Chapter 1

My name is Haley Sterling.

When I was seven years old, Julian Sterling brought me home from the orphanage.

He saved me. He gave me a home.

But when I fell hopelessly in love with him and kissed him, he coldly turned his head away. "Haley, you disgust me."

After waking up from a car crash, I lost my memories.

Everyone let out a sigh of relief.

But in the dead of night, Julian broke into my room.

He bit my earlobe and whispered,

"Haley, you're just sick. That's why you forgot about us."

I pushed him away.

"Julian, I'm cured. Even my sickness of loving you is gone."

It hurt. My head throbbed so badly...

Just before I opened my eyes and fully regained consciousness, I heard a polite, gentle voice.

"Mr. Sterling, your daughter has minor head trauma. We can't rule out the possibility of amnesia."

I froze. Amnesia?

Images flashed through my mind. My parents' disappointed eyes, a man's cold indifference.

And in the mirror, my own twisted, frantic face, filled with resentment and hatred.

Then let it be amnesia.

Forget everything, just like everyone wanted.

I opened my eyes.

A second later, several anxious figures rushed to my bedside.

My mom held my hand, her eyes rimmed with red, her face full of worry.

"Haley, how are you feeling? Does anything hurt?"

I stared at her, my eyes blank and confused.

"Who are you?"

Shock flashed across her face. She frowned, panicked. "Haley, it's me. I'm your mother."

I repeated the word softly. "Mother?"

Then I shook my head, looking at her helplessly. "Mom, my head hurts so much. I've forgotten so many things. I can't remember anything."

I leaned my cheek against her hand, rubbing against it like a stray kitten.

"It's okay, sweetheart. If you can't remember, don't force it. Mom is right here," she soothed.

I nodded obediently, then turned my gaze to scan the other people in the room.

Looking at the man standing beside her, his powerful aura intact but his face softened with pity, I whispered, "Dad?"

He wasn't used to showing affection, but he still gave me a gentle nod.

Suppressing the sting in my nose, I looked at the last man.

His face was an icy mask, his brow slightly furrowed.

His dark eyes were like a black hole, ready to swallow any emotion.

"And you are?"

The hospital room fell dead silent. You could hear a pin drop.

Everyone's expressions shifted, thick with tension.

"It's... it's Julian, Haley," my mom spoke up, breaking the suffocating silence.

I let out a relaxed smile and called out obediently, "Julian."

My parents looked shocked. Tears of relief actually welled in my mother's eyes.

For some reason, I thought I saw a flash of emptiness on his cold face.

My eyes, however, were completely calm. A peaceful surrender.

Julian, in this life, I will be exactly what you want. I will be your sister.

A sister who will never, ever cross the line.