Allie's POV

After taking over my dad’s company, my best friend, Gwendolyn Frost, insisted we play out one of those over-the-top “cold CEO and his lover” scenes.

So, I booked out an entire amusement park and even prepared a sky full of fireworks just to entertain her fantasies.

But before the show could even start, a woman came running out of the bushes with a child in her arms.

Gwendolyn slapped her hands over her eyes and yelled, “Oh my God! Did Cleopatra just leap out of the screen to get me back? Babe, help me! I promise I’ll quit picking on people!”

The woman threw herself at my leg, crying so hard she was practically leaking everywhere. “Sweetheart, you promised you’d marry me once your career took off. Why did you disappear for three whole years? And who is this woman? Do you not want me anymore? What about our child?”

I was stunned, touching my hair I’d cut earlier that day just to avoid an arranged marriage.

Before I could react, she got even more emotional. “You told me I was the most beautiful woman in the world when we slept together. Now that the baby’s here, you’re pretending you don’t even know me? I can’t live like this!”

Right then, her wobbly little kid smeared a handful of snot on my pants. “Daddy, hold me!”

People around us immediately whipped out their phones, recording and snapping pictures. In seconds, I’d become the villain of the century—the scumbag who ditched his wife and abandoned his child.

Desperate, I looked at Gwendolyn, silently begging for backup. But instead of helping me, she even burst into tears, louder than the woman clinging to me. “Babe, say something! Who is she? You owe me an explanation tonight!”

——

She then balled her fists and started pounding on my chest like she was the betrayed heroine of a soap opera. “Talk! Who is this woman? And who is this ugly little kid? So, that’s how it is, huh? You told me I was your first woman, but behind my back, you collected numerous mistresses! Does your conscience feel nothing? Today is even our five-year anniversary!”

She was too committed to the role.

Kiera Hastings, the woman, on the other hand, took her performance seriously and burst into tears again. “So, that’s it. You already had someone else when we met. No wonder you slept with me once and vanished the next morning. Well, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have fallen for you so easily. I ruined my own life and the child’s!”

“Even so, I won’t ask for anything anymore. I know I could never compete with a woman like her. Just promise you’ll take care of our child. And if you can give me a grand and five hundred a month for living expenses, that’s enough,” she said finally.

A grand and five hundred?!

I almost choked on the juice I’d been sipping. If I hadn’t taken over the family business, a grand and five hundred would be enough to bury me.

Finally, Gwendolyn realized the woman wasn’t acting and quickly tried to explain. “You misunderstood, she’s not—”

But Kiera cut her off immediately. “Enough! What are you trying to say? That your husband isn’t that kind of person? Please. Which scumbag ever has ‘I’m a scumbag’ tattooed on his forehead? If he hadn’t forced himself on me, I’d never believe something like this could happen to me! I’m already throwing away my dignity by even standing here. I don’t even dare hope that rapist will face the punishment he deserves. I just want him to care for his child. Why is even that too much?”

Humans really loved drama, so the second she said “rapist,” the entire amusement park fell silent.

Right then, I bitterly regretted not listening to the staff when they suggested we clear out the area before opening the park for our little performance.

I shot Gwendolyn a look full of agony, as if saying, “This is your fault. If you wanted drama and nosy bystanders, I could’ve hired actors. Now look, we’ve become the drama.”

She looked so guilty that she seemed ready to bury her head in the nearest shrub.

I was just about to speak when a tattooed man stormed up to me, pointing an accusing finger. “Being a pretty boy is one thing, but acting without an ounce of responsibility? You’ve embarrassed every decent man out here!”

Allie's POV

“Go take a good look at yourself in a puddle—aren’t you ashamed?” the man sharply said.

Earnest, I shook my head and replied, “Nope. Not at all.”

He laughed in disbelief from anger.

But seriously, I was a woman. I only cut my hair short to avoid being dragged into an arranged marriage. Why would I feel ashamed for supposedly “embarrassing all men”?

The tattooed guy’s eyes went bloodshot with rage. “Fine! Fine! You’re shameless! I can’t even argue with you! Then let’s call the police and let them decide!”

The moment he said that, Kiera rushed up and grabbed his arm. “No! You can’t! Calling the police will affect my husband’s job. I don’t want to cause him trouble!”

She turned to me with tear-filled eyes. “Please, just help me take care of the child, okay? I only came because I had nowhere else to go. I’ve met so many horrible bosses. They haven’t paid me in six months. I can’t even afford baby formula for my son anymore.”

Her tears were flowing nonstop, and the crowd began to soften. Soon enough, people around us started lecturing me.

“Be a decent human being. Take care of your son. That poor girl has already suffered enough after you assaulted her. Yet she didn’t ask for compensation. What more do you want?”

“If a kid just fell from the sky into my lap, I’d be celebrating for three days! So, why are you pretending you’re above all this? If you can’t afford to raise a kid, maybe don’t take off a woman’s clothes in the first place!”

Gwendolyn tried to defend me, but the more she talked, the worse it sounded. By the end, people were calling us a shameless couple, saying I handled the “dirty work,” and she cleaned up after me with hush money.

A vein in my temple throbbed so hard I thought it might explode. I held it in for as long as I could, then finally said, “I really am not an irresponsible person. But I need to make one thing very clear. I absolutely don't know you. I’m sorry for what you’ve been through. I really am. But has it occurred to you that you might be mistaking me for someone else?”

Gwendolyn immediately backed me up. “Exactly! You must have the wrong person! She would never do something like that. Besides, she literally can’t get you pregnant!”

The crowd snapped. “How would you know? Are you a worm living inside his stomach? Or are you two scheming together, so you know exactly which women he slept with?”

“Oh, I get it now. He cheats, and you know every detail. Maybe you’re the one pimping him out! How can you be so cheap?”

Gwendolyn lost it and charged forward to hit someone. But Kiera’s sharp yell stopped her cold.

“Allie! That's your name, isn’t it?”

I froze. She actually knew my name.

“The night you took me to that hotel, I was drunk. But I got one look at your ID, so I remember your name. For three years, not a day, not a night have I forgotten you! Allie, you ruined my life. Why do you get to walk away without paying anything?”

Her cries were so raw that the crowd exploded again.

“And here I was thinking she got the wrong person, turns out the name matches! What else is there to say?”

“You slept with her, just admit it! Don’t act like some delicate maiden!”

“Look at you panicking now. But the night you booked that room, you knew exactly what you were doing!”

I stared straight into her eyes, watching them flicker and dodge.

“If you saw my name, then you should know it well,” I said slowly. “So, write it down. Right here. In front of everyone.”

A bead of sweat slid down her forehead. “Why should I write it when I already told you? You did what you did. Why are you doubting me now?”

“I never said I doubted you,” I replied calmly. “I just want to confirm whether it was really me that night. It’s just a name; it won’t take long. Unless you’re afraid to write it?”

Allie's POV

“It’s still you—”

I leaned in a little closer, lowering my voice. “You actually don’t know how to write my name, do you? So, who exactly was the guy you slept with? Whose ID did you see that night?”

Kiera snapped instantly. “Of course, I know! I just didn’t bring a pen because I rushed out!”

“That’s fine. I have one,” I said. “And I’ve got my ID too. Don’t worry, I’m not afraid of the truth.”

“You— you— you—!” she sputtered, but in the end, she had no choice but to write down my name.

She wrote painfully slowly, like every stroke required deep thought. When she finally finished the last letter, I picked up the paper and took a look. Then I couldn’t help but laugh.

She had written "Ali" while my name was "Allie."

Just two letters different, but enough to tell male and female apart.

She didn’t know I was a woman, so of course she guessed wrong.

I immediately took out my ID and covered everything except the name. “Take a good look. This is my actual name. Miss Hastings, it’s okay to look for someone, but when you rush in blinded by emotion, you only end up hurting yourself.”

The crowd began whispering. People who had yelled at me minutes ago were now wondering if Kiera had accused the wrong person.

Sensing the shift, Kiera burst into loud, dramatic sobs. “You did it on purpose! You got me drunk that night and drugged my drink! Of course, I couldn’t remember clearly! Maybe I forgot exactly how your name was written, but that Porsche you drove? I could never forget that car! You tricked me with it!”

Ah. So, she was after the car.

As for my name, she must’ve heard Gwendolyn call me earlier and made sure to remember it.

I nodded and leaned closer. “Then tell me, how exactly did I trick you? If you hate me so much, surely you remember that part clearly?”

Her face went pale. “That was the most painful night of my life. Do you really want to force me to say it out loud? I’m already miserable enough. Do you have to push me until I break?”

Right after saying that, she lowered her head and pinched her child hard where no one could see. As a result, the kid woke up screaming.

The crowd immediately forgot about yelling at me and scrambled to help her calm the baby down.

But I turned, ready to walk away with Gwendolyn. Yet, suddenly, someone grabbed my wrist hard.

Before I could react, my whole body was yanked backward. My feet left the ground, and I crashed onto the pavement half a meter away.

“Your kid is crying, and you wanna run? Be a man for once!”

“Don’t worry, miss. I’ve caught him for you! He’s taking that kid whether he likes it or not, and if he doesn’t, I’ll beat him until he does!”

Gwendolyn was so terrified she burst into tears. She tried to rush over to help me, but the crowd blocked her.

I slowly pushed myself up, staring straight at Kiera. “What do you want?”

She looked pitiful again, voice trembling. “I just don’t want to raise the child alone. I really… don’t have the ability…”

I lifted a hand, cutting her off, already irritated. “Get to the point. How much? Say a number.”

“I told you, I’m not that kind of person…” She still put on an act.

I let out a cold laugh and slipped my bank card back into my wallet. “Alright then. Since you came here just to dump a kid on me, I’ll accept him. You can go now. No need to thank me.”

Her smile froze. Her eyes looked wounded, like she couldn’t believe I’d said that.

“How could you think that of me? That’s not what I meant. I don’t want your money, but I borrowed from every relative I have just to raise him, so—”

I inhaled slowly and interrupted her. “You want me to pay back your debts?”