Chapter 1

On the tenth day after I filed for divorce, I ran into Rachel Melton in the hospital corridor. She was helping Todd Weber walk, treating him like he was made of glass.

The second Rachel saw me, her brow furrowed. "What are you doing here? Are you here to start trouble with Todd again?"

She eyed me warily, her cold gaze cutting straight to the bone.

Todd grabbed Rachel's hand and gave me an apologetic look. "Joel, don't get the wrong idea. Rachel just worries too much about me."

As he spoke, his gaze shifted to the can of baby formula I was carrying. "I heard Diana was admitted to the hospital too. Is she okay?"

Before I could answer, Rachel jumped in to reassure him. "It's probably just a mild fever. She'll be fine. Don't overthink things. You just focus on getting better."

My grip tightened around the shopping bag in my hand as a bitter feeling settled in my chest.

Of course. What could there possibly be to worry about? So what if Diana Cantrell, our daughter, was sick? She could never be more important to Rachel than Todd.

Otherwise, how could Rachel not check on her even once when she knew full well Diana and I were in the same hospital?

All she had to do was come to our daughter's room once, and she would've learned that our little girl was already gone.

I gave a bitter, twisted smile and reached into my pocket, my fingers brushing against a small glass jar that had grown warm from my touch.

Ever since Todd came back, Rachel had been disappearing every few days to be with him.

She would say, "Todd has always been sensitive. Now that he's sick, I can't just leave him alone. What if something happens to him? Trust me. I just don't want him doing anything reckless. This doesn't mean anything."

She had promised me she'd only visit him 99 times. After the 99th visit, she'd put it all behind her, and we'd go back to living our normal lives.

So, every time she walked out the door to see him, I'd drop a single bean into that jar.

More than a week ago, I had finally dropped in the 99th bean. But when I rushed to Rachel with Diana in my arms and hope in my heart, I was met with the sight of Todd holding Rachel tightly in his arms.

She was my wife, and I was her husband.

Yet there I was, standing on the sidewalk, forced to watch her share an intimate moment with another man.

I walked up to them, my eyes bloodshot, and asked blankly, "What are you two doing?"

Rachel jerked away from Todd like she'd touched a live wire, panic written all over her face. "Joel, don't get the wrong idea. It's not what it looks like."

I opened my mouth to speak, but Todd beat me to it. "It's all my fault. I shouldn't have come between you two. I'm sorry. Rachel, you should just leave me alone from now on. Just let me die out on the streets."

He then dashed into the street and was immediately clipped by a passing bicycle.

Rachel's face drained of color. Without a second thought, she pushed me aside and rushed over to pull Todd into her arms.

Before I could brace myself, I hit the ground hard, nearly dropping Diana in the process. A dull, throbbing pain shot up my tailbone, and Diana burst into terrified wails from the sudden jolt.

"It's okay, Diana. Daddy's here…"

Seeing her tiny face turn bright red from crying made me feel as though my heart was being crushed. "Honey! Rachel Melton!"