Chapter 1
In my previous life, someone drugged Adrian during a cruise.
I had a high fever, but I still searched the entire ship for him. I finally found him in a suite on the top deck.
We slept together that night.
The next morning, reporters crowded outside the door. They caught us half-dressed and took pictures before we could stop them.
The photos spread through our social circle within hours.
To contain the scandal, the Cole family pressured Adrian into marrying me.
He never believed I was innocent.
He was convinced that I had drugged him, tipped off the reporters, and used the scandal to force him into marriage.
During our three years together, he barely touched me.
Then Vivian returned with a little boy who looked almost exactly like him.
That was when I learned the truth.
On our wedding night, Adrian had left me alone and slept with Vivian.
Their son had been born from that night.
“Vivian raised Leo alone all these years,” Adrian said. “She has suffered enough.”
He stood in front of Vivian and Leo, shielding them from me.
“Claire, she should have been Mrs. Cole from the beginning.”
I told him I was pregnant too.
He glanced at the test results without any emotion.
“End the pregnancy.”
He used his influence to have me taken to a private clinic.
My baby did not survive.
Neither did I.
When I opened my eyes again, freezing ocean wind struck my face.
I was standing outside the cruise ship’s ballroom.
My forehead burned, but my arms and legs shook from the cold.
I stared at the date on my phone for a long time.
I had returned to three years earlier.
It was the night Adrian had been drugged.
Messages kept appearing in the group chat.
“Has anyone seen Adrian?”
“He was in the ballroom a few minutes ago.”
“Claire is always following him around. Tell her to find him.”
In my previous life, I had gone to search for him as soon as I saw those messages, even though I could barely stand.
This time, I did not move.
I opened my chat with Vivian.
“Adrian is in Suite 1908 on the top deck.”
“Something seems wrong with him.”
I sent the messages and waited.
A few minutes later, I saw Vivian hurry toward the top deck.
I turned and walked away.
In my previous life, that suite had tied Adrian and me together.
This time, whatever happened inside Suite 1908 had nothing to do with me.
My whole body ached from the fever, and my legs felt weak.
I held the railing and tried to walk, but I could not catch my breath.
Cold wind swept across the deck.
Rain soaked my hair and dress within seconds.
A sudden wave of dizziness hit me.
My vision darkened, and my fingers slowly lost their grip on the railing.
I fell backward.
The pain I expected never came.
A pair of strong arms caught me.
I collapsed against a stranger’s chest.
The man pressed his hand to my forehead. His voice became serious.
“How did your fever get this high?”
I forced my eyes open.
Through my blurred vision, I saw a silver compass cuff link on his sleeve.
Then everything went black.