Chapter 4

At two in the morning, muffled voices drifted from Chloe's room next door.

I thought she was on a phone call and tried to ignore it.

Then, I heard a man's low voice.

Ethan.

I didn't even notice when he had slipped out of our bed; his side was completely cold.

Stepping quietly across the hardwood floor, I pressed my ear flush against the wall.

The audio was muffled, but clear enough to make out almost every word.

"You were brilliant today. She didn't suspect a thing, right?"

That was Ethan's voice, laced with a smug, self-satisfied tone I had never heard from him before.

"Relax. The moment I started crying, her face went totally pale. She totally bought the ex-boyfriend story."

Chloe's voice sounded lazy, dripping with arrogance—completely stripped of the fragile persona she wore by daylight.

"Though, honestly, your reaction was way too intense. You almost blew our cover."

Ethan paused.

"I was scared she'd shut it down. What else were we supposed to do with our baby?"

Chloe chuckled softly. "As long as we keep her calm until after the wedding, she won't be able to do a damn thing even if she wants to."

"Are you sure she'll really raise the kid for us?" Chloe asked, a hint of doubt creeping into her voice.

"She's a soft-hearted pushover. As long as we keep up the act, she'll fall in line."

"Besides, she's got plenty of savings stashed away. It's more than enough to raise a couple of kids. Might as well put her money to good use."

I bit down hard on my lower lip, my body shaking violently from head to toe.

All along, they weren't just targeting me. They were targeting every single dollar to my name.

"What about the ceremony?" Chloe asked again. "What if she doesn't want me standing up there?"

Ethan fell silent for a few seconds.

"I've got a plan. I'll have the officiant call you up to bring out the wedding rings."

"That way, you get to stand center stage and soak in the wedding blessings. We'll treat it as our real wedding."

"When your belly starts showing later on, we'll just say the baby was a miracle blessed on our wedding day."

Chloe let out a breathy giggle.

"You're awful. But God, I love it."

"What about Vivian, though? What if she figures out the baby is actually yours?"

"So what if she does?"

Ethan's sneer was so dismissive it turned my stomach.

"By then, the kid will already be born. What's she gonna do about it?"

"Women like her are terrified of the embarrassment of a divorce. She won't dare leave."

"She'll throw a tantrum for a couple of days, and then she'll suck it up and accept her reality."

Leaning against the wall in the dark, silent tears streamed down my cheeks.

Two years of romance. Six years of friendship.

It was all an elaborate, meticulously calculated scam.

From the very beginning, they had mapped out my role: a live-in nanny with an open bank account.

I clenched my fists until my knuckles popped, white-hot hatred burning away every shred of grief.

They were betting that I was too weak to blow up my own life.

Fine.

I was going to show them exactly what kind of hell Vivian Vance could unleash.

If they wanted to put on a show, I'd play along until the grand finale.