Chapter 1
Three years of marriage. One hundred and eight suicide attempts.]
When Elizabeth Skylar opened her eyes in the hospital bed, her mind was completely blank.[]
A middle–aged couple sat beside her, and the moment they saw her wake up, their faces twisted with irritation.[]
“Jesus Christ, when are you gonna stop this bullshit?” Delilah Skylar snapped, her voice dripping with exhaustion. “Sebastian was always in love with Clarissa. If he hadn’t been wasted and stumbled into the wrong room that night, he never would’ve married you.”
She leaned closer, her tone growing impatient. “He doesn’t love you, honey. Of course he doesn’t wanna come home to you. And what do you do? You keep pulling this suicide bullshit to get his attention. After all these years, tell me–has he ever once given a damn about your little performances“]
Connor Skylar shook his head in disgust. “If you weren’t our own daughter, we’d have washed our hands of you a long time ago. You’re pathetic compared to Clarissa.”
Elizabeth stared at them, completely lost.[]
She’d lost every memory–she didn’t even know her own name. All she could do was piece together fragments of a broken life from the cruel words of these people who claimed to be her parents.[]
She was Elizabeth Skylar, born into wealth and privilege. Kidnapped as a child, she’d been found years later, only to discover her parents had adopted a girl named Clarissa Skylar in her place.
All the love that should have been hers had been poured into their adopted daughter instead. The life that should have been hers had been completely taken over by someone else.[]
Later, she’d fallen for Sebastian Whitmore, CEO of the Whitmore Group. But his heart belonged to Clarissa too.
Until that night at a company party, when Sebastian, drunk–out of his mind, had stumbled into the wrong room and took her virginity.
After that one reckless night, he’d been forced to marry her–but he’d made sure she felt his resentment every single day.[]
Her parents didn’t love her. Her husband despised her. Desperate and powerless, she’d turned to suicide attempts, over and over, just to get someone–anyone–to care.
“Alright, we gotta get home and cook for Clarissa,” Connor and Delilah Skylar said, standing up. “You stay here and think about what you’ve done.”
The moment the door slammed shut, Elizabeth felt a sharp pain shoot through her chest.
Even without memories, the feeling of being abandoned by everyone felt crushingly real.]
She couldn’t wrap her head around how parents could love an adopted daughter more than their own flesh and blood.[]
And Sebastian…]
He
was
the one who’d walked into the wrong room. He was the one who’d mistaken her for someone else. If he’d married her, why couldn’t he at least try to be decent to her? Why did he have to be so cold that he drove her to want to die?]
She didn’t want to think about it too deeply. Just hearing about this stranger’s life made her heart feel like it was being torn apart.]
Chapter 1
What about her past self? Day after day, dealing with parents who couldn’t care less and a husband who treated her like garbage–how desperate must she have been?]
Elizabeth slowly got up and handled her discharge paperwork alone.]]
Standing outside the hospital, she realized she had nowhere to go.]]
She didn’t remember where her parents lived, or where Sebastian’s house was.
Worse yet, neither place would welcome her anyway.[]
Suddenly, chaos erupted at the hospital entrance.
Elizabeth looked up to see a tall, powerful man rushing toward the building with a fragile woman in his arms.[]
He wore a perfectly fitted black suit that showed off his broad shoulders and commanding presence. Every step screamed authority and control.
mide in an ama
The woman in his arms was pressed against his chest, her pale face tucked into his neck. The way he looked down at her was heartbreakingly tender, his arms protective around her, his steps careful not to jar her.
“Get out of the way!” he barked.[]
His voice wasn’t raised, but the crowd immediately parted for
“Holy shit, is that Sebastian Whitmore?” someone whispered.
him.
“Has to be. Nobody else in New York has that kind of presence. God, he’s gorgeous…”
Elizabeth stood frozen.]]
So this was her husband, Sebastian Whitmore.
And the woman in his arms had to be Clarissa Skylar.
As he passed by, his steps faltered for just a second. Those dark eyes swept over her with a coldness that made her skin crawl.]
But it lasted only a moment. He immediately looked away and rushed toward the
emergency room.
Elizabeth’s thin frame shook slightly.
She didn’t follow. She was still trying to figure out where the hell she was supposed to go-
Footsteps behind her made her turn around. To her shock, Sebastian was walking back toward her.
He grabbed her wrist hard enough to bruise. “You’re RH–negative, right?“]
Without waiting for an answer, he dragged her toward the blood donation center.
“Clarissa was in a car accident. She’s lost a lot of blood and the hospital’s running low. You need to donate.”
Before Elizabeth could finish, Sebastian suddenly grabbed the back of her head.[]
Chapter 1
He kissed her hard and fast.[]
The kiss was cold and mechanical, over in seconds.
“Now will you do it?” His voice was flat, emotionless.[]
Before Elizabeth could process what had just happened, she was shoved into the donation room.[]
Outside, the nurses were gossiping loud enough for her to hear:[]
“So that’s Mrs. Whitmore? The one who tried to kill herself 108 times? I heard the first time was to get him to kiss her, the second time was to get him to take her out, the third time was to get him to sleep with her… He shot her down every single time. How desperate
it the third tim
can you get?”
“And now he finally kissed her, but it was just to get her to donate blood for Clarissa…”
“She must be so messed up right now–happy she finally got a kiss but heartbroken that it was for another woman…“]]
Elizabeth lay on the donation chair, watching through the glass as Sebastian sat beside Clarissa’s bed. His long fingers gently held her small hand, and he pressed a soft kiss to her knuckles.
Strangely, Elizabeth felt nothing. No happiness, no heartbreak.]
The needle sliding into her vein felt distant, muted. Even the emotions that should have destroyed her seemed dulled by her amnesia.[]
Maybe forgetting everything was the only mercy she’d ever get.
After donating 400cc of blood, Elizabeth walked out pale and dizzy, black spots dancing in her vision.[]
After a long internal struggle, she finally approached Sebastian: “Could you tell me where we live? I’ll give you something in return.“[]
Sebastian’s brow furrowed. “What’s your angle now? Did you try to kill yourself so many times that you actually forgot where you live?“]
“No, I have amnesia-“]
“The driver’s outside,” Sebastian cut her off. “He’ll take you home.“[]
“Thanks,” Elizabeth said quietly. “I’ll get your gift ready.“]
“Don’t bother,” Sebastian’s voice was ice–cold. “I don’t want anything from you. And stop trying to get my attention.“[]
Elizabeth looked down, the corners of her mouth barely lifting.[]
Really?
You’re going to love this gift.
In the car, she found a lawyer’s contact in her phone and sent a text:
[Hi, I need to file for divorce and cut legal ties with my parents. Can you draw up the papers?]
