He'd done it on purpose. At my wedding to my ex, Morris had projected their bedroom photos for everyone to see, then eloped with my fiancée right in front of the guests, leaving me as the laughingstock of the entire reception.

My mother collapsed from the shock.

To get her the treatment she needed, I transferred her from hospital to hospital until we ended up in Havenport, where I met Sylvia, a neurosurgery specialist. Over the course of my mother's treatment, Sylvia and I gradually fell in love.

I understood the threat buried in Betty's words. The Fox family had a reputation to uphold. If I ruined this wedding and embarrassed them today, my mother would be thrown out of their hospital.

"Mom!"

Sylvia cut Betty off, her tone measured but firm.

"Simon is my husband, and his mother is my mother-in-law. Taking care of her is my responsibility."

She turned to me, her voice soft and pleading.

"Honey, at the very least, for the sake of everything I've done for your mother, can we please not make a scene at our wedding?"

I dug my nails into my palms and let a wounded expression surface.

"Sylvia, do you really not know that stylist? Because he just whispered to me that you deliberately had him stamp my face to humiliate me on your behalf. That's why I got upset."

The moment the words left my mouth, the guests who had been looking at me with disapproval shifted to expressions of sympathy.

A muscle in Sylvia's cheek twitched. Then she smoothed it over with a reassuring smile.

"He was talking nonsense. He's just jealous that you married such a wonderful wife."

When I said nothing, she relented with a sigh.

"I'll file a complaint against him right now, okay?"

Only then did I let myself smile.

"Then swear on it."

"If you really do have something going on with him, if you've betrayed me, then we're getting a divorce."

Sylvia cooed and soothed me, raising her hand to swear.

The guests laughed warmly.

"You're overthinking it. Sylvia only has eyes for you."

Outside the door, Morris's face flashed past, twisted with venom at his failed scheme.

I didn't spare him a glance.

The wedding ended.

I was heading back to my room to change out of my suit when someone pressed a cloth over my nose and mouth.

I held my breath, closed my eyes, and played along.

Just like last time.

Morris and Sylvia stumbled down the hallway tangled in each other, shoving open the door to the room next door. They fell onto the bed, unable to hold back the sounds that followed.

I snapped my eyes open, slipped downstairs, and found the Fox parents chatting with guests.

This time, I didn't do what I'd done in my previous life. I didn't tell them Morris had drugged me and tried to climb into my bed.

Instead, I put on a worried expression.

"Mom, Dad, I think Sylvia had too much to drink. She doesn't look well."

Fergus and Betty, ever doting on their daughter, rallied immediately. Curious relatives trailed behind them, and the whole group followed me upstairs in a procession.

The moment we reached the door of the guest room, the muffled sounds from inside were unmistakable.

Every face in the crowd went rigid.

The Fox parents scrambled to cover it up, but I pushed the door wide open.

"Sylvia, are you feeling okay?"

The door swung back. Two entangled figures on the bed shot apart, frantically clawing at the sheets.

Through the crowd, Morris flashed me a triumphant grin.

In an instant, the hallway erupted.

"Oh my God, that man. Isn't that the stylist from this morning?"

"So Simon was telling the truth. Jesus..."

Fergus's face turned beet red. He bellowed in humiliation.

"Sylvia! Look at what you've done!"

Betty charged into the room and dragged Morris off the bed.

"This is all your fault! You must have drugged my daughter!"

She whipped around to Sylvia. "That's what happened, isn't it, sweetheart? We're calling the police! We'll have this animal thrown in prison!"

The moment those words left her mouth, the smugness drained from Morris's face.

His face went white, and he pulled Sylvia tight against him.

"Don't!"

Sylvia screamed, knocking the phone out of her mother's hand before she could dial.

Then she lifted her head and looked at me through the crowd.

Her eyes were dark, steady. Not a flicker of panic. Not a trace of guilt.

"Honey, let's talk."

The Fox parents cleared everyone out of the room.

That left just the three of us.

I didn't think there was anything left to talk about.

All I could think was: in this life, I hadn't sent Morris to prison. I hadn't let him rot behind bars. And yet she could still look me in the face without an ounce of shame.

For a moment, I couldn't tell if what filled my chest was bitterness or hatred.

I pulled off my wedding ring and tossed it into the trash.

My voice came out flat. "You swore an oath. If you ever lied to me, we'd divorce."

"Sylvia, I'll have the papers drawn up as soon as possible."

"Simon!"

She called after me from behind.

"I'm not divorcing you."

I spun around, and for the first time, I looked at her with real hatred.

"Then I'll file in court!"

"Go ahead and try!"

Sylvia's face was half-lost in the dim light of the room.

"You file for divorce, and I pull the plug on your mother's treatment. Immediately."

"I will make sure that no hospital in this city—no, in this entire country—will take her in."

"Sylvia!"

My jaw clenched so hard my teeth ached. My whole body was shaking, and I couldn't make it stop.

I imagined how I must have looked—pathetic, powerless, completely broken.

Because I saw Morris flash that gleeful smile again.

"Why are you doing this to me?"

"If you love him, just divorce me! You two can be together out in the open! Why do you have to drag me into this?"

I looked at Sylvia through the tears burning in my eyes.

"I've already stepped aside for you. I have never done a single thing to wrong you! Why won't you just let me go?"

Sylvia's voice was perfectly calm.

"You haven't wronged me. But you've wronged Morris."

My eyes went wide.

"When did I ever—"

Sylvia let out a cold laugh.

"Every single girlfriend Morris ever had—you stole them, didn't you?"

"You, hiding behind that 'love tester' act, seduced every one of Morris's girlfriends. You slept with them. You pushed him into depression. He nearly killed himself!"

"You took that many people from him. It's only fair you find out what it feels like to have your own wife taken away."

"And your mother! Do you dare tell me what really caused her stroke?"

"Your mother went to Morris's wedding to cause a scene—all to help you steal yet another woman. She got screamed at until she collapsed. Your mother lying there half-dead? That's what she deserved."

My head exploded. A roar of white noise drowned out everything, and before I knew it, I was standing right in front of them.

My hand cracked across Sylvia's face.

But when I raised it again, swinging toward Morris—

Sylvia shoved me back.

"Enough! Even now, you're still bullying him!"

I wiped the tears from my face. Every word came out through gritted teeth.

"I never did any of that. None of it. Sylvia! Morris is the one who stole my girlfriends. He's the one who eloped with my ex at the wedding. He's the one who sent my mother into a stroke!"

"There are witnesses. There are text messages, all saved on my phone. You can check for yourself—"

"Enough!"

Sylvia's palm struck my face, cutting me off mid-sentence.

Her expression was ugly with contempt.

"Even now, after everything, you still won't admit it. You still won't repent."

"Simon, I had no idea you were this shameless and heartless!"

"Won't admit it, huh? Still lying through your teeth? Then let's see just how stubborn you really are!"

She stood up and called in her bodyguards. They grabbed me and dragged me toward the stairs.

"Let go of me!"

They threw me straight into the basement freezer and locked the door behind them.

"Let me out!"

I pounded on the freezer door like a madman.

The only answer I got was her voice, cold and merciless from the other side:

"You won't confess? Fine. Let's see which gives out first—your life or your stubbornness."

"The second you admit what you did and get on your knees to apologize to Morris, I'll let you out!"

I slammed my fists against the door until my knuckles split, but no one came.

The temperature plummeted.

I slid to the ground, helpless, my body going numb as the cold seeped into my bones.

I didn't know how long I'd been in there when the freezer door finally opened.

I looked up and saw Morris rushing toward me, face full of concern, reaching down to help me to my feet.

"Hey, you okay? Come on, let's get you out of here! We need to get you to a hospital!"

I stared at the earnest worry on his face and felt something inside me crack apart.

"Morris, why are you doing this to me? What did I ever do to you? Why do you keep destroying my life?"

My voice broke.

If I had to choose who I hated more—between Sylvia and Morris—it was Morris. Every time.

We'd grown up together. We were supposed to be brothers. Best friends since childhood.

I'd stepped in front of him when a senior tried to slap him around, took the hit meant for his face.

He'd slung his arm around my shoulders afterward and told me we'd be brothers for life.

And yet this was the same person who, time after time, had driven a knife straight into my heart.

Morris put on a wounded, wronged expression.

"I was just worried you were being deceived by that woman. All I wanted was to help you find a wife who actually loves you and trusts you!"

I shoved his hand away, tears streaming down my face.

"You're not looking out for me! Every single time, all you do is hurt me!"

Morris blinked at me with those guileless eyes.

"Okay, okay. You're right. I was wrong. But let's get you to a hospital first."

He hauled me up by force—my legs could barely hold me—and pushed me into a car.

The car didn't go to the hospital. It pulled up to a hotel. I stared at him, every nerve on edge.

"What are you doing? Where are you taking me?"

He just smiled, something secretive flickering across his face, and dragged my weakened body into a room.

The door swung open. Inside stood a group of burly men with leering, repulsive faces.

Morris let out a sudden shriek, ripped his own shirt, smashed his own forehead against the doorframe until blood ran down his face, and bolted out of the room.

"I'm sorry! Please, Mr. Sawyer, I won't fight you for her! I won't compete with you for anything! Please stop hitting me!"

Every instinct screamed danger. I forced my body upright, trying to grab him.

Before I could even steady myself, the door was kicked open from the outside.

Sylvia took one look at me, then at the thugs standing behind me.

Her eyes went red instantly.

Her palm cracked across my face.

"Simon! Do you have a death wish?!"

"Not only won't you repent for what you've done, now you're trying to get revenge on Morris?! You were actually going to ruin him! How can you be this vicious?!"

"I didn't do anything!"

I bit down on my lip so hard I tasted blood.

"Morris is the one who opened the freezer! He brought me here!"

"Enough! You and I are the only ones who know the passcode to that freezer! There's no way Morris could have opened it! You obviously snuck out and dragged Morris here yourself!"

Sylvia's jaw clenched, her teeth grinding together.

"So that's how it is. Threatening your own life won't make you bend. Then let's see if your mother's life will."

My eyes went wide.

"What are you going to do?!"