Chapter 1

I'd just finished my discharge paperwork when I saw Casper Hale in the hospital courtyard. Sasha Lynch was leaning against him, barely able to hold herself up, the two of them talking in hushed voices.

Then, they noticed me, and Casper's smile dropped instantly. He stepped in front of Sasha, shielding her like he expected me to hurt her.

"What brings you here?" he asked.

The wariness in his gaze sent a cold ripple down my spine.

Sasha tugged gently at his sleeve. "Cas, don't frighten Lis like that."

Before I could answer, she turned to me with an apologetic look. "Lis, please don't get the wrong idea. I got hurt, so Cas is just worried about me."

Casper turned to murmur something reassuring to her, but the second his eyes flicked back to me, his irritation was plain. "What do you want?"

I opened my mouth to speak, then thought better of it and shook my head. "Nothing. I was only passing by."

Casper must've sensed something wasn't right. He took a step closer, his voice unusually soft. "You should head home if there's nothing else. Be careful—especially now, since you're expecting."

Behind him, Sasha glared at me, her face tight with irritation.

I gave a small nod. "I understand."

Casper turned to leave with Sasha. Now her face was full of triumph.

I turned away, my hands settling on my stomach as a deep ache rose inside me. My husband was walking away with another woman. He didn't know I had already lost our baby.

He would've known the truth if he'd just glanced back that day or visited me in the hospital.

I let out a self-deprecating smile. Then, I felt the glass jar in my pocket. My fingers tightened around it as memories rushed in.

The only time Casper ever went with me to the hospital was the day his first love found him. After that, he stopped coming home. He barely even showed up at work, spending all his time with her instead.

My eyes were red from crying when I begged him to spend just one day with me.

But he only said, "Sasha's always been fragile, and now she's hurt and lost her memory. She needs me right now. Don't worry. It's just until she recovers. Nothing else."

Casper promised he'd only help her with 99 wishes. Once those wishes were done, he'd return to me for good. That was when he'd finally keep his old promise—the one to stay with me forever.

Every time he made one of Sasha's wishes come true, I folded a paper star. Seven days ago, I finished the 99th one.

Casper could give Sasha 99 wishes. Would he grant me just one in exchange for all my stars?

I ran to him excitedly, holding the jar tight, only to find him and Sasha wrapped in an embrace. A birthday cake sat on the table, its candles already out.

Then, I heard Casper's soft voice as he said, "I'll make sure every one of your wishes comes true. No matter how many there are, I'll never say no."

I didn't know how I ended up standing in front of them. Right then, nothing else mattered except getting my answer.

My voice wavered just a touch as I asked, "What are you doing?"

As soon as Casper heard me, he let go of Sasha, his eyes flashing with panic. "Lisette, what are you doing here? It's not what it looks like. We weren't—"

Sasha cut him off, tears spilling down her cheeks as she turned to me with a pitiful look, "Lis, please don't get the wrong idea. Cas was just helping me with my wish."

Casper gently comforted Sasha. When his eyes met mine again, they were filled with accusation.

I spoke before he could, "Sorry for interrupting."

I turned and left without a second glance. But I was in such a rush that I didn't notice the truck heading straight for me. It slammed into me, sending me flying onto the pavement.

I expected Casper to come after me, but as I lay there, all I saw was him holding Sasha—she'd cried herself unconscious—while he called for an ambulance.

Later, I was simply loaded into one that happened to be close by. Meanwhile, Casper had already taken Sasha to the hospital himself.

When I woke up later, the doctors told me I'd lost the baby. All I had left were tears and this hollow, aching grief.

I decided to set myself free by stepping aside and letting Casper and Sasha be together.

Chapter 2

I didn't want to dwell on it anymore.

Sasha's laughter cut through the air behind me, sharp and grating. Without thinking, I sped up.

The house had been empty ever since Casper was hardly around anymore. Most days, it was just me and our maid, Barbara Lopez.

Barbara heard me walk in and came out smiling, but her face fell the second she saw how pale I was. "Lis, you were gone so long. Are you sick? You look terrible."

Even Barbara was worried about me. Why couldn't Casper ever care that much? He hadn't even asked if I was okay.

I gave her a weak smile, trying to ease her mind. "I'm fine, Barbara. Why don't you go ahead and start cooking? I'm getting a little hungry."

"Right, right. I'll make your favorite soup. That'll fix you right up."

And with that, she bustled off to the kitchen.

I took out the jar of stars and placed it on the table, staring at it absently as my thoughts drifted.

Then, the doorbell rang. I opened the door to find Casper's mother, Alyssa Ashby, standing there.

The second she saw me, she gasped. "Good heavens, Lis! You look awful!"

Without waiting for my response, she guided me inside and sat me down. She was all set to march me straight to the hospital until I stopped her.

"You're pregnant. You need to be careful. Where's Casper? Shouldn't he be here with you? His father and I thought he'd been staying home to look after you since he's barely been at work lately. You weren't going to tell me if Barbara hadn't called?"

Alyssa's kindness warmed my heart. I wasn't sure how to answer her, but then Barbara appeared with a bowl of my favorite soup.

"Lis, I hope you don't mind me speaking up. I was just worried about you."

I smiled and shook my head. "No, of course not, Barbara."

Just then, the door opened, and Casper walked in.

He seemed surprised to see us. "Mom, what are you doing here?"

Alyssa's tone made her disapproval clear. "You're seriously asking me that? Where have you been? Why weren't you here with Lis?"

Casper hesitated, fumbling for a reply. "I've had things going on."

"What could be more important than Lis right now? She's pregnant, Casper. And was there really no one else who could handle it? Did you have to go yourself?"

I held Alyssa's hand and spoke up for Casper, "It's fine. Just let him go if he's busy. I'll be okay."

He gave me a guilty look. "Thanks, Lis."

I wasn't sure if he was thanking me for covering for him or for not calling him out.

"Whatever happens tonight, you're not leaving," Alyssa warned. "You stay with Lis."

"But…" He choked on the word, too ashamed to argue.

…

Only one wall lamp was still on in the bedroom. Its weak glow washed my face in an even paler light.

Casper pushed the door open and perched carefully on the edge of the bed. "Lis, Sasha's still waiting for me. She can't be alone."

I kept quiet and took out the jar of stars.

"What's this?" he asked, sounding confused.

"99 stars. I finished folding them."

Casper paused for a second. "Has it really been 99 times?"

"So, you're still leaving?"

My voice was almost pleading, but he didn't waver. "Lis, Sasha lost her memory. I can't just leave her. You get that, right? I swear—once she's better, I'll make sure she's gone. After that, it's only you. Okay?"

How could I stop him? His leaving was already decided, just like mine.

I nodded and said, "I'd like a baby anklet as a gift for our child."

He gently stroked my hair and said, "Okay, I promise. When I get back, we'll go to the baby store together and pick out everything our little one needs."

The moment the door closed behind him, the muffled crying in the room grew even clearer. I turned on the lamp and pulled the stack of medical reports from the drawer.

At first, those test results had brought happy tears—the pure joy of expecting my first baby. Now, I was crying over them again, but every tear was filled with grief this time.

Chapter 3

Beneath the medical reports was a yellowed letter—the one Casper had handwritten when he confessed his feelings to me.

I ran my fingers lightly over his elegant script. The man who wrote this wasn't the same now. These days, all he saw was Sasha.

Suddenly, the door flew open, and Casper stepped in. He stopped short when he saw my tear-streaked face.

"Why are you crying?" he asked.

He moved closer, reaching out to wipe my tears, but I turned my head away.

Casper seemed a little lost. "Are you okay, Lis?"

I nodded. "I'm fine. I just remembered the day I found out I was going to have my own baby."

He spotted the letter in my hand and went still.

A jolt of panic hit me, and I stuffed it away quickly. "I grabbed it by mistake earlier when I was looking for something."

He gave me a skeptical look. "You shouldn't cry so much, especially now that you're pregnant."

"I'm fine. Don't worry." I changed the subject. "Why are you back, anyway?"

"I need some clean clothes. Oh, and I meant to ask—what do you want engraved on the baby's anklet?"

I blinked, surprised he even cared.

"How about 'Forever Blessed'?" Casper suggested.

I looked down at my belly, a dull ache settling in my chest. "Up to you."

It wasn't so bad. Maybe we'd each find our own kind of blessing now.

Casper finished gathering his things and turned to me. "Are you sure you're okay?"

The way he looked at me made my stupid heart hope again. "What if I'm not? Would you stay?"

He gave an awkward little laugh. "Lis, don't. Sasha's waiting. I don't want her worrying."

"Just kidding. Go."

The voice in my head taunted me, twisting the knife deeper. Why did I keep expecting anything from him? I needed to stop.

I got up and started packing, trying not to think. But the tears came anyway, dragging all those old memories with them.

I set my packed bags aside and noticed the jar of stars from the corner of my eye. Each one held a hope I'd carefully folded into existence, but Casper had shattered them all.

I picked out a single star, gently unfolding it until it lay flat in my palm. That was when I saw the ring on my finger. He'd made it for me years ago, just like he promised.

"I'll make you a ring unlike any other," he'd said.

…

The next morning, I woke up to a text from Casper. He said the baby anklet was ready and asked me to come pick it up.

I hadn't even known he and Sasha had moved from the hospital to a new place until that moment. And now, here I stood in front of an unfamiliar door, ringing the bell.

Someone showed me to the yard where Sasha was swaying gently on a swing.

She looked like some princess that Casper had wrapped in cotton wool—completely carefree, like nothing could ever disturb her peace. I couldn't help feeling just the smallest twinge of envy.

I steadied myself and kept my voice even. "Where's Casper?"

Sasha turned to me, her face lighting up with that smug look like she'd won everything. "Oh, Lis, you came for the baby anklet, didn't you?"

I just hummed in response.

She walked toward me, her grin growing wider, and that was when I noticed the delicate anklet dangling from her necklace.

"I liked it, so I had Cas give it to me. You can always ask him to make you another one."

That triumphant look on her face hit me like a punch to the gut.

My baby would never be born, and all I'd wanted was this anklet made just for them. How could Casper just give it away to her without a second thought?

All that old pain came flooding back.

I never asked him for anything. I even walked away so he could be with Sasha. I loved him enough to forgive almost anything, but this? This was too much.

That was supposed to be our baby's anklet!

Rage tore through me, shaking me so hard that I could barely keep myself in check.

When I looked at Sasha again, my eyes were bloodshot and blazing. She actually recoiled when she saw my face. My palm cracked against her cheek before she could blink.

Her hand flew to her cheek. "How dare you!"

"That was for my baby."

I couldn't bear to look at her another second. And Casper? I never wanted to lay eyes on him again.

As I walked away, the only sound was Sasha's sobs behind me.

Casper came running when he heard her crying, his chest tightening at the sight. "Sasha? What happened? Who did this to you?"

Seizing the moment while Casper's attention was elsewhere, Sasha yanked the baby anklet off her necklace and shoved it into her pocket.

Tears streamed down her face as she choked out, "It was Lis. She came for the anklet, but I told her I didn't know where it was. She accused me of losing it and hit me."

Casper felt his temper rise as he took in her story. Sasha was quick to brush it off, insisting she was okay. But then, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.

Why would I hit her for no good reason?

"It really hurts, Cas," Sasha whimpered.

He murmured soft words of comfort, but the unease kept growing.

Before he could dwell on it, a maid interrupted, "Dr. Lawson is here."

Casper turned to Sasha. "You've never liked hospitals, so I had my personal doctor come here instead. That way, we can avoid going back to the hospital."

Dr. Lawson gave Sasha a quick examination before pulling out a medical record from his bag. He'd just collected it from the hospital.

"I got Ms. Lynch's file earlier. After reviewing everything, I can confirm she'll make a full recovery as long as she avoids emotional stress. You can rest easy, Mr. Hale."

Casper let out a relieved sigh.

Dr. Lawson then produced another medical record. "However, Mrs. Hale will require closer monitoring. I happened to come across her records while I was there, so I brought them with me.

"She needs to be very careful about her health now. If she doesn't, there could be lasting effects that might complicate any future pregnancies."

Casper's forehead creased in confusion. "What do you mean? Is she sick or something?"

"Ms. Moore recently had a miscarriage. She needs proper rest and recovery—"

"A miscarriage?" Casper's voice sliced through the air before Dr. Lawson could finish. "What are you talking about? Who had a miscarriage?"

Dr. Lawson froze, taken aback by his outburst. "Didn't you know about it, Mr. Hale? Ms. Moore lost the baby a week ago."

Casper's whole body locked up. He couldn't process why I'd hide this from him.

Without warning, he grabbed the report from Dr. Lawson's hands. And there it was, my miscarriage records from one week ago staring back at him.

One week ago...

His thoughts tumbled over each other as he tried to recall everything from that time.