2
Carter’s face darkened, his jaw clenching. “Ava, don’t test me. Marrying you was a mistake from the start. It’s always been Claire. If you had any self-respect, you would have stepped aside the moment she came back. This whole mess, you getting targeted by those criminals… it all happened because you wouldn’t let go.”
Crack.
The sound of my hand connecting with his cheek echoed in the quiet parking lot. “Are you out of your mind?” I yelled, my voice shaking with rage. “I told you, I have a boyfriend! What the hell are you talking about? If he hears this and gets the wrong idea, I swear I will make you regret it!”
Five red finger marks bloomed on Carter’s face. He stared at me, utterly stunned.
Leo was just as shocked, his eyes wide with disbelief.
They exchanged a look, a silent, frantic communication, and then they were both grabbing my arms, dragging
me back into the hospital.
After a battery of tests, the doctors found nothing physically wrong. Their best guess was that the long coma
had caused some kind of selective amnesia. It was, they said, not unheard of for trauma patients to lose
memories of certain people or events.
But that was the strange part. I remembered everything else. My childhood, my friends, my life. Everything except being married to Carter Prescott.
Back in the parking lot, I stared him down. “First of all,” I said, enunciating each word with precision, “I don’t like you. So don’t flatter yourself. Second, the courthouse is still open. Let’s go get that divorce right now.
And third, get the hell out of my life.”
Leo had never seen me speak to Carter with such venom. He was used to the old Ava, the one who would
blush at the mere mention of Carter’s name. This was like seeing a different person entirely.
He leaned in, whispering, “Don’t do this, Ava. What if you remember everything later? You’ll regret this.”
I looked at my brother, my gaze flat and unwavering. “I won’t.”
He tried to argue, but I cut him off. “If I divorce him, Claire gets to go from being the mistress to the new Mrs. Prescott. If you keep pushing, I might just remember everything, and then where would your precious
Claire be?”
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Leo’s face flushed with anger. “That’s your sister! How can you talk about her like that?”
“You’re the ones who told me I’m married to this man,” I shot back. “While I was in a coma, Claire got pregn-
ant with his child. That makes her the other woman. Does basic morality mean nothing to you people?”
“And another thing,” I continued, my voice rising. “I’m your sister, too. In the months I was in rehab, I didn’t see you once. Mom and Dad showed up for five minutes to ask the doctor if I was still fertile.”
“I wondered why they’d ask that. But now it all makes sense. They already knew Claire was pregnant. If couldn’t have children, they would have had the perfect excuse to pressure me into a quiet, graceful exit.”
Carter’s expression shifted. The aggressive certainty was gone, replaced by a flicker of doubt.
“You really don’t remember?” he asked, his voice low. “If this is some new game to get my attention…”
I couldn’t help it; I rolled my eyes with theatrical disgust.
“You’re not as handsome as Ethan, and you’re certainly not as kind. Why on earth would I choose you? A this point, I’m starting to doubt this whole marriage story. Has my taste really gotten so bad that I’d end up
with a piece of work like you?”
B
Fire seemed to ignite in Carter’s eyes. “You were the one who chased me across the world,” he snarled. “You bent over backwards to win over my family. I never would have married you if Claire hadn’t left the country.”
I shook my head, a reflexive denial. “Impossible. I would never be that pathetic. Comparing you to Ethan is like… he was filet mignon, and you’re gas station jerky. If I was going to humiliate myself chasing after a man
it would have been him. Never you.”
Seeing me repeatedly deny our past, treating him like something I’d scraped off my shoe, sent Carter into a rage. He looked like he wanted to devour me whole.
“Whatever,” I said, waving a dismissive hand. “If we were really married, let’s just go get the divorce. It’s not
big deal. The clerk’s office is open for at least another two hours.”
“It’s Saturday!” he bit out.
So, no divorce today.
Leo abandoned me, leaving me in Carter’s care before speeding off.
A part of me was morbidly curious about this lost chapter of my life, so I agreed to go back with him.
The moment I stepped into the Prescott villa, a wave of profound discomfort washed over me. Every cell in my body screamed in protest.
I took a step back. “I think I’ll get a hotel. This place… it feels haunted.”
Carter turned, glaring at me. “I told you, don’t test my patience-”
Before he could finish, I was already five yards down the driveway.
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Chapter 1
He caught up in three long strides, his fingers clamping around my wrist. His face was a mask of fury. “Are you incapable of understanding English?”
That did it. I ripped my arm from his grasp. “You say this is my home,” I sneered, “so why doesn’t it feel like one? Why do my brain and my body both reject the very idea of setting foot inside? Are you even my husba- nd? Or is this some sick lie you and my brother cooked up? What do you want from me?”
I was genuinely suspicious now. Leo never liked me. It wasn’t a stretch to think he could have sold me to this man. For what purpose, I couldn’t imagine.
Carter fell silent.
His silence was all the confirmation I needed. I drove my foot into his thigh, hard.
As he buckled in pain, I ran.
Once I was clear of the gated community, I called my best friend, Maya.
When she heard my voice, she booked the next flight.
At midnight, I was huddled by a trash can, exhausted and starving, when Maya finally arrived. We just held each other and cried. The reunion was punctuated only by the loud, pathetic grumbling of my stomach.
We checked into a hotel. As I devoured a club sandwich and recounted the sins of my heartless family and my supposed husband, Maya sat across from me, her jaw on the floor.
“Why do you look so surprised?” I asked, mouth full. “Is Carter Prescott really my husband?”
Maya nodded furiously. “You chased him for over a decade, Ava. You were his loyal shadow… you don’t rem-
ember any of it?”
Faint, hazy images flickered at the edge of my mind. “But… didn’t I get together with Ethan in college? I’m not
a cheater. Even if I used to have a crush on Carter, I would never have betrayed Ethan to be with him.”
Maya’s mouth opened, then closed. Her eyes grew red-rimmed. “…It seems you’ve forgotten a lot.”
She pulled me into a hug. “Waking up is what matters. A year ago… you and Claire were both kidnapped. Poisoned. And that psychopath Carter, knowing damn well the whole thing might have been staged by Clai-
re, gave the only antidote to her. You became a vegetable, Ava. It’s a miracle you’re here. Your guardian ange
must have been working overtime.”
She tried for a joke, but her voice broke and the tears started again. “Just forgetting things… maybe it’s for the best. It can only be a good thing for you.”
I nodded against her shoulder. “I’m divorcing him.”
Maya stroked my hair. “Good. Do it now, before you remember anything else. That man doesn’t deserve a second of your time.” She was terrified that if my memory returned, I’d go right back to chasing him.
“Even if I remember, I’m done,” I said, my voice hard. “Claire is pregnant. They had a baby while I was lying in
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a hospital bed. They’re disgusting.”
Hearing the pure contempt in my voice, Maya let out a long, shaky breath. “If I’d known amnesia would turn you into this badass, I would’ve hired a hypnotist years ago to make you forget him.”
“Was I… really that in love with him?” I asked, the idea seeming utterly alien.
Maya gave a sad smile. “It wasn’t love, sweetie. It was an obsession.”
She changed the subject then, clearly unwilling to dredge up painful memories that might trigger a full return
The next afternoon, I woke to the sound of shouting.
Before my eyes were even open, I could hear Maya’s furious voice.
“… the absolute nerve of you! You shameless bitch, sleeping with your own sister’s husband, getting pregna
nt… you make me sick! You’re trash!”
“Oh, don’t you dare play dead with me! There are cameras in this hallway, I haven’t laid a finger on you! Don’ you try to frame me! For all we know, that baby isn’t even Carter’s…”
Maya’s voice grew louder, more frantic.
I scrambled out of bed. In the doorway stood Claire, draped in a white dress, looking pale and fragile. Nex to her was my brother, Leo. As Maya’s insults hit their mark, Leo lunged forward and wrapped his hand arou
nd her throat.
Seeing that, a primal rage erupted in me. I shot across the room and punched my brother square in the eye.
He cried out in pain, stumbling back and letting go of Maya, his hands flying to his face. Maya collapsec against the doorframe, coughing and gasping for air.
I pushed her behind me, turning on Leo. “What the hell are you doing here?” I screamed. “Trying to commi
murder? Get out!”
Suddenly, Claire sank to her knees in front of me, tears streaming down her perfect face. “Ava, why does everyone blame me?” she sobbed. “Carter has only ever loved me. You took advantage of me being overse as, you tricked him into marrying you. And a year ago, you used the kidnapping to hurt yourself, just to avoic divorcing him. You’re the one who’s wrong in all of this…”
Before she could finish, a crisp slap silenced her.
It was followed by two more, just as loud, catching her completely by surprise.
I’d hit her three times. My palm was stinging. “Wow,” I said, shaking my hand out. “Your face is so thick it actually hurts to slap it.”
Behind me, Maya started olapping enthusiastically. “Yes, baby! You’re amazing!”
I shot Maya a look, a silent command. She understood immediately and ducked back into the room to get
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her phone.
Leo, having recovered, saw Claire’s red cheek and roared, “Ava, are you trying to die? How dare you hit Claire
She’s our sister-”
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