Chapter 1
My wife, Amelia Johnson, and I had been childless by choice for seven years.
She decided to be a surrogate for her best friend, Michael Harris.
I watched her sweetly smile as she talked on the phone.
"The child will inherit all of Charlie's fortune. We won't even need to raise them."
Then she texted me: [Honey, surrogacy isn't cheating. He's gay! What are you worried about?]
When I suggested terminating the pregnancy, she responded with divorce papers.
Amelia told me not to have regrets, and her words cut deep.
I crumpled up my kidney cancer diagnosis in my hand.
Who would be the one with regrets now?
After seven blissful years of marriage with Amelia, I was blindsided on our anniversary with the news that she'd agreed to be a surrogate for her male best friend.
I had always desperately wanted a child of my own.
Yet I'd gotten a vasectomy out of concern for her health.
And now here she was, willingly enduring IVF treatments to have a baby for her best friend?
What did that make me?
"I know you don't like kids. Once the baby's born, I'll hand it straight over to him. He's gay and can't have kids of his own. Isn't that tragic enough?" Amelia stated with absolute conviction.
I opened my mouth, but no words came out. As an orphan, I'd always dreamed of having my own family. How could she think I didn't want children?
Sure, I was married, but Amelia was having someone's baby. How did that give me the family I longed for?
Just then, a nurse interrupted our conversation. "Mr. Charlie Jones, the results from your wife's specially ordered medical examination are ready."
"Go get the reports from the nurse," Amelia quickly told me, pressing her thermos into my palm. "You rushed out this morning without breakfast, so I made some chicken soup. I was worried about your stomach."
The medical staff nearby made appreciative noises.
Those little gestures that once felt so sweet now just made me uncomfortable and tense.
I couldn't stop thinking about what I'd accidentally overheard earlier when I arrived early at the entrance.
"The child will inherit all of Charlie's fortune. We won't even need to raise them."
Those words kept echoing in my mind, each repetition like a bell tolling numbly against my heart.
The nurse kept chattering in my ear. "Your wife really takes such good care of you, sir. Some of these specialist appointments have a six-month waiting list. Seven years of checkups. She's really devoted to you."
"Is that so?" I forced a smile, though it felt more like a grimace.
After collecting all the medical reports, I frowned deeply at the final page.
I rushed to the obstetrics department, only to learn Amelia had already left. My phone buzzed with over a dozen messages from her, fussing about the cold weather and saying she'd asked my secretary to bring me a scarf.
She wrote that I hadn't been sleeping well lately, so she'd gone ahead to handle some company business for me.
She mentioned she had a big surprise planned for our seventh anniversary.
The messages kept coming, one after another, each seemingly showing how much she cared.
Through the rearview mirror, the cab driver grinned and teased, "Must be your wife, huh? She can't bear to be apart from you. Your phone's blowing up with messages."
The radio volume in the car gradually increased as the female host read cheerfully, "Today marks the seventh anniversary of Mrs. Jones, wife of the Jones Group CEO. On this special day, she wants to tell him..."
The driver clicked his tongue and remarked, "Now that's what I call hitting the jackpot. A self-made man marries a rich wife! She even changed her company name for him, and she's totally devoted. Wonder how he pulled that off."
I could only manage a bitter smile.
As I pushed open the car door and entered the company, reaching my office floor, party poppers exploded in the air. The entire floor was decorated with baby-themed ornaments.
The employees joyfully congratulated me on having a son.
Candles and roses created a pathway, and at the end stood Amelia, smiling at me.
My phone buzzed with a notification, and I hesitantly opened the video.
Her so-called "best friend" was tangled intimately with her on our marriage bed.
Did she ever truly love me?