Chapter 5

Iris’s POV

In the following days, Marty didn’t come to the hospital again.

He and Madisen were constantly showing up at every fancy event together. News of their closeness trickled back to me.

But I stayed silent, letting people fill in the blanks themselves.

The day I got discharged, I’d barely stepped through the door when I heard Beverly’s furious voice.

“You want some nightclub dancer in the company as your personal secretary, fine. But now, you’re letting her live here, too? Marty, I may be old, but I am not stupid!”

“The Mrs. Dempsey title? Only Iris deserves that!” she spat.

Since Marty’s dad passed, his mom had been living abroad.

For her to come back personally, that meant that Madisen had clearly threatened the family’s interests.

“Seriously, Mom, do you know what I hate most about you? Measuring someone’s worth by their status.”

“Well, I don’t care,” he added. “I don’t care about anyone’s status. Even if it means cutting off our mother-son bond, I will marry Madz.”

I just wanted to go upstairs and pack, but Madisen caught sight of me instantly.

“Mrs. Dempsey, you heard that, right?”

“I just wanted to change myself, so why does everyone look down on me? Does being lowborn mean I can’t aim higher?”

Her face was stubborn, but there was calculation in her eyes. I rolled mine.

Marty blocked my way, annoyed.

“My mom hates illegitimate kids more than anything. It’s weird she approves of you.”

“You, woman. I bet you’ve been talking shit behind Madz’s back, so Mom’s taking it out on her.”

This idiot was lost in his own logic. I cast him a sidelong glance and could no longer hold back.

“Marty, I don’t compete with a mistress for a man. Do you think I still care about you? About being Mrs. Dempsey? Hah.”

I slipped past him, storming upstairs to pack.

I thought about leaving this place soon. My heart was tangled, restless. I barely slept that night.

Just when I finally nodded off, sharp pain struck the back of my neck. Then I was yanked off the bed.

“Bitch! It’s all your fault Madz ended up cornered! Otherwise, she wouldn’t have left me or thought about another man!”

“What the hell are you saying?!”

Marty shoved his phone at me, the screen blazing.

[Marty, meeting you was my luck, but I shouldn’t have hoped for more. Mrs. Dempsey keeps calling me a ‘mistress.’ Yesterday, I realized she’s mocking me, telling me I’ll never have my place. Tonight, at the cruise gala, I’m agreeing to the man who once chased me, closing this chapter completely.]

“You actually believe this cheap bullshit?!” I sneered.

Before I could argue more, his phone buzzed again.

[Marty… This child is so unlucky. It can’t call you ‘dad’ anymore.]

The attached image was a prenatal checkup report.

Marty’s fury flipped instantly to tender obsession when he saw it.

“Madz and our child… I must protect them,” he muttered.

“Marty,” I said, “what if I told you we had a child, too? But you… you accidentally killed him. Would you believe me?”

Even now, speaking of that child sent a stab through my chest.

I stared at Marty, gripping some strange, lingering obsession.

“What nonsense are you talking about?” He blinked in surprise, then scoffed. “You’re lying now just to get me back? Oh, god, Iris. You’re beyond ridiculous!”

Even though I’d expected his response, hearing it made me flinch inside.

He paced, restless, then stopped with a sudden, odd expression.

“Hey, you know the man chasing Madz is a bastard. You literally shoved her into the fire yourself. You owe her too much.”

“I get it. You’re probably not okay with leaving the Mrs. Dempsey title behind. But tonight, if you sleep with that bastard, Madz will come back safely, and you? You’ll slide into the Mrs. Dempsey seat just like that.”

I looked at him in horror. Before I could speak, I felt a brutal strike on my neck and lost consciousness.