Chapter 1

Harvey Cole lifted my chin as if he were teasing a pet. "Just something I keep around for fun."

But no one knew I was never some caged canary. I was a snake, coiling around him, ready to devour him whole.

Harvey pinned me against the wall, his presence overwhelming. A kiss was about to land when his phone rang.

A saccharine female voice came through on the other end. I pretended not to notice.

A good mistress would know when to play dumb. He liked me best when I was gentle, agreeable, and never made a fuss.

After he hung up, his tone was flat. "She's coming over in a bit. Head home. I'll have the driver take you."

I knew who "she" was. Jane Graham, Harvey's fiancée in name only.

It was an arranged engagement. They'd agreed from the start that they could both see other people, but lately Jane seemed interested in turning it into something real.

Harvey was indifferent to her, but the Graham family's status demanded respect.

I nodded obediently and smoothed my rumpled collar, keeping my head down with a hint of disappointment showing through. The more submissive I appeared, the more guilt it stirred in him.

Sure enough, he grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me in for a kiss. "Are you upset?"

I didn't answer. When he tried to kiss me again, I turned my head away. Harvey paused, then brushed his fingers over my deliberately pouting lips.

I knew how this game worked. I needed to keep the bait just out of reach and never let him have everything he wanted.

"Pick out two bags you like tomorrow," he said. "Consider it my way of making it up to you."

I kept my lips pressed tight. Just as his patience started to thin, I wrapped my arms around his neck and bargained in a soft, teasing whisper. "I don't want bags. I want you to come home and have dinner with me tomorrow night."

I called the house he kept me in "our home", and that clearly pleased him. A smile tugged at his mouth as he pinched my cheek. "Alright."

I buried my face in the curve of his neck and nuzzled against him, discreetly leaving a peach-pink lipstick mark on his collar.

Chapter 2

I walked out of the Cole residence and brushed past Jane in the doorway. She slammed her shoulder into mine and spat, "Shameless."

I didn't react. Once she was out of sight, I let a smile curl at my lips.

I'd been Harvey's mistress for half a year now. I'd heard every insult in the book. People calling me shameless were a dime a dozen, but the ones who envied me were even more numerous.

Everyone said that landing Harvey meant never having to worry about money again for the rest of my life. But only I knew the real reason he kept me around. My face looked just like his first love.

First loves were precious things, but unfortunately, she died young.

She'd been one of Harvey's many lovers back in the day. In his early years, Harvey had no power or connections. If he wanted to carve out a place for himself in the cutthroat Avarame City, he had to fight for it tooth and nail.

His first love died in a kidnapping. Harvey's enemies used her as leverage, demanding he hand over a critical confidential document.

At the time, Cole Group was at a crucial stage. If he gave up that document, everything he'd worked for would have been for nothing.

So when forced to choose between his career and his lover, he naturally chose his career.

He put a bullet through the kidnapper's head. At the same time, the kidnapper's blade sliced cleanly across her throat.

That was why Harvey's feelings for her weren't just about the companionship they shared when he had nothing. There was also deep, lingering guilt.

I didn't care who he saw when he looked at me. Since she was unlucky enough to die young, she couldn't blame me for reaping the benefits with this face of mine.

Chapter 3

I stood outside the Cole residence waiting for my ride. Suddenly, a loud crash came from inside, like someone had smashed something.

Faint sounds of arguing followed, punctuated by a woman's shrill sobbing and a man's impatient scolding.

I knew exactly what had set them off. It was the lipstick mark I'd deliberately left behind. The fuse I'd carefully planted had just detonated.

My mood lifted considerably.

Jane had seen plenty of women around Harvey before. She used to turn a blind eye to most of them, but her hostility toward me was particularly strong.

Naturally, that was because of all my deliberate provocations and manipulations.

Humming to myself, I slid into the sports car that pulled up in front of me.

"Ms. Wynn," the driver greeted me.

I nodded in return.

He wasn't just a driver. Owen Cross was also Harvey's bodyguard and right-hand man at the company.

Someone in his position would make an excellent knife to drive into Harvey's back. I leaned lazily against the leather seat. "Owen, do you have a girlfriend?"

He seemed caught off guard by the question and froze for a moment. "Uh, no."

"What kind of women do you like?"

"I… I'm not really looking to date right now."

"Do you like pretty ones? Gentle and caring ones? Cheerful and outgoing? Or maybe…" I tilted my head. "Someone like me?"

He slammed on the brakes. My head bumped against the seat back. He apologized profusely, and I caught a glimpse of his ears turning pink.

Interesting. There was something irresistible about teasing a man who blushed so easily.

Chapter 4

The next day, Harvey came over for dinner as promised. I'd prepared a whole table full of dishes.

When he arrived, I was still in the kitchen wearing an apron, battling with the spatula. A fine sheen of sweat covered my fair skin.

I'd smudged a bit of flour on my cheek, just enough to look charmingly helpless without ruining my makeup. More importantly, I made sure the bandaid on my finger was visible.

Sure enough, he came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. He took hold of my injured finger and cradled it in his palm, gently blowing on it.

"Did you hurt yourself cooking? You need to be more careful."

I looked up at him, eyes soft and pitiful. "I just wanted to make you a home-cooked meal."

He glanced at the trash can where I hadn't yet thrown away the takeout containers, but he was still willing to play along. "As long as you made it, I love it."

The performance didn't need to be perfect. Letting a few cracks show and letting him know I was willing to put in effort to please him was part of the charm.

Just as he went to the bathroom, his phone buzzed on the dining table. The name "Jane" on the screen was like forbidden fruit, tempting me to open it.

I quickly answered.

"Harvey, are you really not going to make this up to me?" Her voice was half coy, half accusatory.

"Ms. Graham, he's busy," I said. "Is there something I can pass along?"

She froze, then her tone turned vicious, like she was forcing each word through clenched teeth. "Stella Wynn, you bitch."

I hung up, and Harvey came out of the bathroom. "Did my phone ring?"

I met his eyes without flinching. "No, you must've imagined it."

Harvey said nothing. He just looked at me, those hawk-like eyes boring into me as if trying to see straight through.

But in the end, all he said was, "Let's eat."

Chapter 5

When I woke up the next morning, Harvey was already gone. Only the marks scattered across my skin proved he'd been there at all.

Thunderous pounding on the door had pulled me out of sleep. Through the peephole, I saw Jane's bright, arrogant face.

I knew my days of provoking her had finally paid off. The fish was about to take the bait.

The moment I opened the door, a slap sent stars exploding across my vision. I stumbled back several steps.

Several men stood behind her. She barked orders at them. "Hold her down."

They grabbed my arms in a vice grip and forced me to my knees. Jane grabbed my chin with interest and tilted my face up toward hers.

"You actually think Harvey likes you? You're nothing but a replacement for that bitch."

I wrenched my face away from her grip and laughed with contempt. "You think I care?"

"No wonder you have a face that looks just like hers. You're just as cheap as she was."

Another slap landed across my face. Everything went black for a moment, and all I could hear was ringing in my ears.

She still wasn't done with me. "Teach her a lesson."

The men she'd brought surrounded me at her command. Fists rained down like a storm, and the pain made it nearly impossible to breathe. Every bone in my body felt like it was being crushed.

But I wasn't afraid. Instead, I felt the thrill of a predator watching its prey finally step into the trap after lying in wait for so long. Her rage and my suffering were both going exactly as I'd planned.

I just kept smiling coldly.

A kick to my stomach made me cough up blood, and a heavy, dragging pain spread through my lower abdomen. The light in front of my eyes dimmed bit by bit until I fell into darkness.

I passed out.

Jane saw the blood spreading across my white nightgown, shockingly red. She finally panicked, and her fingers trembled. "Is she… is she dead?"

The next second, the door flew open with a violent kick. Harvey burst in, his expression murderous, like the Grim Reaper coming to collect a debt.

He shoved Jane aside roughly, and she fell to the floor. But when he gathered me into his arms, his touch turned gentle, like he was cradling a treasure.

When I heard him call my name, I forced my eyes open. I clutched my burning stomach as tears rolled slowly down my cheeks.

"Harvey, the baby. Our baby."