Chapter 501
Octavia kept a polite smile on her face, but inside, she was rolling her eyes. When people needed her, she was the perfect wife, always reliable and supportive. The rest of the time, she was just the old, unwanted woman in the background. Still, her son meant everything to her, and she genuinely wanted him to have a good life. Mabel would be a way better match than Claire, that was for sure.
Meanwhile, Claire sneezed out of nowhere, completely unaware that she was the topic of Octavia’s inner complaints. It was almost like Octavia believed Claire desperately wanted her approval, which couldn’t be further from the truth. If Octavia ever became her mother-in-law, Claire was pretty sure her days would be numbered. With a woman as two-faced as Octavia, you could never be sure if she’d put something nasty in your dinner just because she felt like it.
Claire wasn’t naive, though. She already had people watching Fallon’s every move. When she heard from her sources that Fallon and Octavia had a run-in at Latham’s company, she just smiled to herself. Neither of those women was easy to deal with, and putting them in the same room was like tossing a lit match into a pile of gasoline. Who knew who would end up getting burned?
Fallon herself had been a mystery Claire spent ages investigating. If Claire hadn’t happened to spot her chatting with Cindy, she probably never would have thought to dig deeper. After that, she sent a private investigator to look into Fallon’s life, and what she found was nothing short of dramatic.
It turned out Fallon had gone to the same college as Latham, just a few years behind him. She had developed a huge crush on him when she was still a freshman. The catch? Latham was busy with his own life in grad school and already had a girlfriend. Fallon never got the chance to break them up, and Latham graduated before anything could happen.
When Latham finished school, he dove into the family business. He switched girlfriends too, eventually marrying Octavia. Back at college, Fallon slowly let go of her crush. At least, she thought she had, until fate—or maybe luck—landed her an internship at Latham’s company years later. Suddenly, it felt like the universe was throwing her another opportunity.
By then, Latham was a married man with a kid, but Fallon couldn’t help thinking, if someone else had taken the place of his college girlfriend, why couldn’t she replace his wife, too? Honestly, the whole plan was twisted, but Fallon couldn’t let go of the idea.
She didn’t rushin headfirst, though. Instead, she focused on proving herself at work, making sure Latham noticed her talents. Once she had
his attention, she casually mentioned that she had admired him back in their school days, hoping to plant the seed. No man hated being admired, and Latham was no exception. He basked in the attention, letting Fallon linger a little too close, their interactions turning almost flirtatious.
Of course, Latham wasn’t clueless. He saw the spark in Fallon’s eyes and enjoyed the game, but he kept things just on the edge. He wanted her hooked, sinking deeper and deeper into his web With the two of
them, it was hard to say who was leading who astray. Either way, after two years of flirting and drawn-out glances, they finally crossed the line. and ended up together.
By the time Octavia discovered the affair, Fallon was already pregnant. Not long after that, Octavia found out she was expecting too. Fallon was convinced she could use the baby to push Octavia out of the picture, but she had seriously underestimated her rival Octavia was way more ruthless than she let on. She not only plotted to make Fallon lose the baby but also pulled Latham right back into the family, leaving Fallon out in the cold.
The aftermath was brutal for Fallon. She lost everything, even her ability to have children, all because she tried to outmaneuver Octavia. When she found out Octavia was about to have a healthy baby, and Latham couldn’t wait to welcome the new arrival, Fallon’s resentment reached a whole new level.
She already knew that Octavia was going to the same hospital for checkups. With revenge burning inside her, she started planning how to switch their babies.