Chapter 1

Sebastian Halston, a privileged heir in Bandorn's high society, was infamous for being impossible to deal with. It was all because of his obsession with cleanliness. It was an obsession so extreme that it bordered on pathological. He never used anything that had been opened and refused to touch anything that someone else had handled. Even his wife, Tracy Sullivan, who was bound to him through a marriage of convenience, remained a virgin after two years of marriage. It was not for lack of effort. At this moment, Tracy was sitting nervously on the edge of his bed, dressed in a sheer chiffon nightgown. Sebastian emerged from the bathroom while drying his hair. The moment he saw her, his brows knitted in displeasure. He said only a few sentences, "You got my bed dirty, and I'll have to change the sheets. I won't sleep with you. I find it disgusting." The words landed like two sharp slaps across her face. Her cheeks burned, and her pride was shattered. That night, she fled in humiliation. Tracy could only tell herself that if Sebastian wouldn't touch her, then surely, he wouldn't touch any other woman either. However, when a private investigator sent a video to her phone, her world shattered all over again. In the video, a woman was dressed in a hospital gown. Her frail body trembled uncontrollably, liquid streaming down her thighs. She had lost control of her bladder. Yet, the man known for his extreme cleanliness knelt without hesitation, wiping her gently and carefully. There was no trace of impatience on his usually cold face, only focus. Tracy's fingers shook violently as she stared at the screen. The next second, she broke down. She couldn't believe the man in the video was Sebastian. It was impossible! She drove straight to his company, desperate for an explanation. However, as she stood outside his office, she overheard his conversation with a friend. "Your wife from that marriage of convenience, Tracy, has a great body. Are you really not gonna touch her for the rest of your life?" Sebastian's voice was indifferent. "If you like her, then pursue her. I only have eyes for Whitney in this life." "But Whitney can never be seen with you. She's your adopted sister. And after your relationship was exposed and she was sent to the psychiatric hospital, she hasn't exactly been stable. Are you really going to leave a beauty like Tracy untouched and entangle yourself with your mentally ill adopted sister?" Tracy froze where she stood. It felt as though her heart had been hollowed out. She never would have imagined that the woman in the video was Sebastian's adopted sister, Whitney Halston! He had been refusing to touch Tracy, not because of his obsession with cleanliness, but because he harbored feelings for Whitney that couldn't be spoken aloud! "Whit isn't mentally ill. She's only like that because she loves me." When he spoke of Whitney, warmth finally crept into Sebastian's voice. "Besides, I only agreed to marry Tracy because the old man threatened me with Whit's freedom. I had no choice. Moreover…" Sebastian swirled the wine in his glass, his tone calm and cruel. "Tracy is desperate for love. She's obedient and easy to control. Even if she ever finds out about Whit, Tracy would never do anything out of line." His friend laughed in agreement. "Exactly. Back then, when you took that knife for her, she was so moved that she immediately agreed to marry you. She'll probably never know that the attacker was someone you hired. A staged play of the hero saving the damsel. It was just a trick to fool a naive young lady." Tracy's mind buzzed. She clamped a hand over her mouth as tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. Two years ago, when she returned from studying abroad, she had no parental support after she refused to be used as a pawn in a marriage of convenience. So, she started from the very bottom of the company. To prove herself, she endured malicious rumors, workplace isolation, bullying, colleagues stealing her credit, and them dumping the blame on her. She swallowed every hardship without complaint. She never once gave in, not until the colleague who constantly targeted her raised a knife against her. At the critical moment, it was Sebastian, who had been pursuing her relentlessly for two months, who stepped in front of her. The man who had always stood above others fell into a pool of blood. His face was pale with pain, yet his eyes were gentle as he looked at Tracy. "Trace, I never saw you as a tool for marriage. I really do like you." In the end, Tracy gave in. She fell for Sebastian's apparent devotion and married him without hesitation. But in the two years following their wedding, Sebastian remained distant and cold. She assumed that was simply his nature. Only now did she understand that the sacrifice she had mistaken for love was nothing more than calculated deceit. From the very beginning, she had been nothing but a tool, meticulously chosen to shield the woman Sebastian truly loved. "Who are you? And why are you standing outside Sebastian's office?" A woman's voice suddenly came from behind Tracy. She turned around and froze. The pale-faced woman was frail and dressed in a hospital gown. It was Whitney!