My husband Carter Kingsley’s whole family has never liked me.
That much, I’ve always known.
His father avoids all family matters like the plague.
His mother looks down on my middle–class background.
And Carter?
His heart was never mine to begin with.
But our son, Ethan Kingsley, is six now.
Bright. Charming.
And I just couldn’t bring myself to leave him.
He even started learning French–and picked it up fast.
Now he and Carter talk in French around the house like it’s their own secret club.
At first, I was proud.
A child I gave birth to, so smart, making his father proud.
It made me want to hold on to this family, even just a little longer.
Until I started secretly studying French myself.
And slowly, I began to understand what they were really saying.
And little by little, my heart froze over.
Turns out my own child, just like his father, was learning French not for school,
But to please Vivienne–the woman Carter’s always loved.
Vivienne, the childhood sweetheart who went off to France for grad school.
They were inseparable once,
But Carter’s churchgoing, conservative parents rejected her-
15:19
Nine Years Wasted–Now I’m Marrying Your Rival
7
Chapter 1
Not for who she was, but because a pastor–turned-“counselor” told them she was a poor match for the Kingsley
legacy.
Meanwhile, I–a girl from an average Ohio family–was married into this Manhattan dynasty because that same counselor said I would bring “stability and prosperity.”
So I spent the last seven years in a marriage built on a prophecy–and completely devoid of love.
I was lost in thought when the sharp clang of Carter’s fork against his plate snapped me out of it.
He frowned like he always does when I take a second too long to think.
“Vivienne’s back in the States. She’s pregnant.”
“She’ll be moving in so we can help take care of her.”
His eyes locked on me, full of warning.
“She’s carrying a child now. Don’t start any drama.”
Yeah. Pregnant women are delicate.
Funny how that didn’t apply when I was the one pregnant.
Back then, only the baby mattered–never me.
Fach when I hemorrhaged during labor,
ong as Ethan made it out of the delivery room alive,
Carter never even came to check if I survived.
I nodded.
I didn’t ask who the baby’s father was.
Back in the day, if Vivienne had tried to get even close to this house,
I would’ve lost my mind.
I fought. Screamed.
And Carter only ever gave me cold indifference.
But now, after understanding everything they whisper in French, I felt nothing.
“I’ll move out for a while,” I said.
15:19
Nine Yeare Wasted Now
Chapter 1
“Give her space to rest,”
Carter paused.
Before he could respond, Ethan lit up with joy.
“If Mommy’s gone, does that mean I can be with Aunt Vivienne every day?”
Even the smartest kid can’t hide how he really feels.
Carter stared into my eyes.
Was he trying to figure out what I was planning?
Or if I even had the strength left to care?
For a second, maybe I imagined it–but I thought I saw something soft flicker in his gaze.
Still, Vivienne and her baby came first.
Carter said gently, “The house is big. No need to move out.
But we have a place out in Westchester.
I’ll have it signed over to you.
You can go there whenever you want… clear your head.”
I understood.
This was my reward for “being mature.”
He hated that I might have tainted the family line.
So now he was making sure his first love could carry their perfect child.
No matter the cost.
And he was willing to be generous about it.
Which made me wonder-
When the baby I’m carrying is born, will he be even more generous?
After all, this time, I made sure Carter has nothing to do with it.
15:19
