At the funeral, I'd asked Eugene to light a stick of incense on my behalf.

I never knew. My husband's greatest regret—the thing that haunted him across a lifetime—was that he hadn't saved her.

How long had they been involved? When did it start?

My mind was still reeling when an employee's panicked shout cut through the chaos:

"Mr. Henson, you made it out! But where's Rose Fox? She heard you were trapped inside and ran straight into the fire to find you!"

The joy drained from Eugene's face. His whole body went rigid.

Only then did he remember me—the woman who'd been crippled saving his life in their last life.

Only then did it hit him that the person he'd shoved aside, the one who'd nearly fallen into the fire, was me.

"Rose!" His voice cracked, raw and hoarse. He scrambled to his feet.

He turned around and met my eyes.

Empty. Hollow. Stripped of everything.

He rushed over in three strides, reaching out to check my burns.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry, I—"

I stepped back.

His hand froze in midair.

"Rosie, I—"

He looked away, guilt written across his face. But after a moment, he drew a deep breath and forced himself to meet my gaze again.

"Rosie, I didn't realize it was you. At least this time you're not as badly hurt."

"This time... let's go our separate ways."

"You saw it yourself. Sylvia's been in my heart for a long time. In our last life, she died, and then you were maimed saving me. I had no choice but to take responsibility and honor the engagement."

I said nothing. His jaw tightened.

"I already married you once. I already did my duty. In this life, none of that has happened yet. We can still fix this. Can't we just set things right?"

A bitter smile tugged at my lips. Set things right?

So our ten-year love story had been nothing but a mistake to him?

My hand drifted to my stomach. I refused to give up.

"What about our child? Eugene, in this life, our baby is still alive! Are you really going to abandon them? Are you going to look me in the eye and say you want them dead?!"

My words struck him silent.

In our last life, I had just confirmed my pregnancy around this time. I'd wrapped the test results like a gift and presented them to him on our tenth anniversary. He'd dropped to one knee and proposed on the spot.