Chapter 1

My dying sister’s last wish is for me to marry her fiancé.

I refuse.

My mother slaps me across the face.

“She’s giving Nathan back to you,” she snaps. “What more could you possibly want?”

Eight years ago, Nathan Caldwell was my fiancé.

Then Lily pressed a knife to her throat and forced me to give him up.

Now she calls it making amends.

She is returning the man who betrayed me and expects me to be grateful.

I pull my arm from my mother’s grip.

“I don’t take back trash.”

The hospital room falls silent.

My father calls me heartless. My brother Adrian tells me to stop pretending.

“Everyone knows how much you loved Nathan,” he says. “If Lily weren’t giving him back, you would never get another chance to become Mrs. Caldwell.”

I turn to leave.

Nathan grabs my wrist and drags me to Lily’s bedside.

“You’re not going anywhere before the wedding,” he says. “I’m marrying you only to fulfill Lily’s final wish. Don’t expect me to love you again.”

I look at Lily.

Months of treatment have left her pale and thin. Tears cling to her lashes.

She looks as innocent as ever.

The perfect angel they have protected all her life.

But I did not return to New York for Nathan.

I came to meet the specialists preparing the next stage of BT-7, an experimental targeted treatment for Lily’s form of brain cancer.

I am the first and only researcher to successfully develop such a treatment.

They also don’t know that the only person in this room who might give their precious angel a chance to live is me.

The heart monitor lets out a piercing alarm.

Lily clutches her chest.

Everyone rushes to her.

Nathan pulls her into his arms. “You’re the only woman I want. Please don’t leave me.”

My mother drops beside the bed, sobbing that she cannot live without Lily.

Adrian grips Lily’s hand. “You’ll always be my only sister.”

My father takes out his phone and orders the family attorney to create a charitable foundation in Lily’s name.

I’m the only one who stays calm and presses the call button.

The medical team moves in. A nurse gives Lily medication through her IV.

A few minutes later, the alarm stops.

Everyone relaxes.

No one thanks me.

Lily opens her eyes.

“I’m sorry for worrying you,” she whispers. Then she looks at our parents. “After I die, please let Evelyn come home. She’s your daughter too.”

My mother starts crying again.

Lily turns to Adrian. “Promise you’ll treat her like your sister.”

Adrian looks at me with obvious resentment, but he nods.

Finally, Lily takes Nathan’s hand.

“I can only die in peace if Evelyn takes care of you for me.”

“I’m not his caregiver,” I say. “Hire one.”

Adrian glares at me.

“Lily is dying, and she’s still trying to give you a family and a future. Without her, you would never be welcome in the Bennett home or get another chance with Nathan.”

My mother grabs his arm.

“Lily is giving you everything she loves. Why can’t you make one small sacrifice for her?”

“You’ve always fought her for these things,” she continues. “Now she’s returning them, and you’re still unhappy. Stop being selfish.”

Selfish?

These things were supposed to be mine.

Before I can answer, Lily starts crying.

“Mom, don’t blame Evelyn.”

She pushes aside the blanket and tries to get out of bed. Nathan cannot stop her. He can only support her as she kneels in front of me.

“Evelyn, I know you hate me for taking everything from you,” Lily says. “But I’m dying. I want to return all of it before I go.”

She begins listing them.

“Mom. Dad. Adrian. The Bennett name. Nathan.”

Then she smiles through her tears.

“And the wedding you once dreamed of.”

Everyone looks at her as if she is a saint.

No one asks whether I still want any of it.

Lily turns to our parents.

“Please publicly acknowledge Evelyn as your biological daughter. If you refuse to bring her home, I’ll stop treatment.”

My parents agree immediately.

My father looks away, a flicker of guilt crossing his face.

“We always wanted you in the family. You were the one who refused to come back.”

I almost laugh.

Eight years ago, I arrived at the Bennett mansion with a genealogy report in my hand.

Inside, Lily was celebrating her eighteenth birthday in the life that should have been mine.