He Called Me A b***h, So I Kissed His Enemy

Chapter 2

Blank and numb, I brushed the tears from my cheeks and walked forward without purpose.

'Seven years of this, and I've finally grown numb. His cruel words don't even sting anymore. How much longer can I keep forcing myself to hold on?'

This engagement was the finish line I'd waited seven long years to reach.

Once I married Lucas and completed the artificial insemination required by the Vance family contract, I could file for divorce and walk free at last, reclaiming the life I'd lost.

That had been the deal I'd struck with the Vance family all those years ago.

Rest eluded me entirely that night.

Fragmented flashes of seven years prior haunted my restless sleep on loop.

I remembered Lucas driving miles out of his way to buy my favorite pearl necklace to win my heart. I remembered the catastrophic car crash that stole his ability to father children in an instant.

Guilt had driven me to stay by his side when he begged me not to leave.

What was meant to be a brief act of remorse stretched into seven endless years of b*****e.

Lucas firmly believed I'd climbed from a nobody rookie actress to an A-list superstar purely by clinging to the Vance family's influence and status.

He never saw the hours I spent freezing in icy water for perfect shots, the dangerous fire scenes I'd filmed without a single stunt double, or every sleepless night I'd poured into my career.

Our relationship had been nothing but a vicious cycle of love and hatred.

Lovers came and went in Lucas' life, one after another, while I remained the laughingstock of high society—the pitiful fiancée who stayed no matter how badly she was treated.

Soft morning light seeped through the curtains, painting faint streaks across the room.

I rubbed my throbbing forehead and whispered a quiet reassurance to myself.

'It's almost over.'