Lily endured the downfall of his family, from powerful and wealthy to poor like a beggar. Losing her mother and her father left her hopeless. The agony from bullying and mockery she went through was cruel.

She thought the help of her mom's old friend would end her agony, but the opposite happened. Lily grappled with the hatred of Ethan, whom she only just met.

Excerpt:

"I don't want you here, Lily. Stay out of my way. I don't want to see you whenever I'm around."

Ethan's frankness took Lily aback, and she couldn't hide the flicker of confusion in her eyes. She couldn't contain the nagging curiosity that fueled her question. "But why? We've never met before. Why do you hate me?"

Ethan grabbed Lily's arm. "You and your mom, you've caused me more pain than you can imagine."

Ethan was so close to Lily that he noticed how soothing her face was. Her skin felt soft and warm under his touch, and he almost gave in while looking at her innocent brown eyes. Lily felt the pain under Ethan's grip in her arm, but she endured it.

"Me and my mother?" Lily said in confusion. "But how? Ethan, please tell me how my mom and I wronged you so I can fix this problem," she begged.

Ethan scoffed. "You're good at acting. With that pretty face, you can be an actress if you dare to," he said mockingly.

Disappointment crossed Lily's face. Ethan wasn't taking her seriously. "Ethan, I don't want tension between us, as your Dad has been kind to me. I want to be at least civil with you if you can't accept me as your friend," Lily said hesitantly. She was about to cry, not from the pain in his arms but because her heart wrenched from Ethan's mockery and disrespect.

"You're right. We can never be friends," Ethan said nonchalantly, but he felt a pang of pain in his chest.