He was just a little baby. I held him, and I felt
so much love.
Even though he didn’t come from my body, I
still loved him.
That’s why I agreed to come here.
My mother wanted me to die. My father didn’t
know I existed. My siblings saw me as a
shame.
But I never thought my son would hate me,
too.
Michael appeared and saw the blood on my
hands.
“Get up. I hope this teaches you a lesson.”
“I asked the doctor to wait in your room. Go
get treated.”
I got up and pulled out the divorce papers. I
smeared my blood on it.
“Can I leave now? Sign it.”
Michael froze.
“You’re jealous of her, and you did those
things. I don’t even want to fight you about it.
What do you want?”
“Fine. I’ll give you what you want. I want to
see if you’re tough, too good to be a rich
wife.”
“If you leave, never come back.”
He signed it quickly, tossed the papers on the
ground, and left.
I picked it up carefully, smiling.
I was free.
I picked up my suitcase and walked out of the
mansion.
I never had to be threatened again.
I took a taxi. The driver asked me where I
wanted to go.
“To the funeral home first. Then… the
airport.”
Chapter 2
I took my foster mom’s ashes with me and
flew to Lake Tahoe.
The role–playing game was over. I could
finally ditch that last name.
From now on, I wasn’t Eve, but Janine, my
foster mom’s name.
She had grown up in a small town up north.
She never got married, all for a daughter who
wasn’t even related to her.
Her biggest dream was to see Tahoe. She
loved the blue skies, clear water, and clean
air she saw on TV.
I had promised her that when she got better,
I’d bring her here. I’d open a bed and
breakfast for her where she could watch the
sunrise and sunset every day.
Now she was gone, but I was still gonna keep
my promise.
<
Being around Michael had one good thing: it
made me good at investments.
So I made some money over the years.
Enough to open a B&B, and I never have to
be dependent on others again.
Here, I met a lot of new friends.
The most special one was probably Cody.
I remember when the B&B was getting
renovated, he came over.
“Hey, I’m Cody. I own the B&B across the
Street. I just opened up, too. We’re neighbors
now. If you need anything, just ask.”
He was my age, but he had a kind of boyish
charm, and he showed two little fangs when
he smiled.
After talking to him a few times, I figured he
wasn’t your average B&B owner. After being
around Michael, my instincts were pretty
good.
Cody told me, “I’m kinda a trust–fund kid. I
aιan’t like the girl my parents picked out for
me to marry, so I ran away and opened this
place.”
“I just wanted to try it out, but after being
here for a while, I figured out that nothing’s
better than being free. So I told my parents I
wasn’t going back. They said to get lost if I
didn’t want to follow their rules.”
I laughed at him, but I also agreed.
There’s nothing more important than freedom.
“What about you? Why’d you come all the
way out here to open a B&B?”
I told him about my foster mom, but I didn’t
mention the family.
Cody said, “She never got married for you?
She must’ve loved you a lot.”
I nodded. She loved me a lot.
When my mother had me, my father forgot
- me. In those days, she always told me that I
was her treasure.
<
I was made to feel bad for other reasons, she
told me, “Janine, is the best girl in the world.”
In my life, she gave me all the love. I was
gonna give her a place in the world she liked
the most.
Cody asked, “I heard you’re married. You’re
so pretty. How could your husband let you
come out here alone?”
To keep anyone from asking questions, I used
to say that I was married.
I thought of Michael and Billy.
When I first met Michael, I was attracted to
him.
He was Billy’s father, he was my husband and
he was handsome, aloof, and seemed to
attract everyone.
But after countless nights, he would take out
his anger on me, calling Sarah’s name.
The next morning, he’d say, “You’re just a
nanny. Don’t get any ideas.”
く
He wouldn’t let me touch her things, wear her
colors, or do anything she didn’t like.
The first year, I was always getting hurt.
I realized her likes, and I knew that as much
as I tried to make them happy, I could never
be her.
I let go of those feelings and walked on
eggshells.
Time doesn’t mean anything, blood doesn’t
mean anything.
Sarah was his love, and the perfect mother
for Billy.
They were happy to be around Lisa, who
looked like her, but they’d never give me a
second look.
I smiled. “He’s my ex.”
Time flew by. My B&B had been open for six
months. I got rid of the tattoo, and Cody and I
got closer.
He’d leave his shop to his workers and spend
<
the whole day with me. Sometimes, he’d bring
a dish. Sometimes, he’d bring a wine.
The customers thought we were one shop.
One morning, I opened the door and saw
Michael and Billy.
Michael was still icy.
“You’ve been away long enough. Come
home.”
“Billy took time off from school. You need to
help him with his homework.”
He hadn’t changed at all.
He looked at my B&B.
“You left everything to live in a place like
this? You’ve been with me for so long, but
you still haven’t learned.”
