The Marriage Contract by Winter Love

Imagine discovering your entire relationship was built on a lie, shattering your world in an instant. Sarah’s carefully constructed reality crumbles when she overhears a conversation that confirms her worst fears: Julian, the man she’s loved for nine long years, is deeply in love with another woman. Heartbreak and betrayal mix with the sting of humiliation as she realizes her affection was never returned. Arriving at Julian’s office, eager to share homemade soup dumplings and black bean soy milk – tokens of her affection carefully prepared, she's instead met with the cruel revelation of Julian's infidelity. The woman's voice drifting through the door confirms what she had only dared suspect. Her heart plummets as Julian's confession of love for Vivian echoes in her ears, each word a dagger twisting in her soul. He calls her a "fool." The truth hits hard: she was never truly seen, never truly loved. The confrontation is brutal. Sarah demands answers, the weight of nine years of unrequited love pressing down on her. Julian’s cold admission that he never loved her, accompanied by a hollow apology, fuels her anger and pain. Slapping him across the face, she finally confronts him about the years of deceit. But the cruelty doesn't end there. Vivian, pregnant with Julian's child, arrives, twisting the knife further with taunts and barbs. The emotional turmoil escalates into a physical struggle, culminating in Sarah falling and striking her head. Blood pools around her, blurring her vision, casting a sinister shadow on the wreckage of her dreams. Will Sarah ever recover from this devastating betrayal? Is there any chance for her to find true love and happiness, or will she forever be haunted by the ghost of what she thought she had? And what of Julian and Vivian? Will their love flourish, or will the foundation built on deceit ultimately crumble beneath them?