Chapter 1

Yasmine Wagner had been dating her younger brother's best friend secretly for three years. On their anniversary, she had deliberately postponed her company meeting and picked Zachary Smith's favourite wristwatch, wanting to give him a surprise. However, she didn't expect to receive a "special gift" from him before she could surprise him. She saw Zachary carrying a woman into a hotel. Her brother, Anthony Wagner, was following behind. At that moment, Anthony grabbed Zachary to stop him. "Zach, you have a girlfriend, right? You've never brought her out to meet us all these years. And now, you're even bringing your ex-girlfriend to a hotel. Do you not care how she'd feel?" Zachary glanced at the woman in his arms, his voice hoarse as he replied, "Queenie's been drugged. She'll only feel better after sleeping with someone. I can't let another man do it. "As for my girlfriend… Don't mind her. I've only started dating her back then because she bears a slight resemblance to Queenie." Yasmine stood in the corridor at a distance, her head buzzing as those words hit her like a lightning bolt. Was she only a substitute? Before she could react, Anthony asked in disbelief, "What? A substitute? Wait a minute. I don't get it. You can get any woman you want with your looks. Why do you have to cling to Queenie? "Back then, Queenie was the one who pursued you, but you ended up falling so deeply in love with her. You guys dated back in high school. It's been many years since you broke up, yet you still can't get over her. Now, you even get yourself a substitute?" Seeing that his advice was futile, Anthony waved his hand angrily. "Fine. Whatever. I'll leave you alone. I still have to look for my sister. You'd better not regret this." With that, Anthony turned to leave. Zachary froze on the spot before looking down at Queenie York in his arms. She was barely conscious as she nuzzled against his chest and tugged his collar. He raised his hand to grab her wrist, his voice deep. "Easy. I'll satisfy you right away." The color drained from Yasmine's face as she dug her nails deep into her palm. As the door was closing, she could see Zachary leaning in to kiss Queenie on the lips. His move was exceptionally gentle. That sight suddenly reminded Yasmine of the night before, when Zachary had tried to get intimate with her. He had been fierce and aggressive, even tearing off the buttons from her pajamas. At that time, she had been embarrassed, thinking that a young man like him was full of desire and energy. But it turned out that he simply didn't love her. "This feels great…" Queenie's mellow voice rang out from inside. Zachary's voice was extremely husky and full of affection as he replied, "If you feel good, then don't leave me." Yasmine felt an excruciating pain in her chest. It was as if someone was hacking it with an axe, making her bleed uncontrollably. The pain was unbearable, and she couldn't bring herself to keep watching it. Trembling, she turned around. She had no idea how she returned to her car. Her fingers were shaking as she started the engine and put the pedal to the metal. She sped all the way to 75 mph. The strong wind gushed in through the open window, yet it couldn't ease the suffocating pain she felt deep down. As tears blurred her vision, she suddenly thought of the scene where she met Zachary for the first time. Three years ago, her car had lost control and crashed into the overpass. Her car had been badly dented, and the oil tank was leaking. It would explode at any time. The people around her dared not go closer. Lying in the car, she fell in and out of consciousness, thinking that she was dying. But the next instant, the car door was pulled open forcibly. A young man in a black jacket darted in and carried her out without hesitation. Later, she only remembered the huge explosion and the button she gripped tightly in her hand. She had dreamed of that man numerous times, and it still made her heart skip a beat. One day, she had gone to pick Anthony up and saw Zachary wearing the same jacket. Immediately, she thought she had found the person who had saved her. Yasmine might be three years older than him, but she had many admirers because of her good looks, great figure, and wealth. Yet, she had put aside her pride for the first time to pursue someone younger than her. She would bring him breakfast, watch his competitions, and take care of him all night when he was sick. When her company was busy preparing to get listed, she had even set aside a project worth hundreds of billions of dollars just to spend the anniversary with him. Later, he finally agreed to be with her, but he wanted her to keep their relationship a secret. At first, she thought Zachary simply didn't know how to explain their relationship to Anthony. Or maybe he wasn't good at expressing himself because of his indifferent attitude. It turned out that everything was just her assumption. She was only a substitute. As someone experienced in relationships, she had actually made a wrong judgment and was taken as a substitute by a young man. Yasmine was in so much pain that she was quivering. She bit her lips hard until the metallic taste spread in her mouth. The car came to a sudden halt in front of her house. As soon as she got out of the car, she saw Anthony standing in front of the villa and holding a gift box. "Yas, you're finally back!" Anthony strode toward her. "My friend's gone abroad today, so he told me to bring you a gift." Yasmine tried her best to keep herself composed, her voice hoarse as she asked, "Your friend's gone overseas, but why did he send me a gift? I don't know him." Anthony was shocked. "Huh? He saved you during the car accident last time. How could you be so ungrateful?" Yasmine immediately froze in place. Her voice trembled as she asked, "What did you say? Was the one who saved me… not Zachary?" Anthony widened his eyes. "Who told you it was Zachary?" "I remember the person who saved me wore a black jacket. It was exactly the same as the one Zachary wore…" Yasmine said. "Oh, that jacket?" Anthony pondered for a while. "Both of them have the same jacket. Zachary wasn't even there when you had a car accident. The one who rushed in to save you was Xavier." Yasmine's mind went blank. So, had she gotten the wrong person? The one she was fond of was never Zachary, but Xavier Sullivan?