In that instant, it felt as though my heart had stopped.

The next second, Lena's emotionless voice echoed in my ear.

"To wear the crown, one must bear its weight. Born into the Greene Family, a marriage alliance is a duty I can’t escape. Since I never had a choice, I can only accept it. Gavin is handsome and innocent. Compared to the other arrogant second-generation heirs, he’s the best option."

Tears slid from the corners of my eyes, soaking into the dirt.

Lena looked at Owen with tender affection, her eyes finally showing emotion.

"I once thought I’d live my whole life like this. But your appearance is a gift from the heavens. Thank you, Owen."

Every word pierced my heart like a knife.

I couldn’t tell what hurt more, my body or my heart.

The childhood memories we once shared were slowly fading.

What I thought was innocent companionship, what I believed to be a love deeply rooted, turned out to be nothing but lies.

How laughable that in my twenty years of life, my only wish was to marry her, to support her career, to help her rise effortlessly.

The girl who once broke a branch under the willow tree to make a ring for me has now faded into nothing but a memory.

My tightly wound nerves suddenly snapped and blood gushed from the wound on my abdomen.

Lena finally sensed something was wrong and snapped at the servant beside her. "What are you waiting for? Go check on him! If anything happens to Gavin, none of you need to work here anymore!"

In my daze, someone kept shaking me.

Then, I fell into a warm embrace.

The familiar scent of pine seemed to bring me back to those days when it was just the two of us.

But when I opened my eyes, I was already in the guest room.

Lena sat by the bed.

Her face was full of anger and coldness.

"Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt? Gavin, must you be this stubborn? When will you ever change your temper?”

Ignoring her emotions, I turned my head and looked around the room.

It was dilapidated and messy, worse than the servants’ quarters.

And the master bedroom that once belonged to me… well, it was obvious who lived there now.

A cold smile curled at the corners of my lips.

I didn’t spare her a glance.

“My temper has nothing to do with you. The one you should be most concerned about right now is Owen.”

I propped myself up and tore off the bandages around my abdomen.

“And one more thing—just a reminder—this is a house I bought. Kindly ask your lover to move out as soon as possible.”

Lena was completely enraged by my indifference. She stood up and shouted furiously. “Enough! Can’t you be a little more tolerant? I let Owen stay here so you two could take care of each other, not for you to throw tantrums!”

“Forget it. I still have eight months until I give birth. Use that time to calm down. When the child is born, I don’t want their father to be a madman!”

Throwing out those words, Lena turned and left without looking back.

Lifting the covers, I saw the wound on my knee had already been treated by the doctor.

I couldn’t help but let out a cold laugh.

Everything I’d suffered was because of her and now she’s trying to play the good guy?

The sound of laughter from downstairs continued. I pulled out my phone and lowered the selling price of the villa once again.

I didn’t want to see this place, soaked with heartache, for another second.

That night, the servants prepared a full table of food.

Most of it was seafood, exactly what Lena was allergic to.

Standing on the second floor, I glanced down and remembered the way she used to order food at restaurants, never willing to compromise for me.

So this was what love and indifference look like—so stark, so obvious.

Back in what used to be the master bedroom, all my belongings had already been thrown out.

At least it saved me some effort.

After booking a ride on my phone, I turned to leave.

Owen appeared in front of me, carrying a plate of food.

He smiled smugly. “Gavin? What, came to take a look at your old room? Sorry about that. Lena said the baby comes first, so this room’s been given to me now—makes it easier for the father to stay close and take care of things. If you’re looking for any trash, you might want to check the garbage bin. There’s nothing here.”

The “trash” he was talking about was the gifts Lena once gave me.

I curled my lips into a cold smile and looked at him. “Owen, what you treat as treasure isn’t necessarily treasure to me. I can give you the house and I can give you the woman too. But remember, whatever you snatched from someone else will one day be snatched from you. You weren’t her first man and you won’t be her last.”

Owen’s face darkened. He smashed the plate of food in his hand.

“Stop pretending. Only someone pathetic like you who's been used and thrown away still talks tough! You don't need to give anything. Lena would only ever choose me. If you don't believe it, just watch!"

As soon as he said that, he suddenly screamed, tore his own pajamas apart and ran toward the terrace. With a leap, he flung himself over the edge, clinging by just one arm. The cold night rain lashed against him as the wind howled and Owen’s sobs grew increasingly pitiful.

"Gavin, why are you treating me like this?"

Before I could react, Lena kicked the door open. In just a few strides, she rushed forward and yanked him back in, cradling him tightly in her arms.

Then she turned back to me, rage flashing in her eyes and slapped me hard across the face.

“Gavin, are you done yet?”

Owen leaned weakly against her, his voice faint and sorrowful. “Gavin, I’ve already admitted I was wrong… Why won’t you let me go? You can hit me, curse me. I’ll take it all. But the child… the child is innocent. When the baby is born, I’ll pay for everything with my life. Just… please, spare my child…”

I frowned tightly, about to speak, but Lena cut in coldly:

“Gavin, kneel!”

I stared at her in disbelief. “You doubt me?”

Lena laid Owen gently on the bed, then turned to face me, her eyes sharp and ruthless. “Shouldn’t I doubt you? First, you sent Owen abroad, then you deliberately pushed him. This is the third time! Gavin, what reason do I have to believe you?”

The love that once existed between us vanished in that instant. Without giving me a chance to explain, Lena hurriedly carried Owen and left the villa.

One by one, I tore down the photos on the walls, cutting them up and setting them ablaze.

At midnight, the realtor messaged me. [Mr. Cross, someone wants to buy the house at full price—no need for a discount. When would you be available to sign the contract?]

[Tomorrow.]

I fired all the villa’s servants. For a whole week, Lena did not appear again.

From time to time, photos of her being secretly taken by passersby at the hospital surfaced—either registering at the maternity ward or strolling with Owen in the garden on the first floor.

On the morning of the wedding day, with the groom still nowhere to be seen, Lena drove the wedding car straight to the villa to find me.

She opened the door and was met with a stranger’s face.

Her brow immediately furrowed.

“Where’s Gavin? Who are you people?”

An assistant hurriedly came up from behind, out of breath and said, “Ms. Greene, there’s been a mistake, a big mistake. This house has already been sold by Mr. Cross! Today, Mr. Cross is going to marry Miya from the Hart Family!"