Chapter 1
CAMILLE
I stared at the second stick, my hands trembling slightly. The bold leners confirmed what I’d been hoping for: Pregnant
My heart swelled with joy as I took in the result. I clutched the test, resisting the urge to jump up and down like a giddy child. I stopped myself, remembering my pregnancy results–I needed to be careful now.
I caressed my flat stomach, feeling hot tears pooling in my eyes–tears of joy.
I’m pregnant!
A bright smile spread across my face as I whispered, “III, baby. I’m so happy you’re here with Mommy. I can’t wait to go home and tell your daddy.”
But even
1 said the worth, a tiny flicker of doubt crept into my thoughts. Would Liam be happy?
We’ll never talked seriously about having children. Our relationship hadn’t exactly started in the most conventional way–it wasn’t love at first sight, a long relationship ending in marriage, or a whirlwind romance.
But I remembered tar way his face softened when he visited his friend’s home and saw their baby. His expression, though subde, had given him away. His normally guarded green eyes had sparkled with an emotion I couldn’t quite name back then
He loves babies. I
I’m sure of it.
I’m not sure, but I know Liam Anderson will love this baby as much as I already a
- do.
I carefully placed the pregnancy test kits into my purse before stepping out of the bathroom
“Grandma!” Lexclaimed as I entered the living room and saw my grandmother standing by the large bay window, her frail figure outlined by the soft light of the setting sun..
I quickly walked toward her, worried because she’d gotten up from her bed. She still looked pale and tired.
For a moment, the joy I’d been feeling vanished as I gazed at the woman who had raised me since I was a baby.
She’s getting older, and every time I hear she’s sick, fear grips me. If only I could live here in Hudson, but I can’t–not with my husband Liam’s life nooted in the Empire State of New York.
“Grandma, you shouldn’t be out of bed without waiting for mer
Her soft umile greeted ane as she turned. She reached out, her thin, delicate arms resting on my shoulders. I embraced her, feeling her warmth.
“I just wanted to see the sunset over the flower farm,” she said, her voice as soft and warm as ever. “Isn’t it beautiful?”
I glanced out the window, my heart tugging at the sight of the golden light spreading over the sprawling fields of blooms. Rows of Lavender, sunflowers, and zinnias stretched into the horizon, their vibrant colors glowing under the fading sunlight.
“It’s always beautiful Grandma,” I replied, smiling. “Do you want to sit on the porch! It’s cooler outside now”
She shook her heal, gently caressing my clerk. “No, darling. I’m fine here. I’ll go back to my bedroom soon. But you should go home now–your husband must be waiting for you. You’ve been here for days.”
Right My grandmother had caught pneumonia, and I’d stayed to care for her for the past four days.
Lum must be busy–he’d promised to follow me but hadn’t. He was out of reach, which worried me, but maybe work was keeping him tied up
He understands, Grandma—”
you ton. Besides, don’t you have some wonderful news to share with him?”
He does, but I’m sure you miss him, and he misses you
Her words made me freeze. My eyes widened. “How did you?
y dear, and
She chuckled, the sound soft and comforting, as she pulled me into a hug. “Oh, Camille, it’s written all over your face. You’re glowing, my Inoticed you haven’t been eating the foods you usually love. It wasn’t hard to bgure out
11:10 AM c
Chapter 1
Ich my checks flush as she reached down to place a hand over my stomach.
“Congratulations, my sweet girl. I’m so happy for you. You’re going to have your own child now, and that fills my heart with peace.”
Tears welled in my eyes again as I hugged her tightly. “Thank you, Grandma. I love you so much.”
“I love you too, my darling Camille,” she said, her voice trembling with emotion. “You’ve grown into such a strong, beautiful woman. Now, go home and share this joy with your husband. He deserves to know.”
I hesitated, my voice wavering as I asked. “Do you think he’ll be happy!”
She pulled back slightly, looking into my eyes with unwavering confidence. “Of course, he will It’s time for the two of you to take this step. No matter how your story started, I see the love you have for each other now. This baby is a beautiful testament to that love.”
Her words filled me with hope, and I nodded, wiping away my tears as I smiled at her. When I told him. I imagined Liam’s face–his sharp, serious features softening, his piercing green eyes lighting up with genuine happiness
But what I am seeing right now is far from my expectations. This isn’t what I imagined this night would turn into.
Is this a nightmare!
Oh God, please wake me up.
I put my trembling hands over my mouth, trying to hold back the desperate sobs that are clawing at my throat. My eyes, wide with disbelief, are fixed on my husband. Liam, as he kisses my twin sister, Callie, on top of his study table.
He was topless, and Callie was almost naked, her breasts exposed as my husband cupped them, still kissing her with intensity and passion.
It’s like the world has faded away, and the two of them are lost in their own private reality.
They were so caught up in each other that they didn’t even notice my presence.
My heart is being squeezed, crushed under the weight of the pain, and it feels like the air around me has been sucked out. I close my eyes, trying to shut out the scene, wishing that this was some cruel nightmare, that 1 could wake up and find myself safe in my bed
“Ah, Lum, that’s it. Kiss me more… Callie’s voice is breathless, soft with pleasure, and it shatters me.
The voice of my twin sister finally slapped me with the harsh reality.
This isn’t a nightmare.
It’s happening. This is real
They’re making out. They’re doing something that should have been mine and Liam’s only.
My feet move backwards, but I’m not sure why. Part of me wants to run, to flee from this nightmare, but my body is frozen in place, unwilling to
move
But as my hand instinctively moved to my stomach, I realized—why would I do that?
am Liam’s wife now! I am carrying our baby!
The thought brings a surge of protective instinct, a fierce, overwhelming need to fight for what’s mine.
Tears streamed down my cheeks as I pushed the door open, the creak of it echoing in the silence. I called my husband’s name, but my voice was barely a whisper
“1.-Lum_”
I bite my lip hard, clasping my hands together as my fingers tremble uncontrollably. The two of them stop, their lips breaking apart.
Liam’s back wirl turned to me, but he quickly covers Callie’s body with his shirt as if trying to hide her from my gaze. She stares at me, her face a
her wide eyes filled with guilt but I knew better.
picture of sho
“Oh my gosh!”
I can barely comprehend what’s happening. My throat is tight, and I’m choking on the words that want to spill out, the anger and hurt that claw at my ches
“What’s happening here!” I swallowed hard, my voice trembling 11–how could you when, oh God!”
2/4
11.10 AM d
Chapter 1
Tears blur my vision, but I still see Liam’s cold, emotionless green eyes–they were the same green eyes I had seen when we first met
outs his shirt on
“Oh, you’re back?” Lum says, his tone is casual, almost indifferent, as if this is just another day, another problem to brush off. He puts Callie, who carefully climbs off the table.
“I’m sorry, Camille…”
“Enough, Callie. Leave us and wait for me in our bedroom, Liam interrupts, his voice curt.
In their… bedroom? My mind spins as I feel a hot surge of anger rises in me. I want to scream, to lash out, but I’m frozen, every part of me trembling with fury and betrayal.
“Okay, I–Ill wait for you.”
But as she tries to pass by me, I can’t let her. I can’t let her just walk away like everything is fine. I reach out and grab her arm, my fingers digging into her skin as I pull her to a halt.
“1–as this what you meant to say to me? T–that you’re going to claim what’s really yours! H–he’s my husband now, Callie! How could you? steal him from you; you were the one who left! How dare you!” I shouted, raising my hand. But before my palen landed on her cheek…
I didn’t
A tight grip seized my wrist, and I grimaced from the pain. But the real pain came when Liam pulled Callie into his arms, shielding her from me.
“Don’t you f*cking lay your hands on her, Camille!” Liam growls, his voice low and dangerous.
me that
- Liarn
No don’t call me
I’m your amore mio. I’m your dolcezza.
Please, don’t do this to me
1d–don’t know what she’s talking about, Liam,” Callie says, her voice trembling, almost pleading. I told you you should talk to her first-
Just
go now, Callie. I’ll be there in a minute, Liam says softly, pressing a kiss to Callie’s temple, a gesture that feels like a knife to my heart.
He didn’t let me go until Callie left the room. I almost collapsed when he harshly pushed my hands away.
“L–Liam what are you doing? What’s w–wrong! What’s happening?”
You saw everything. Are you that dumb not to know what’s happening?“His words are like ice, cutting through my confusion and fear. His e don’t soften. They’re cold–cold and hard as if he’s been waiting for this moment.
eyes
He walks toward his desk, grabs an envelope, and takes a long drag from his cigarette. He picks up a glass of whiskey and takes a slow sip before walking back toward me, handing me the envelope with a careless motion.
“Sign that and leave, Camille. Don’t worry, there’s a blank check inside. Put whatever amount you want. I’ll give it to you.”
I took the envelope with trembling hands. I had an idea of what was inside, but seeing the word divorce on the Before I knew it, I was on the floor, clutching the papers tightly, my breath coming in short, panicked gasps.
paper made
mmy
knees weaken.
“N–no.” I whispered as I looked up at him.
He was holding the fountain pen I had given him, and when I didn’t take it, he threw it at me, the sharp clink of the metal against the floor echoing in the otherwise salent rOKHEL
now” he demanded, his voice cold and firm.
“Y–you told me you loved me Y–you promised you wouldn’t be like my dad. You promised you’d be loyal and faithful to me… that even if I were just a substitute at first, you would grow to love me…” I could hardly speak through the lump in my throat. That… that we could be a real family-
Thats what I also thought. I thought Hoved you” Liam interrupted, his voice dripping with disdain. “But I realized you’re nothing compared to my
just a subestatute wife, and now that Callie’s back, we should go back to where we should be, Camille,”
I felt my stomach twist with nausea as 1 avoided his cold, unfeeling gaze. I couldn’t bear to look into his eyes any longer. They were
were so empty, so devoid of everything that had once made me believe in him, in us.
It had been a year since I married him as a substitute wife for my twin sister, who had run away. My estranged father had left me with no choice but to go along with his plan and murry this man
The man I never thought I would fall in love with
Chapter 1
I love this man. I have grown to love Liam Anderson despite how I feared him at first.
For the first time in my life, this is the only time I have ever wanted something desperately.
Tim pregnant, 1 muttered, my voice barely above a whisper as I gathered the courage to look him in the eyes once more,
For a brief fleeting moment, I thought I saw something shift in Liam’s expression–a flicker of emotion–something almost like doubt or maybe regret. But it was gone as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by that cold, calculating look that had become all too familiar.
For
moment. I hoped that what I said would make him realize he was just confused right now. That maybe… he could still choose me over Callie He would choose me and our baby.
“Don’t be such a pathetic, desperate bitch, Camille. You’re lying.
I gasped and was about to stand and grab my purse that I had dropped, intending to convince him I was telling the truth if I showed him the pregnancy test kits. But before I could move, he spoke again, and his words shattered any lingering hope I had.
“And even if you’re telling the truth…I don’t want a baby with you. Abort that child. Camille.”
My world came crashing down around me, I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. I was paralyzed with disbelief. How could he say something so cruel? How could he just dismiss the life growing inside me with such callousnesst
With shaking hands, I slapped him hard, the sound of my palm meeting his cheek fi
filling the silence of the room.
“Damn you! You’re a monster!! 1 screamed, the anger and heartbreak flooding my chest, pushing me to my limits.
“Right. I am a monster,” he sneered, his voice low and venomous. “So don’t even dream of having a child with me. That baby would just be a
monster
Before he could continue his cruel words, I slapped him again, my hand trembling from the force of it. I was ready to strike him once more, to show him how much pain he had caused me, but before I could move, he gripped my wrist tightly. His hold was firms, almost painful.
“Sign the goddamn papers, and I’ll send you to the hospital to abort that child!” His voice was like ice, cold and ruthless.
No. I cant lose this baby. This child is the only thing I have left. The only thing that’s truly mine.
With trembling hands. I reached for the papers he had shoved into my hands moments before. I could hardly keep my grip steady as I hurriedly signed the divorce papers he had pushed at me.
Cach letter felt like a betrayal to myself and my child, but I couldn’t stop my hands from moving. I signed, and then I threw the papers at him, tears blurring my vision
Sull crying. I pushed all the strength I had left into my legs and ran
Ran away from Liam Anderson–my ex–husband,
“Camille” He shouted, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t stop. My feet moved on their own as I heard the heavy footsteps of his men chasing me. My heart raced with terror, fear for my child, fear that I would never escape him.
They’re going to kill my baby!
No Please God, sve met
I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I ran, panic seizing my body as I went out of Liam’s mansion. I was about to go to my car when I felt
chand grip my wrist, pulling me to a stop.
I struggled, trying to break free, but the hand was unyielding Panic surged through me, and I opened my mouth to scream, but before the sound a velnak sen mensuaul amar min moge. The spellans swemiusdina s dienas dirbk–sweet soms and within seconda muscion klirred
Ө
