Chapter 1 " Caleb … " The coy , breathless voice from the room next door grated on Noelle Spencer's ears . She curled her hands into a fist , the nails biting deep into her palm and stinging . Still , it didn't hurt as much as the ache in her chest . Each throbbing of her heart made it harder and harder for her to breathe . That day was meant to be the day that she , in her heartbreak , ended her life . Two months earlier , the Ashfords had received a piece of devastating news . The plane carrying her husband , Conner Ashford , and his older brother , Caleb , had crashed . Caleb had returned alive , but Conner had died in that tragedy . That night , Noelle had cried until she passed out . Then , after a month of mourning , she no longer wished to go on . She'd saved up her sleeping pills for over a month , but the thought of dying in the Ashford residence without Conner felt unbearably lonely . So , she decided to take the pills at his grave . As she was on her way there , she passed through the garden and overheard her mother - in - law , Yasmine Clark , and Caleb speaking . " Conner , it's been over a month , and Sabrina isn't showing any signs of pregnancy . Could she have an issue too ? You've been pretending to be Caleb just to give her a child , yet she hasn't been getting pregnant . " Your wife wasn't fertile either … Our family must be cursed . " Noelle nearly collapsed among the flowerbeds . Her hands gripped the edge of the planter , and as if struck by lightning , her mind struggled to catch up with what she'd just heard . Soon , her consciousness started fading away as she pressed a hand to her mouth to keep herself from sobbing . Conner didn't die - it was Caleb who did . And just because she'd been too weak to conceive in all their years of marriage , the Ashfords had arranged such a sordid trick . Still , Noelle refused to accept the truth . The Conner she knew would never do something like that , so it had to be Yasmine's doing . After all , she just wanted the Ashfords to have an heir . But Conner's next words shattered that illusion of hope . " I've taken Sabrina for a checkup . She's fine . Pregnancy just takes time , and I've been trying my best . " Chapter 1 2/3 Trying ? He certainly had been . Night after night over the past two months , he'd never stopped . At first , Noelle had assumed that it was grief that had made the couple cling to each other more . But now , she saw it for the pure revulsion it was . Conner continued , " Mom , please don't talk like that in the house . Sabrina might not take it well if she overhears . " She's always been timid and delicate . If she learns that Caleb's gone , she might not even survive the news . " So , it seemed like Conner hadn't been forced , after all . He'd just been protecting Sabrina Harper . Noelle finally fell to the flowerbeds with a bitter laugh . So , Sabrina might not live if she learned the news of Caleb's death . But what about her ? So much for being timid and delicate , and so much for not taking the news well . This was the man she'd loved for years ! She felt like she deserved a hard slap for even thinking to die at Conner's grave . While Noelle had feared that Conner would be lonely and cold in the afterlife , he had fretted over Sabrina's grief and that she might not be able to bear the news of Caleb's death . He'd even gone as far as to abandon his wife and step in as a substitute to give Caleb an heir ! Silent tears streamed down Noelle's cheeks as she tightened her grip on the bottle of pills . Memories of their loving days played out in her mind like a slideshow - until Conner reached over to switch the slideshow off . Soon , Noelle returned to her and Conner's shared bedroom . On the nightstand sat a photograph of them on their honeymoon in Etheland . In the photograph , her smile was so bright and filled with joy . But now , her tears couldn't taste any bitterer . For the past two months , she'd fallen asleep each night clutching that photo frame . In retrospect , that was absurdly laughable of her . Suddenly , Noelle grabbed the frame and smashed it into pieces . However , what she was destroying wasn't just the frame , but also their five years of love and three years of marriage . Just then , she received a call from the Spencer residence . Fearing that Noelle might take her life over the grief , Mary Anderson , her mom , had called every night to soothe and calm her down . Tonight was no different , except that Mary sounded hesitant . " Mom , just say it . We're mother and daughter , so quit beating around the bush . " Chapter 1 3/3 So , Mary went straight to the point . " Noelle , it's only been two months since Conner passed , and I'm afraid you'll be upset . But life has to go on , doesn't it ? " The Coles came by today to honor an old promise . " The Spencer and Cole families had once arranged a marriage between their children , but when the Spencers had fallen on hard times , they knew better than to cling to a match now far beyond their league . So , when Noelle met Conner by chance and fell in love with him , the Spencers never brought up the marriage to the Coles again . Mary continued , " I know you can't move on in such a short time , and I won't force you either … " But before she could finish , Noelle cut in and said , " I'll marry him . " Claim Bonus For Free Every Day >> Claim Chapter 2