Chapter 1

Selena's nostrils were filled with the thick scent of antiseptic. Dazed, she grabbed her phone when she heard it ringing next to her.

A serious voice echoed from the receiver. "Hello, is this Ms. Selena Lowe? Your daughter just tried to take her own life by ingesting sleeping pills. We've rushed her to the hospital, and we're in the process of saving her life.

"We need you to transfer 50,000 dollars to the hospital. If you're free, you need to rush over to Chamberville Hospital right now—"

Selena jolted awake. She was about to get out of bed when excruciating pain shot through her hands and legs. It was only then that she noticed that her hands and legs were in casts, making for a pathetic sight.

It was her 20th birthday yesterday. She had gone out with her friends to go racing, but she vaguely remembered crashing her car into a tree. Had she been sent to the hospital after the accident?

She couldn't believe her luck. She was already in such a pitiful state, and yet she was still getting harassed by scammers.

When Selena snapped back to her senses, she asked coldly, "Miss, don't you check a person's background before trying to scam them anymore?

"I just turned 20 yesterday. I'm barely over the minimum age of marriage, so why the hell would I have a daughter? You're better off telling me that my father jumped off a building.

"If you want to try scamming me again next time, call me in the afternoon. Don't call me in the morning and ruin my beauty sleep. It's very unethical of you."

She didn't wait for the other person to respond before hanging up and tossing her phone aside.

A few moments later, Selena heard a set of hurried footsteps thundering outside the room.

"Bad news, Mrs. Cole! Louisa's teacher just called and informed us that she never showed up at school. Her phone has been unreachable too. I also just received a call from the hospital claiming that they're currently saving her life!"

A shrewd-looking, middle-aged woman pushed open the door anxiously. "I went upstairs just now. Louisa's really in the operating room. You need to head upstairs right now!"

Selena stared at the woman, utterly bewildered. She was convinced that her eyes were playing tricks on her.

"Mr. Hart?" she asked in a hesitant tone.

Cynthia Hart was one of Elijah Cole's housekeepers. Why was she addressing Selena as "Mrs. Cole"?

Cynthia didn't seem to notice that anything was amiss. She hesitated momentarily before saying, "Mrs. Cole, Louisa is your flesh and blood. Even if you don't care about Mr. Cole's feelings, you shouldn't—"

Selena stared blankly at Cynthia. She turned completely dumbfounded when she glanced at the screen of her phone.

Yesterday, her phone's wallpaper still featured a male celebrity who debuted not long ago. Why did it turn into a wedding photo today?

She was leaning against a man's embrace in the photo, cradling a bouquet of pure white flowers in her arms. As for the man, it was none other than Elijah, her sworn enemy.

Selena's first reaction was that she must still be dazed from sleep. She would rather marry a beggar from the streets than marry a bastard like Elijah. She pinched herself, hard. A red mark appeared immediately on her leg, causing her to grit her teeth in pain.

She had just celebrated her 20th birthday in the bar the day before. Could it be that her friends were playing a prank on her?

In her confusion, Selena finally noticed that the phone she had answered just now wasn't the iPhone 3GS that she had just bought. The phone's screen was twice as large as the 3GS.

Her mind went blank when she tapped into the homescreen—the date was 5th September 2025.

She had just lost 17 years' worth of memories without rhyme or reason.

Selena lifted her head to look at Cynthia. "Are you telling me that I married Elijah, and we have a daughter together?"

"You… You don't remember?" Cynthia asked in a bewildered tone.

Selena wondered what else she was supposed to remember.

Cynthia was at a loss for what to do as she stared at Selena's confused expression. "You fell a few days ago. The doctor said that you suffered severe brain trauma. Perhaps you can't remember because you just woke up."

She mulled over her thoughts for a few seconds before asking, "Shall I ask the doctor to conduct a check-up for you?"

Selena's head was buzzing as she gripped the blanket. So the phone call earlier wasn't a scam? Her daughter had tried to take her own life?

Although she hated Elijah, she had carried that child in her belly for ten months before bringing her into this world. Just the thought that her life was in danger made Selena's heart twist in her chest.

Putting aside the fact that she was suffering from memory loss, Selena swiftly got out of bed and said, "Bring me a wheelchair. I want to check on my daughter's condition first."

Cynthia immediately sprang into action.

Selena grabbed her phone while she was waiting for Cynthia to return. She wanted to find out what had happened in the last 17 years. She didn't have many photos or messages on her phone, so she scrolled through her Twitter feed. She was surprised to discover that Elijah wasn't on her list of followers.

In the end, she discovered that she had blocked him. When she tapped on their chat log, the last message was a system notification that read, "You and Elijah are following each other now. You can start a conversation with him."

Selena was rendered speechless and couldn't help but wonder whether they were really married. It even seemed that she shared a closer bond with the cleaners in her area.

After looking through her feed, she finally got the answers that she was looking for. Firstly, although she and Elijah didn't seem to be close, they had three children together.

The one who tried to take her own life was their youngest daughter, Louisa Cole. They also had a pair of twins before Louisa—Samuel Cole and Sebastian Cole.

Secondly, Elijah was currently the president of Phenomenal Group, which meant that he controlled her company.

An idea surfaced in Selena's thoughts. Even though she hated Elijah, she had to admit that he was good-looking and intelligent.

Perhaps she finally managed to take back her assets from her useless father, Gregory Lowe, and had gotten Elijah to marry her to help her run the company? However, the wedding photo on her phone suggested that she liked him a lot.

Perhaps she had been blinded by her love for him and forced him to marry her? But Elijah hadn't been grateful for what she had done.

Just then, Cynthia finally returned with the wheelchair.

Selena snapped out of her thoughts. She pocketed her phone and headed upstairs. She learned that not only did Louisa ingest sleeping pills, but she had also slit her wrists. If she had arrived at the hospital even a second later, she would have lost her life.

Selena couldn't help but clench her fists. Louisa was only 15 years old. What terrible thing happened to her that drove her to end her own life?

She wasn't sure how much time had passed before she heard the elevator ding behind her.

A tall man, who was dressed in a suit, walked over to her. He frowned deeply when he spotted her as if he couldn't believe his eyes. "Selena? What are you doing here?"

Selena was also stunned. Could the newcomer be Elijah?

He had undergone a tremendous change in the past 16 years. He used to always keep his head down and look gloomy, but now he carried himself with the demeanor of an elite in the business world.

His handsome features were as eye-catching as ever. He was wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, which made him look refined and composed. Although he must be close to his forties, he didn't look old at all.

However, when Selena snapped back to her senses, rage began burning hotly in her chest. How dare he ask her why she was there? He hadn't asked about her being admitted to the hospital, and he had arrived so late, even though Louisa had tried to take her own life. Did he have any humanity in him?

She stormed over to him in her slippers and retorted, "Something terrible happened to my daughter. Where else would I be if not here? She's only 15 years old, but she tried to take her own life!

"You useless jackass! Don't you care about your wife or kids? I was admitted to the hospital, but you were still engrossed in your work. I won't forgive you if anything happens to Louisa!"

Elijah's frown deepened as the coldness in his eyes intensified.

Selena had been admitted to the hospital because she had jumped off a building over another man. He had rushed to the hospital as soon as he could, only for her to chase him away. Why was she accusing him of neglecting her now?

Elijah's voice turned even frostier at the mention of Louisa. "Instead of asking me how I raised the children, Selena, why don't you reflect on the things that you've done?

"You'd better pray that Louisa's going to get through this. If anything happens to her, I'm going to make that Shaw bastard and his entire family pay!"

Selena was stunned. From the tone of his voice, she could tell that her relationship with Elijah was indeed strained. But who was "the Shaw bastard" that he mentioned? Was he the reason why Louisa had tried to end her life?

She clenched her fists and was about to say something when the doors to the emergency room swung open.

"Is Louisa Cole's family here? We've managed to save her life. Her condition is stable, but she has to remain in the hospital for now. She needs someone to watch over her—"

"I'll do it," Selena said without any hesitation. "Can we see her now?"

The nurse nodded. "Of course. Please follow me."

Selena was about to follow her when she felt a hand wrap around her wrist.

Elijah's lips were pressed into a tight line as he stared at her. "What are you up to this time, Selena? I'm willing to get a divorce if that's what you want, but the kids are innocent. How could you be so cruel to them when they're your own flesh and blood?"

Chapter 2

Selena didn't understand a single thing Elijah was saying. "How dare you say such a thing to me, Elijah?"

She couldn't hold back her anger anymore and grabbed his tie. "What do you mean, I want a divorce? You're my phone wallpaper! You blocked me on Twitter, and you don't even take care of me normally. How dare you turn this around and accuse me of wanting a divorce?

"Also, I gave birth to Louisa. What can I possibly do to her? It's your fault for not raising her properly. Just look at how you're behaving now. God knows how you usually teach them!"

Cynthia was stunned by Selena's words. Did she really just accuse Elijah of framing her? Also, as far as Cynthia knew, Selena had switched her phone wallpaper to her wedding photo to beg Elijah to invest in Shaw Corporation.

Elijah frowned deeply as he stared at Selena in disbelief. Confusion was written all over his face as he studied her fierce gaze.

Despite how they had been married for many years, it was the first time he had ever seen Selena look so alive. Every time she saw him, she would either smile at him mockingly or show him a gloomy expression. Sometimes, she would even outright ignore him.

The only time she ever lost her temper at him was when she had fed sleeping pills to the children because she wanted to look for Jordan Shaw. In a fit of anger, he had ordered his men to break Jordan's legs.

Selena reacted terribly, destroying everything in the house as if she had lost her mind. She had even pointed a knife at his chest and screamed, "I'll never fall for you, even if you die, Elijah! I feel disgusted with myself just thinking about how I had children with someone like you!

"I'm going to kill those three brats if you dare touch Jordan again. I'll make you regret it for the rest of your life!"

Selena was behaving completely differently at that moment.

The tension in the air broke when they heard the nurse let out a surprised gasp from within the ward. "Ms. Cole, you're not supposed to get up yet!"

Elijah snapped back to his senses. He pushed Selena's hand aside and strode into the ward.

Selena also forgot about arguing with him as she maneuvered her wheelchair into the ward.

Louisa was lying on the hospital bed. She looked to be around 14 years old. Her complexion was pallid, and her arms were as thin as sticks. She looked like she was suffering from malnutrition. Her wrists were already bandaged, but the blood seeping through the gauze still made for a shocking sight.

Selena's eye twitched when she noticed the knife wounds littering her arms. It seemed that it wasn't the first time Louisa had tried to take her own life.

The nurse was pressing down on Louisa's shoulders. Tears streamed down Louisa's face as she cried out hoarsely, "Let me go! I don't want to stay here!"

"Louisa Cole!" Elijah roared with an icy expression. "What do you think you're doing?

Fear flickered across Louisa's face when she spotted Elijah. "Dad…"

"Why did you try to take your own life?" Elijah asked as he strode over to her.

His eyes were devoid of warmth, but there was a barely discernible glint of concern and heartache in them. "Have you forgotten the lessons I taught you? Why did you try to take your own life just because of some insignificant matter?"

Louisa hung her head. She bit her lip harshly but wasn't brave enough to respond.

Selena gritted her teeth at the sight. What was Elijah thinking by talking to Louisa that way when she had already resorted to slitting her wrists? Not only did he not show any concern or comfort her, but he even started scolding her.

"Get out of the way! If you don't know what to say, then keep your mouth shut!" Selena snapped.

She wheeled herself over to the bed and shoved Elijah aside with her uninjured hand. But when she looked at Louisa lying on the bed, her words suddenly got stuck in her throat.

The only memories she had were up to her 20th birthday, so she had no idea what to say to the unfamiliar young woman in front of her, who was supposed to be her daughter.

The awkwardness in the air was palpable.

Selena rubbed her palms together before asking, "Are you alright? Does it hurt? Can you tell me what happened?"

She didn't expect Louisa to reflexively scoot backward after seeing her, unbridled fear and loathing flickering in her eyes.

"I'm fine. I don't need your concern," Louisa said icily, turning her head away.

She then burrowed herself in the blankets before showing her back to Selena, making it blatantly obvious that she didn't want to talk to her.

Selena was dumbfounded by her reaction. Did Louisa hate her that much? Was there some sort of misunderstanding between them?

The atmosphere in the ward turned tense.

Cynthia looked between Selena and Elijah, looking as if she had something to say. "Mr. and Mrs. Cole, why don't I stay to take care of Louisa? Mr. Cole is usually busy with work, and Mrs. Cole is unable to care for Louisa in her current condition. She should go back and focus on recovering."

Elijah clenched his fists. He was silent for a long time before he turned around and left the ward.

Selena opened her mouth a few times, but in the end, she lowered her head and also left. She wondered if she had made a terrible mistake for Louisa to be so repulsed by her. She bit her lip as she exited the ward and saw Elijah lighting a cigarette with his back to her.

She could see a few strands of grey hair sticking out from the back of his head, making him look a little haggard. Although she didn't really want to talk to him, she knew she had no other choice but to do so.

She hesitated for a moment before approaching him and poking his waist.

Elijah was frowning when he turned his head. His eyes darkened when he noticed it was her. "What do you want?"

Although Selena was disgruntled with his frosty attitude, she suppressed her irritation and said, "Let's have a civilized chat, Elijah. I know you might not like me, and that you might have been forced to marry me, but we already have kids together. It won't do us any good to fight like this, right?

"I don't care if you want a divorce or something else. Let's solve Louisa's issue first, okay?"

Elijah looked as if he had just seen a ghost. He clenched his fists before asking, "Did you hit your head, Selena?"

"Oh? You really are smart. The doctor didn't tell you?"

Elijah looked at Selena, confused.

"I'm suffering from memory loss. I have no idea what happened in the last few years," Selena explained. "To show my sincerity, we can sign a divorce agreement first.

"Once Louisa's issue is resolved, I promise that I'll cooperate with the divorce proceedings. We'll split the assets fairly. I definitely won't try to cheat you.

"I'm also willing to take the kids if you don't want them. Besides, it doesn't seem like you care about them all that much. But I hope that you'll work with me until the issue is resolved. Sounds good?"

Elijah's eyes darkened as he stared at Selena.

She was suffering from memory loss?

"What's the last thing you remember?" he asked.

Chapter 3

Selena didn't think anything was wrong with Elijah's question. "My 20th birthday," she answered honestly.

Elijah slowly curled his hands into fists.

That bastard, Jordan, hadn't saved her yet when she was 20 years old. If he hadn't saved her, she wouldn't have become so adamant about being with him regardless of the consequences.

His fingers trembled slightly, though his face was still a mask of calm as he said, "Okay. I agree with your terms."

Selena almost couldn't believe how easy it had been to convince him. However, before she regained her composure, Elijah continued, "But I have my own conditions too. You have to cooperate with me when I need you to.

"For example, I still need you to attend certain public and business events with me. You need to play the role of my wife while we're out and about, and you're not allowed to have any inappropriate interactions with the opposite sex."

Selena didn't hesitate for even a second before she nodded. "No problem. Can you give me a brief overview of our and our kids' situation?"

Just as Elijah was about to speak, he suddenly recalled something and subconsciously clenched his fists. It wasn't the right time to tell her yet.

"Sure," he said.

"But I have a very important meeting to attend now, and I might even need to travel abroad for work in the next few days.

"I'll have my assistant compile a document for you regarding what the children have been up to. I need to return to the company for now," he added nonchalantly.

Although Selena was a little displeased, she didn't say a word after taking in his weary appearance. She nodded before heading back to Louisa's ward to sneak a glance at her.

Louisa was sleeping quietly, which made her look incredibly obedient. She looked a little like Selena when she was still a child, but her eyes were just like Elijah's.

Being related by blood was such a curious thing. Even though Louisa was, by all intents and purposes, a total stranger to Selena, she couldn't help but feel close to her. She stayed outside the ward, watching over Louisa for a while before deciding to go home.

Since Louisa wasn't willing to communicate with her at that moment, she would just have to figure out what was going on using other methods. Perhaps her memory would even return when she was in a familiar environment, like her home.

Selena asked Cynthia to arrange for the driver to send her home. 30 minutes later, the car slowed to a stop in front of a magnificent manor. After confirming with the driver that they were in the right place, Selena stared at the manor with wide eyes and a slackened jaw.

Although she had grown up with a silver spoon in her mouth, her family had never been wealthy enough to afford such a luxurious manor. In fact, the size of the manor seemed to be even bigger than the entire villa estate her old home had been in.

Selena alighted from the car a little nervously. She was just about to enter the manor when a concerned voice called out to her from behind her.

"How are you, Selena?"

Confused, Selena turned her head and saw a tall and familiar-looking man approaching her. Worry was written all over his face.

"I was so worried when I heard that something had happened to you. But Mr. Cole ordered my partners to keep pressuring me, so I couldn't find the time to visit you in the hospital."

The man stood before her with a sincere expression. He then reached out and tried to take her hand. "Don't be angry with me, Selena, okay?"

Meanwhile, Selena had no idea what he was talking about. From the tone of his voice, it seemed that they shared a friendly relationship. Perhaps they were business partners? He did look rather familiar, but he also seemed to be unaware of their boundaries.

She let out an awkward laugh before taking a step back to avoid his hand. "Don't worry about it. You should do what you need to do. It's inconvenient for you to drop by the hospital anyway."

Jordan was stunned by her words. He stared at her in disbelief, asking, "What did you say, Selena?"

Selena did her best to present herself as a wife of the upper crust. "You're busy with work, aren't you? There's no need for you to visit me. Work is work, and life is life. I'm also the type of person who isn't very fond of empty formalities. You didn't have to go out of your way to visit me."

Jordan stared unblinkingly at her, looking shocked and upset. "Why are you suddenly treating me this way, Selena? Did I do something wrong? Are you angry with me?"

He tried to grab her again. "I can change if I did something that made you unhappy. Don't throw me aside, okay?"

Selena couldn't keep up the act any longer. "Sir, I'm a married woman."

She then gave Jordan a once-over. She looked rather disgruntled when she continued, "If you're my husband's business partner, you should know to maintain a respectable distance from me. How can you not know something as simple as this when you're a businessman?

"Or are you trying to seduce me? Let me tell you now that it's not going to work with your looks."

Jordan's expression darkened. As he scrutinized Selena, a preposterous idea floated to the forefront of his thoughts. Could it be that Selena didn't know who he was?

"Selena. It's me, Jordan Shaw," he said, testing out the waters. "Do you remember me?"

"Jordan Shaw?"

The name did sound familiar to Selena. The gears in her brain whirred rapidly as she combed through her memories to try to figure out who the man was. "Oh! I remember you now!"

"That's great, Selena," Jordan said, breathing out a sigh of relief.

However, his happiness was short-lived. Selena's following words made him feel like she had dunked a bucket of cold water over his head.

"We used to be classmates, right? I remember donating some money to you during our university days."

Selena studied the expensive-looking suit he wore and the Patek Philippe watch on his wrist. "I never expected you to be such a capable person. Looks like you're doing quite well for yourself. Let's keep in touch since we were classmates. I have other business to attend to, so I'm leaving now."

She then turned around and prepared to enter the manor after saying her piece.

Although they were acquainted with each other, she wasn't particularly close to Jordan, so it still felt a little awkward to hold a conversation with him. On top of that, he had been spouting nonsense. She also didn't like that he had no boundaries.

However, Selena didn't expect Jordan to grasp her wrist.

"How can you forget me?" he demanded. "What about the memories and feelings we shared for the past few years?"

He stared at Selena, looking like he was on the verge of a breakdown. "Did Elijah do something to you?"

The roar of a motorcycle filled her ears before Selena could snap back to her senses. A few seconds later, a modified Ducati motorcycle screeched to a stop in front of her.

The young man on the motorcycle had silver hair and was balancing a cigarette between his thin lips. He didn't say a word as he grabbed the back of Jordan's collar and stuffed the cigarette into his shirt.

The young man was handsome and arrogant, which Selena found extremely attractive. However, before she could get a good look at his features, he started cursing up a storm. "You stupid motherfucker. My day is ruined just looking at you."

Chapter 4

Selena was still admiring the silver-haired man's good looks when she heard him cursing up a storm, making her frown. He was undeniably handsome, but he also seemed to be rather uncultured.

The man's eyes were filled with loathing and animosity when he looked at her, which made Selena anxious, even though she didn't know why. She shimmied over to the driver under the man's scrutiny and asked quietly, "Who is he?"

"You… You don't recognize him, Mrs. Cole? That's Sebastian."

The driver wasn't privy to the fact that Selena was suffering from memory loss, so he was utterly flabbergasted by her question.

"Sebastian? He's my son?"

Selena had just been curious about the man, who was daring enough to act so arrogantly in front of Elijah's home. She never would have guessed that he was her own son.

She stepped forward slowly and pinched Sebastian's ear. She didn't use too much strength when she twisted it, but it was obvious that she wasn't joking around. "Who taught you to curse like that? You're still so young, and yet you're already smoking and cursing. Did Elijah raise you to behave like this?"

Elijah had sent her the document detailing what the kids were like while she was on the way to the manor. She hadn't had the time to look through it yet, which almost got her caught in a disaster. She couldn't believe that she had been admiring her own son's good looks just seconds ago.

Selena felt guilty just thinking about it.

Sebastian hissed in pain as he turned to look at Selena's stern face, looking like she was going to discipline him any moment now. His eyes narrowed as if he had seen a ghost. "You… How dare you twist my ear?"

In the 16 years that he had been alive, Serena had only had eyes for Jordan. Not once did she ever spare a glance in Sebastian's or Samuel's way, let alone teach them. It was why her actions that day turned Sebastian's entire world upside down.

He knocked her hand away and took several steps backward. He then whipped his phone out and dialed Elijah's number.

"Dad!" Sebastian exclaimed, sounding impatient, shocked, and troubled.

"Selena's lost her mind! She twisted my ear just now and forbade me from cursing. She even criticized you for not raising me properly!"

Elijah's expression darkened. "You were cursing?" he demanded in a low voice.

Sebastian felt as if his heart had plummeted into his gut upon hearing Elijah's question. "Not really…" he stammered.

Elijah drummed his fingertips on the desk lightly as if he were drumming them directly on Sebastian instead. His voice was devoid of any emotion when he said, "She finally came to her senses. She'll treat you and the others well from now on."

Sebastian sneered. His eyes were filled with suspicion and disdain. "I don't believe you. This must be her new scheme to get more money. If you didn't stop her last time, she would have taken the shares you gave me and sold them to Jordan. Why's she pretending to be a good person now?"

Selena, who was standing to the side, could hear everything he was saying with crystal clarity. She felt her heart drop into her gut. She had no idea she had been so despicable in the past. She clenched her fists as she waited for Sebastian to wrap up his conversation with Elijah before approaching him.

"You're not an adult yet, so you're not allowed to ride the motorcycle anymore. It's too dangerous."

Selena did her best to soften her tone, wanting to show Sebastian that she was being a good mother.

However, Sebastian simply arched an eyebrow at her. He shot an indifferent look at her and said, "This doesn't concern you. Besides, you can't tell me what to do."

He then turned around and prepared to get on the motorcycle.

Selena felt a little disgruntled at his arrogant behavior. She got an idea when she recalled how cool she used to feel riding the fake motorcycles in the arcade. She then stepped forward, grabbed the handlebars, and prepared to get on.

"I can't tell you what to do? I'll just have to ride your bike away then. That way, you won't be able to ride it anymore!"

Sebastian arched his eyebrow again, looking at her suspiciously and mockingly. He let go of the handlebars and stood in place, waiting for the rest of the scene to unfold.

At first, Selena had planned to put on a show for Sebastian, but she immediately regretted her decision the moment she touched the handlebars. She had no clue how to ride an actual motorcycle. On top of that, her legs were still crippled.

The motorcycle's weight immediately began to tilt in Selena's direction after Sebastian let go of the handlebars. There was no way her thin and frail body could withstand its weight. She lost her balance and started to stagger to the floor with the motorcycle pushing her down.

Fortunately, Sebastian had quick reflexes. He grabbed Selena by the scruff of her neck and hauled her up. He breathed a sigh of relief after making sure that she was unharmed. If she had gotten injured, it was highly likely that she would have pinned the blame on him.

Selena felt unbearably awkward and scrambled for excuses to explain herself.

"That's enough. Stop making a fool out of yourself," Sebastian said.

Sebastian rolled his eyes at her and threw her back into the car, telling the driver to drive both of them back to the manor.

Samuel was waiting for them in the living room when they finally made it back to the manor. He was the spitting image of Elijah, but his demeanor was a little different. He was dressed in a white shirt and wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. His fringe partially covered his eyes, making him look refined.

He rose to his feet when he saw Selena and greeted her politely. "Mom, you're back."

Selena looked between her two sons. One of them was gentle and refined, while the other was unruly and rebellious. She was so captivated that she couldn't help but let out an amazed noise. "My genes must be amazing for giving birth to such handsome sons!"

Soft laughter resounded from the door the moment the words left her lips.

"You're as thick-skinned as ever, even though you lost your memory."

It was Elijah. He was leaning against the doorframe and looking at her darkly.

Selena glared at him. "What are you doing here?" she asked irritably.

Elijah arched an eyebrow. "I came back to see how you're going to treat the kids," he answered.

He looked like he was there to supervise her every action, giving off the impression that he was afraid that she would start abusing the kids if he so much as blinked.

Selena rolled her eyes at him and said heatedly, "I want to talk to my sons in private. Please make yourself scarce."

Elijah didn't say a word as he retreated to his study, leaving Sebastian and Samuel to exchange glances with each other. Sebastian was wearing a wary expression, looking as if he was bracing himself for whatever heinous act Selena was going to commit against him.

Selena looked at them.

"I'm suffering from memory loss," she explained uneasily and awkwardly. "I don't remember anything that happened in the past. I… Did I do a lot of things that made you upset?"

Sebastian didn't answer her. He simply scrutinized her suspiciously as if he was trying to verify the truth in her words.

Meanwhile, Samuel pushed his glasses up his nose before saying in a calm and distant voice, "You would always put Mr. Shaw first, Mom. You rarely took our needs into consideration—"

"That's enough, Sam. It's pointless to explain what happened to her. Don't tell me she can't tell whether she mistreated us in the past just from what's happening right now."

An uncomfortable feeling spread through Selena at the way Sebastian and Samuel were treating her. Her eyes reddened as she said, "I wronged you in the past. I'll be a good mother from now on. Please forgive me."

Both Sebastian and Samuel were stunned by Selena's reaction. Sebastian turned his head away and didn't say a word. Resentment was written all over his face, but the tips of his ears had turned slightly pink.

Samuel nodded after looking into her eyes that were overflowing with sincerity, looking as gentle as ever.

Chapter 5

Selena returned to her room and spent the entire night looking through Sebastian, Samuel's, and Louisa's information. She committed their personalities and preferences to heart and was determined to personally prepare breakfast for them the next morning to make it up to them.

However, the next morning, Elijah, Sebastian, and Samuel hesitated to start eating after sitting down at the table.

Both the eggs and bread were burned, while the soup had taken on a strange, sticky texture.

Sebastian frowned at the food on the table that was clearly inedible. He couldn't help himself and asked, "Are you sure these are edible? You're not trying to secretly poison us, are you?"

Selena scratched her head, feeling a little embarrassed.

"I… This is my first time preparing a meal. They might not look good, but I followed the recipe closely, so the taste should be alright. Why don't you have a bite?" she asked, looking at them expectantly.

Samuel and Sebastian exchanged looks with each other. They weren't brave enough to risk their stomach.

On the other hand, Elijah picked up a sandwich and took a bite. His face twisted into a strange expression before Selena could ask him how it tasted. His Adam's apple bobbed as he tried to swallow it. In the end, he jumped to his feet, dashed to the bathroom, and began retching loudly.

"Why the hell did you add hot sauce to the sandwich, Selena?" Sebastian asked.

"I'm sorry… I thought that was salad dressing…"

"What did I tell you, Sam? This woman is trying to kill us!"

Both Sebastian and Samuel looked at Selena with horrified expressions.

Selena looked at Elijah's back and asked awkwardly, "Does it really taste that bad?"

Elijah was too busy throwing up to answer her.

Selena's face began to burn under their scrutinizing gazes. She picked up one of the sandwiches and took a bite. She just wanted to do something nice to make it up to Sebastian and Samuel, but she couldn't even do something as simple as prepare breakfast for them.

As guilt festered in her heart, the bitter taste from the burnt bread and the intense spiciness of the hot sauce began to spread in her mouth, making her stomach turn. She dashed into the bathroom, gripped the toilet, and began retching as well to the point that tears began to bead at the corner of her eyes.

Sebastian clicked his tongue. "I guess it really does taste horrible," he said as he handed a glass of warm water to her.

After Selena was done rinsing the disgusting taste from her mouth, she looked up to Sebastian, sneering at her mockingly. She felt unbearably awkward and wished that the ground would open up and swallow her whole.

She grabbed her phone and mumbled, "We can't eat these. I'll just order some food."

"No need."

Elijah had already recovered. He strode out of the bathroom and placed a hand on her wrist to stop her. "Let's just go out."

30 minutes later, the black car stopped in front of a high-class restaurant in the heart of the city.

After finding out that there was a newly-opened skate shop nearby, Sebastian dragged Samuel with him to take a look immediately after they got out of the car, leaving Elijah and Selena alone at the restaurant.

Selena still hadn't gotten used to being alone with Elijah. She was just about to say something to lighten the mood when a familiar silhouette appeared out of nowhere and dashed past her to grab Elijah by the collar.

"Elijah Cole! What did you do to Selena? Why doesn't she recognize me anymore?"

It was Jordan.

Selena had nearly jumped out of her skin at his sudden appearance. When she snapped back to her senses, she lunged forward and tried to pry his hand off Elijah. "What are you doing? Let go of him!"

Jordan was stunned by her reaction, looking as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Why are you defending him, Selena? Are you even aware of what you're doing?" he demanded furiously and hoarsely, his expression a mixture of grief and indignation.

Selena frowned at Jordan's hysterical expression, feeling oddly repulsed by him. "I don't care what happened in the past, but you're being very rude right now. Let go of him!"

Seeing how Jordan hadn't budged an inch, Selena began screaming, "Security! We don't know this man! Please take him away!"

The security guards arrived on the scene soon after and hauled a struggling Jordan out of the hall.

Selena breathed a sigh of relief, but when she turned around, she was met with Elijah's complicated gaze. She fiddled with her hair, feeling a little uneasy.

"Don't mind him. He—"

"You don't know him?" Elijah asked in surprise, interrupting her. "You didn't treat him like this in the past. You were always fawning over him. You don't recognize him now?"

"I used to fawn over him?" Selena repeated in shock, her voice trembling slightly. "That's impossible. I'm the heiress of the Lowe family. Why would I fawn over someone else? Stop trying to pull my leg."

Elijah didn't bother trying to convince Selena with words after seeing how she didn't believe him. Instead, he grabbed his phone and pulled up a social media account. Its feed was filled with nothing but angsty love letters proclaiming their undying and unrequited love for Jordan.

"Jordan, even though you only appeared briefly in my life, you became an unreachable star that I would gaze upon for the rest of my days. I look up at you as I stand among the sea of people, loving someone I cannot have…"

"I hid my affection for you in my daily updates, but I'm not brave enough to hope that you'll be able to understand my feelings."

"I'm always searching for a glimpse of you in the crowd, Jordan. My eyes are always drawn to you like a moth to the flame. I just can't control myself."

"When will you be willing to look back at me, Jordan? Just once is all I ask for…"

The color slowly drained from Selena's face as she scrolled through the letters that she apparently wrote. She suddenly felt like she was going to be sick. "Are you trying to tell me that I wrote all of this? I don't believe you! You must be slandering me!"

Selena shook her head wildly. Her voice was colored with disbelief as she continued, "This can't be me. Someone must have possessed me. There's no way I would do something like this unless I had lost my mind."

She continued muttering to herself as she retrieved her phone, wanting to find out the truth from her close friends. However, she couldn't find her friends' contact information, no matter how much she scrolled through her contact list.

Feeling confused, she asked, "Why can't I find Jenny's or Sarah's contact information? Did I save them under different names? I don't remember."

A hint of heartache flickered in Elijah's eyes as he watched Selena attempt to reject reality. In the end, he chose to tell her the truth. "You weren't possessed. You cut ties with all your friends for Jordan's sake."

"What did you say?" she exclaimed in disbelief.

Selena whipped her head up to look at him as her phone clattered loudly to the floor.

…

Selena stayed in her room for the rest of the night. According to Elijah, she had personally deleted all her friends' contact information because of Jordan.

She brushed her fingers across her phone as she sat on the edge of the bed. A photo of her and her friends at a gathering from two decades ago was displayed on the screen. Their arms were thrown across each other's shoulders, showing how close they used to be.

Now, their names had disappeared from her phone completely.

Selena suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe as she stared at the radiant smiles in the photo. She didn't know what had happened between her and Jordan in the past, but her dedication to him was like a pool of freezing water, drowning her until she suffocated.

Selena stayed cooped up in her room for the entire night. The next day, she emerged from her room with dark bags under her eyes. She was about to freshen up and head downstairs to see Sebastian and Samuel when she noticed a dust-covered box inside the closet.

Curious, she opened the box. There were stacks of yellowed drawings inside.