OBSESSIVELY MINE18

While I Was Bleeding Out, He Lit Lanterns For Her

Katie Oettgen

As I lay on the floor of our manor, bleeding out from a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, I used my last ounce of strength to call my husband, Cole. I begged him for help, my vision blurring. But the only thing I heard was the clinking of champagne glasses and his mistress's giggle in the background. "Stop the drama, June," Cole snapped, his voice cold. "We're about to go on stage. Don't call again." He hung up, leaving me to die alone on the Persian rug while he accepted an award with another woman on his arm. I woke up in the hospital days later. My baby was gone. They had removed my fallopian tube. Cole finally arrived, smelling of expensive scotch and his mistress's perfume. He didn't hug me. He didn't cry. Instead, he leaned over my hospital bed, pressing his knee into the mattress until my fresh stitches tore open and bled. "You embarrassed me by calling an ambulance," he hissed. "My mistress, Alycia, says you're faking it. Clean yourself up." He left me bleeding again to go announce a $10 million donation to Alycia's "groundbreaking" medical research. I stared at the TV screen, numb. The research Alycia was taking credit for? It was mine. I wrote that patent years ago under a pseudonym. They thought I was just a poor, orphan housewife who needed Cole's money to survive. They had no idea I was actually a billionaire scientist hiding my identity. I pulled the IV needle out of my arm. A drop of blood fell onto the divorce papers I had been hiding. I didn't wipe it off. I signed my name right over it. Then I walked into the bank, reactivated my dormant account with $128 million, and bought the penthouse directly overlooking Cole's house. The mourning widow is dead. The avenger is born.

Romance Crime Revenge Pregnancy Enemies to Lovers Pregnancy Personal Growth

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It was late into the night, and the lights inside the Lu family villa shone brightly, a stark contrast amongst the otherwise dark street.

As she stood in front of the windows looking out, Janessa Qiu made her last call to Rayan Lu. After a few rings, the call was abruptly ended, as she expected. She took a few deep breaths to steady herself before flinging the phone aside, unwrapping her bathrobe, and stepping into the steaming bathtub. She closed her eyes to rest.

The warmth of the water calmed her, and her eyelids soon grew heavy.

A few years back, her father passed away, and now, her mother was seriously ill. This made her Uncle Aydin started to cause trouble for them. She had been working a few days in a row and she was exhausted by now.

Before she could fall into a deep sleep, she could vaguely make out dull footsteps from outside the room. It seemed close by, but she couldn't bring herself to open her eyes and step out of the bathtub.

When she heard a muffled 'bang', she woke up completely and was suddenly alert.

"Who is it?" she called. Janessa quickly wrapped herself in her bathrobe and hesitantly opened the door with eyes wide open.

The bright light emanating from the hallway made it difficult to see the man's face, and she was terrified of the sudden noise he caused. When she finally recognized his face, her heart skipped a beat.

"Calm down, it's me!" the man drawled. His voice was low and hoarse, and she could smell alcohol from where she stood.

Janessa's tense body relaxed a fraction at the sound of the familiar voice. Out of instinct, she moved back into the bathroom. She warily looked at Rayan Lu, who was obviously intoxicated.

"I'm having a bath right now. You need to leave!" she ordered in a shaky voice. There was a hint of embarrassment in her words.

Rayan's brows furrowed as he looked back at Janessa with hazy eyes. His sharp features had an indescribable expression in them, different from the brooding and domineering expression he normally wore.

With every step he took towards her, Janessa's body coiled in tension, and her breathing soon grew ragged.

Even after all this time, she still couldn't forget what he had done to her on their wedding night. No one should ever feel that kind of pain in their lives.

Rayan swayed as he pulled off his tie and made his way over to the bathtub. He looked down at Janessa and sneered at her. His eyes traveled from her face onto the white, delicate skin of her neck, all the way down to her slender thighs. The vulgar smile on his mouth pulled wider.

"Is it really you? I could've sworn you moved out. Why did you come back?" He bent down at eye level with Janessa and assessed her with cold and fathomless eyes. He was so close to her that their noses touched, and the alcohol in his breath engulfed her senses.

Janessa's lips thinned and she tightened her hold on the bathrobe that covered her. "What do you want?"

When she looked into his eyes, she could see the panicked look on her face reflected in them.

After all their years together, she was still terrified whenever he initiated intimacy with her.

"Are you curious to see what I'm going to do?" The smirk on Rayan's face instantly fell. He clutched the back of her head tightly and bared his teeth at her. "Mrs. Lu, I believe I should be the one asking questions around here! Where have you been all this time? Answer me!"

Janessa shut her eyes tightly and trembled when he raised his voice at her.

She decided to humor him, and explained in a slow voice, "I had something to take care of in the company. I tried to call you, but you didn't pick up." She managed to sound calmer than she felt.

The malicious look in Rayan's eyes faded, and she could tell that he wasn't as furious as he had been moments ago.

He loosened his grip on her, and her eyes slowly fluttered open.

Rayan straightened himself and tossed his coat on the floor. As he unbuttoned his shirt at painstakingly slow pace, he held her gaze. There was a dangerous look in his eyes.

Janessa's heart pounded in her chest. She brought the bathrobe further around herself, to cover as much skin as possible. Her face flushed with embarrassment.

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