My brother, sick of watching me suffer through a ten-year single-side crush, drugged his best friend and delivered him to my bed.
I was forced to be the antidote.
When we woke up, Ethan Miller coldly agreed to marry me.

But soon after the wedding, he left the country. Our daughter and I waited for three years, and when he finally came back, I took her to the airport to meet him.
The moment our daughter called out "Daddy," the woman on his arm, Chloe Brown, couldn't handle the betrayal.
She ran off, right into the path of a drunk driver, and was killed instantly.
After that, Ethan never smiled again.
He stayed, watching over me and our daughter days and nights.
I thought my suffering was finally over.

But on our daughter's third birthday, our house caught on fire.
My first instinct was to save them both, but as I ran to their room, Ethan calmly locked the door, his eyes filled with a chilling, bottomless hatred.
"If it weren't for you two, Chloe would never have died," he whispered through the door.
"Every day since she's been gone has been a living hell. I've wanted to drag you both down to join her for a long time."

As the flames consumed us, I finally understood the depths of his hatred.
Then, I opened my eyes again.
...
I was back on that fateful night, the night Ethan was drugged.
As he stumbled towards me, his face flushed and his eyes hazed with desire, I shoved him away with all my might and grabbed my phone to call his one true love…
...
A ragged gasp tore through the air, sending a shiver down my spine.
My eyes snapped to the source.
Ethan was on the bed, his face flushed with a feverish heat.
The top buttons of his black shirt were undone, and it was clear he was losing control.
"Sophia, come here…" he rasped, his eyes dazed as they found me.
In my past life, I would have rushed to his side, my heart aching for him.
But now, I scrambled back in terror.
It was this one night, that sealed our fate.
We were both drugged, and we fell into bed together.
But that mistake hadn't been made yet!
If I wasn't the one to be his antidote tonight, then my daughter and I could escape that horrific fate.
Without a second's hesitation, I dialed Chloe's number.
"Is this Chloe? You need to get to the Grand Althea Hotel, Room 32. Now!"
I braced myself against the door, keeping Ethan's burning-hot body on the other side.
At the same time, a familiar heat began to spread through my own veins.
I remembered what my brother had said in my past life as he'd pushed me into the room, his heart aching for my unrequited love.
"Sophia, you and Ethan have been dancing around each other for years. It's driving me crazy. I'm just giving you two a little push. It's time for him to became my brother-in-law!"
"Jake, are you trying to kill me?"
I had begged.
"Let me out!"
He'd just chuckled, shoving me into Ethan's arms.
"I put something in your drink, too. Just enjoy it. You'll thank me in the morning."
A bitter smile touched my lips. Oh, Jake.
Ethan doesn't love me.
He never did.
Fifteen minutes later, a frantic, pale-faced Chloe arrived.
She eyed me suspiciously.
"Sophia, everyone in our circle knows you're obsessed with Ethan. Why would you be so… helpful? Wasn't he having dinner with your brother tonight? How did he get drugged? Is this some kind of trick?"
She was wary, but when she peeked inside and saw that it was indeed Ethan, her expression shifted.
I pushed her towards the room.
"There's no time to explain. Miss Brown, I know you and Ethan have feelings for each other. You don't want some other woman to have him tonight, do you? He needs you. He's about to lose it."
I had no idea where my brother had gotten that drug, but it was brutally effective.
In my past life, while Ethan still had a shred of control, he had bitten his own tongue and snapped the bones in his fingers trying to resist.
In the end, it wasn't enough.
But now, with Chloe here, he wouldn't have to fight it anymore.
A low groan came from inside the room.
The veins on Ethan's forehead and neck bulged.
Chloe's cheeks flushing.
She straightened her dress, tossing me a smug look.
"Well, at least you know your place. You didn't try to take advantage of him. Now that I'm here, you can give up… wait, why is your face so red?"
I just shook my head, urging her to go inside.
The moment Ethan's hands tore at the strap of Chloe's dress, I squeezed my eyes shut and pulled the door closed.
The sounds that followed were muffled but unmistakable.
Every moan, every gasp, was a knife twisting in my heart.
I couldn't bear it.
I turned and fled the hotel.
The drug was starting to kick in.
In my past life, half the reason I couldn't push Ethan away was because the drug had shattered my conscious.
While I still had my wits about me, I stumbled to a stop in front of an exclusive-looking private club and staggered inside.
A young host smiled at me.
"Good evening, miss. How may I help you?"
I clutched my head, trying to clear the fog.
"I need to hire an escort."
He blinked, then professionally guided me to a private suite.
I don't know how long I waited, but eventually the door opened and a man walked in.
He was tall and impeccably dressed in a tailored suit.
His gaze fell on my disheveled clothes, and he froze.
Before he could speak, I threw my arms around his neck and pressed my lips to his.
"I've been drugged," I whispered.
"Please… help me."
The man stiffened.
I felt him frown, his hands coming up to push me away.
"Is it not enough money?" I gasped, fumbling in my pocket.
"I'll pay you anything! Anything you want!"
I shoved my credit card into his hand and reached for his belt.