Chapter 1 For five years, I belonged to Donovan Black. The pretty thing he kept in a gilded cage. In my first life, I made the mistake of listening to the whispers of other girls like me. I let myself believe that his affection was turning into love, and I did everything I could to make him propose. I became a nightmare when Camilla Rhodes, the one who always had a hold on him, came back to the States. I picked fights, I ma- de scenes. In the end, I succeeded only in getting myself killed. Two bodies in one grave, me and our unborn child. Not long after I was gone, Donovan and Camilla had the wedding of the decade. I became a cautionary tale, a punchline about the girl who dreamed too big. When I woke up, I was back in the bed where I first asked Donovan if he loved me. The man beside me, his breathing still evening out from our lovemaking, turned his head on the pillow. "What did you say?" The first time around, I hadn't noticed the frost in his tone. I'd just snuggled deeper into his arms and asked if he could spend more time with me. Hearing those words again, a flash of memory seared through my mind: Donovan's face at my cremation, thi look of a man relieved to finally be rid of a piece of trash. I slapped my own mouth twice, lightly, and manufactured a blush. 'Oh my god, I'm so blissed out I'm not even making sense," I murmured. "I meant to ask if you loved the soup I made tonight. If you did, I can make it again tomorrow." Shock flickered in Donovan's eyes. He clearly wasn't expecting a post-coital performance review from me the woman who usually went shy and silent in these moments. But it was that very boldness, those unexpected words, that made a man as meticulous as Donovan overlo ok the question I had actually asked. In my first life, when I'd asked him to spend more time with me, he'd mistaken it for the sweet nothings of a woman high on passion. So, he'd casually replied, "Alright. From now on, I'll take you wherever I go." That one simple sentence was all it took to fertilize the ambition in my heart. It made me believe, with every fiber of my being, that Donovan Black loved me too; he just hadn't realized it yet. "The soup was good," Donovan's voice pulled me from my thoughts. "It settled my stomach." As his words registered, I instinctively grabbed a silk robe, covering myself, I told him I was heading to the kitchen to prep for the next day's breakfast. 1/7 1353 Chapter 1 The moment I was out of his line of sight, I let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding. While I busied myself in the vast, stainless-steel kitchen, I started to sort through the chaotic fragments in my mind. I couldn't remember why I'd been given a second chance, only that it was a precious, fragile thing. And one. thought was branded onto my soul, a mantra I couldn't escape: Don't be a fool for love. Don't you ever fall for a man again. Aside from making myself beautiful and making good food, I didn't have many talents. I wasn't particularly sharp; I believed whatever anyone told me. That was my fatal flaw. It was because of that flaw that, in my past life, I let the goading from other women in my position make me forget my place. I became more and more demanding, more and more of a problem. Only after my death did I learn the truth about Tiffany, the so-called friend whose real name I never even knew. She had approached me with an agenda from the very beginning. Her benefactor, a man named Mr. Sterling, did business with Donovan. We met at a gallery opening, a brief, forgettable encounter for me. But Mr. Sterling remembered me. He mentioned to Tiffany, more than once, how striking I was. And for that, she hated me. Then there was Camilla Rhodes. The woman who had gone abroad to study long before I ever met Donovan. She heard about me from her friends back home. The idea of Donovan keeping me around for so many years infuriated her, but she considered it beneath herself to deal with me directly. So, after doing a little. digging into my personality-my naivete, my insecurities-she found Tiffany. She paid Tiffany to "teach" me how to win more of Donovan's affection. Every piece of advice Tiffany gave me was perfectly designed to make Donovan slowly, but surely, grow tired of me. And so, that winter, just a few months later-on my way to tell Donovan that I was pregnant and demand he make me his wife-I was hit by a speeding truck. I died on impact. After my death, Tiffany, who had already been cast aside by Mr. Sterling, took the massive "thank you" pay- ment I'd given her and went back to her hometown to get married. Camilla, who had orchestrated everything from a distance, finally won Donovan's heart for good. They had a son and a daughter. And me? I was the one who got greedy because I just wanted to be loved. In the end, I went to my grave without ever hearing Donovan Black say he even liked me. Playing the whole tragedy back in my mind, I took a deep, painful breath and resolved to do my job, serve my time, and wait for the day Donovan finally let me go. Afraid I might forget, that I might still harbor some foolish hope for him, I found the old notebook I used for recipes. I flipped to the last page and started to write. August 27th: Never forget the pain of your soul burning. It's not shameful to be starved for love, but don't lose your life over scraps from someone else's table. 217 13:53 Chapter 1 13.57 # Despite going to bed late, I was up at 5:30 the next morning. I worked without a break, preparing a full break. fast spread. Just as Donovan came downstairs, showered and dressed, I was placing a pot of slow-simmer- ed herbal broth on the table. He stared at the array of dishes covering half the dining table, a dozen small plates filled with everything from omelets to fresh pastries. He was silent for a few seconds before he asked, "Alright, what do you want?" Cooking was my primary tool for pleasing him, but in five years, I'd almost exclusively made him dinner. Never before had I sacrificed my beauty sleep just to ensure he had a good meal before leaving for the office. Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!