Chapter 4

At that moment, I hated that I wasn't a woman. I should've stormed in there screaming and scratching their faces like a madwoman.

Instead, I had to hold back, worried about upsetting Amelia with her pregnancy and cancer diagnosis.

Even as I stood there, a complete fool, my eye caught something in the trash. It was a takeout receipt.

When I checked it, it was for chicken soup from this morning. Suddenly, everything clicked.

With trembling hands, I searched through the delivery app, finding every single "loving lunch" I'd eaten over the years from that same restaurant.

I quickly pulled up our work group photos, and in the corner of one, I spotted a cake decoration that led me straight to the bakery.

So it was all fake.

The cat's pitiful yowl from atop the fridge snapped me out of my gloomy thoughts. It had gotten itself stuck up there.

When I went to help it down, it thanked me with a vicious swipe, its claws raking my hand deep enough to tear the skin.

I yelped in pain and chased after it, only to watch this cat. It was untameable after seven years, curling up in Michael's arms like a pampered kitten, purring and nuzzling.

Amelia's face was flushed, her lips still glistening, her eyes darting around, but she hadn't even noticed my injury.

"I probably can't make it to the family dinner tonight. I need to get this checked out at the hospital."

"No hospitals!" Her knee-jerk reaction stunned me. She still thought I had cancer, not knowing about the medical records mix-up.

"Why waste time at the hospital? It's bad luck. Besides, it's just a house cat. It's fine. Don't you want my dad's approval? You can't skip the family dinner."

That knot in my chest just wouldn't loosen.

On the way to Amelia's father, Andrew Johnson's dinner party, I asked her if keeping the baby was necessary.

"You've always been terrified of having kids. Now you're willing to risk everything for his child? What does that make our marriage? The moment Michael chose to be with men, he should have given up this obsession with having children."

Amelia bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes.

I asked her one last time, "Did this baby really come from IVF?"

SLAP!

Her hand struck my cheek.

Then she reached out with trembling fingers to touch my face, but I turned away.

"Charlie, how could you doubt my love for you?"

The rest of the ride was silent, and before I knew it, we arrived at her father, Andrew Johnson's, villa. Andrew, who'd always looked down his nose at me, gave his daughter a quick hug and ushered her inside. I trailed behind them, silently carrying the gifts.

Then I spotted Michael, who had already made himself entirely at home here.

"Michael is my godson now. He's living with us! Got a problem with that?" Andrew snapped when he caught me staring.

What right did I have to object? Even though I'd saved the company from bankruptcy, I was still just a nobody from the wrong side of the tracks. What did it matter if I'd bought this villa? I still couldn't set foot in it like I belonged.

I'd been played like a fool by this father and daughter. My phone buzzed with another message. After the video Michael sent last time, now he'd sent me a property deed.

The villa had been transferred to his name.

I turned off my phone and took a deep breath. "If you love me, if you're loyal to our marriage, then terminate this pregnancy."

The happy trio suddenly fell silent.

I could see the contempt in Andrew and Michael's eyes.

My last shred of hope disappeared as she hesitated until there was nothing left.

"Let's get a divorce."

Free Point