Forever In Her Shadow

I had spent six years as a secret, my relationship with Ethan hidden from my family, dismissing their attempts to set me up with a "serious" doctor.

Then, a drunken comment revealed the truth: I was just a stand-in, a convenient replacement for Chloe Davis, Ethan's high-school sweetheart who had suddenly re-entered his life.

Chloe wasted no time, returning with calculated malice to reclaim Ethan, subtly manipulating him while openly belittling me, culminating in a deliberately staged "accident" at a party that left my dominant hand severely injured.

When I was finally hurt and bleeding in the ER, Ethan, preoccupied with Chloe, dismissed my pain to the nurse as "melodrama," a cold, brutal word that shattered what little was left of my heart.

In that moment of crushing betrayal and utter emptiness, I knew I had to choose myself. I deleted him from my life, packed my bags, and, with a one-way ticket, walked away from six years of lies to reclaim my life, finding my true path with an unexpected, kind stranger.

Chapter 1

Ava Chen stared at her brother's face on her phone screen. Leo looked pleased, his smile a little too wide.

"So, you'll actually do it? You'll come home this weekend? Meet Julian Vance?"

Ava sighed, pushing a strand of dark hair from her face.

"Yes, Leo. I said I would."

She was tired of the arguments, tired of her parents' hopeful hints that stretched for months. Julian Vance, the brilliant young surgeon. Their perfect match for her.

"Finally," Leo breathed out, relief clear in his voice. "Mom and Dad will be thrilled. It's about time you considered someone... serious."

He didn't say Ethan's name, but Ava felt the familiar jab. Her six-year relationship, a secret from her family, was always the unnamed shadow in these conversations.

"This guy you've been seeing, Ava, it's going nowhere. He hasn't even met us."

Ava bit back a sharp reply. Leo didn't know. He couldn't.

"Anyway," Leo continued, oblivious, "when you come down for the welcome home dinner, maybe you can bring your... friend. It's a family thing, you know. Kind of a pre-celebration."

Ava's stomach twisted. A pre-celebration for what? Her arranged future?

"He can't make it," Ava said, her voice flat.

"Too bad," Leo said, then launched into plans for the weekend.

Ava barely listened, nodding, making vague sounds of agreement until she could finally say goodbye.

She ended the call just as the loft door opened and Ethan Miller walked in, all easy charm and tousled hair.

He'd heard the tail end of her call.

"Can't make it to what?" he asked, dropping his guitar case by the couch.