Chloe stepped closer.
“You think Liam wants this?”
That question hurt.
Not because I believed her.
Because she knew exactly where to aim.
Liam had been beside me through everything.
The hospital visits.
The endless appointments.
The nights when I couldn’t sleep because my body felt like it didn’t belong to me anymore.
He had never once looked at me with pity.
Not once.
But Chloe didn’t know that.
She only knew the version of him everyone else saw.
The billionaire.
The businessman.
The man whose name appeared in magazines.
And she believed someone like him deserved someone “perfect.”
Not someone who had scars.
Not someone who had lost her hair.
Not someone who had fought for her life.
“You’re jealous,” I said quietly.
Her expression changed.
“I’m trying to protect you.”
“No.”
I turned around.
“You’re trying to protect yourself.”
The door suddenly opened.
My mother rushed back inside.
Her face was pale.
“What happened?”
Then she saw me.
Her eyes widened.
The room went silent.
“Valeria…”
