nodded with a sympathetic smile.

"Go on. Don't keep her waiting."

Shane searched my face, torn with indecision.

Yet, when his phone buzzed again, he headed off toward Joanna's hospital room.

Before he left, he made sure to remind me, saying, "Lily, our engagement party is tomorrow. Please, don't be late."

His hopeful gaze lingered on me.

I grinned and promised I would be there.

The next day, the party was buzzing with guests.

The high society folks there could not stop talking.

"Can you believe Ms. Smith was out for three years, and Mr. Jackson never left her side? That's true love!"

"Seriously, so many told him to move on, but he wouldn't have anyone but Ms. Smith. It's like a love story straight out of a fairy tale."

Meanwhile, Shane was offstage, frantically dialing my number.

I was already 15 minutes late.

Still, I was nowhere to be seen.

That was when the murmurs started.

"What's the holdup? Where's Ms. Smith?"

"Isn't it about time to start the ceremony? What's going on?"

Shane, trying to keep his cool, apologized to the crowd.

"Terribly sorry, folks. Just hang tight. I'll have someone fetch Lily right away."

With that, he signaled his assistant with a wave.

"Why do I get the feeling that Lily's in trouble? We need to get to the hospital and find her now!"

The assistant had barely dashed off when someone in the crowd spoke up, clearly annoyed.

"Ten minutes gone by and still nothing? What's the hold-up? Don't waste my time!"

"Yeah, I've got a contract to sign this afternoon. If things don't get moving, I'm out of here."

With people threatening to leave, Shane had to suck it up and make a call.

"Well, looks like we're not waiting for Lily.

"Let's get this party started."

The moment he said that, the lights in the hall cut out, throwing us all into pitch black.

A second later, the LED screen at the back blazed to life.

As grumbles filled the air, a video flashed onto the screen.

It showed Shane and Joanna, caught in a compromising moment right beside my hospital bed.

The crowd gasped in shock.

Shane's face went ashen, and he shouted at the tech crew, "Who dared to play that video? Take it down now!"

However, he did not wait for an answer.

I calmly stepped out from the shadows of the room and announced, "I did."