What if she had stomach cancer?

She was an only child, and her parents were not in good condition.

If they learned she was ill, it might be a blow to them.

Nicole forcefully pushed these worries aside. With that, she tidied up the trash can, concealed its contents with waste paper, and masked the odor with an air freshener.

With that, she prepared several dishes and waited for Jarrod to return.

Knowing Jarrod usually arrived home late, she delayed cooking. Almost immediately after sending him a message, she received his reply that he would be home in ten minutes.

"Home?" Nicole mused. This word echoed in her mind as she read his message.

Jarrod's home with her?

This was merely a place for him to get laid with her.

At the shopping mall today, Raegan seemed to want to say something but stopped on a second thought. Nicole figured Raegan must be worried about her after seeing her bruises and scars.

To ease Raegan's worry, Nicole assured her Jarrod was easily fooled by her and that there was no need to worry about her.

In all honesty, even Nicole did not believe her own words.

She resented Jarrod. If it were not for him, the Lawrence family's business would not have suffered, sparing her from the obligation of drinking with clients. After all, this was the very cause of her illness.

But ever since she confessed her love for him, Jarrod's behavior had somewhat surprised her.

While still intense in the bed, he rarely degraded her now.

There were times when they interacted like any normal couple, and heartwarming moments, like today, happened from time to time.

Had Jarrod changed for good?

Nicole did not like having such expectations. Even if he had changed, she could not forget about Jamie's presence.

ALL Nicole had ever wanted was a simple and content life. That was all.

While Nicole was in deep thought, the door swung open. Jarrod had returned.