Chapter 4
Chapter 4
James stood frozen, as if struck by lightning, his face pale with shock. His eyes searched mine, filled with disbelief.
“You… you‘ re pregnant?” he stammered. “You were carrying our child?”
I rested a hand over my stomach, feeling the emptiness where a vibrant life had once been. The pain clawed at my heart, twisting and gnawing.
“Yes,” I replied, my voice barely a whisper. “I was three months pregnant.”
I closed my eyes, unwilling to look at the man who had indirectly ended our child’s life. But he wouldn’t let it rest; his questions kept coming, his disbelief clear. He demanded to
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know why I hadn’t told him about the
pregnancy.
I shook my head. I had tried–tried to tell him countless times. But every attempt was silenced by his anger, his accusations, his scorn. Now, it was too late. Nothing he could say or ask would bring back the child we had lost.
He repeated the question, frustration evident in his voice. Finally, I couldn’t help but look up, meeting his gaze with a bitter smile.
“Why do you care now, James? Isn‘ t your heart only for Sandra? Why put on this show of caring?”
His face tightened and he seemed taken
aback. For a moment, he looked at me like he was struggling to find an answer. After a long
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silence, he finally managed, No… it s not like that.‘
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His weak response fell flat, stirring nothing in me. My heart had been shattered too many times to find comfort in words now. I asked him to leave, requesting that he and the doctor give me time alone to come to terms with everything.
In the days that followed, I said nothing. The silence was my shield, a layer of calm over the storm of hurt raging within. But after a week, James sought me out again, a strained smile on his face.
He told me he had bought a private island.
“You were trying to leave the country for a break, right? I can give you something better,” he said, his voice surprisingly soft.
“The island is yours. I’ve arranged for a
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private jet too–just say the word and you can go whenever you want.
The humility in his tone was startling, a stark contrast to the cold, unfeeling man he had become. It was almost hard to believe that
this was the same James who had once been a symbol of confidence, the “prince” who always got his way. Seeing him now, I remembered the rumors I’d heard when we first met–the ones that had painted him as a heartless playboy who‘ d never settle down for anyone. Yet I, foolishly, had believed I was different.
He must have sensed my thoughts because he reached for my hand, his face weary.
“Nadine, please… I just want to make things right,” he murmured. “Just smile again, even just once.”
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I pulled my hand away, looking at him with a mix of sorrow and pity. “James, I don’t need an island and I certainly don’t need a jet,” I said, my voice tired but resolute. “I don’t want to be bought. I still have my self- respect.”
His face twisted, pained and he fumbled for words. “I just… I wanted to make things better. I never meant for you to feel this way.”
His hand reached for mine again, trembling, as though desperate to hold on to the past. But my mind drifted back to that awful moment–to the cold look in his eyes as he forced me to kneel and apologize to Sandra. That was the moment everything inside me had died.
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Seeing my lack of response, he tried again.
“The doctor said you‘ re refusing to eat,‘ he pleaded softly. “She mentioned you
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wouldn’t even allow the nutritional shots. I
thought… maybe these gifts would cheer you up.”
I let out a shaky breath, my tone laced with bitterness. “Funny, isn’t it? When you locked me in that storage room for two days without food or water, it was to punish me. Well, congratulations. I’ve lost my appetite.”
He looked genuinely taken aback, his expression softening. “I… I ordered the nanny to bring you food. I didn’t know she
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I cut him off, anger boiling over. “Didn’t
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know?” I echoed, my voice rising. “If I told
you Sandra had bribed her to keep me starving, would you even believe me?”
He faltered, his eyes averting mine. I let out a small, hollow laugh, knowing that he couldn’t answer. This was the man who
once claimed to love me, yet he couldn’t even acknowledge the depth of Sandra‘ s malice.
He took a hesitant step closer, a hint of desperation in his voice. “Nadine… please. How can I make this right? Just tell me. I‘ d move mountains if that’s what it takes.”
My gaze lingered on him, but I no longer saw the man I had fallen for. Whatever he said, whatever promises he made, the past couldn’t be erased.
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His voice softened, almost pleading. “I had wanted a child with you, Nadine, more than you’ll ever know. Maybe… maybe this one came at the wrong time, but that doesn’t mean we won’t have others.” He smiled faintly, as if envisioning a future that could erase the horrors of the past. “We’ll try again. And I swear, I’ll give our future children the best of everything.”
But I couldn’t hear it anymore. I had nothing left to give to a man who’d once meant everything but had broken me beyond repair. A sad, tired resolve washed over me and I lowered my gaze.
“Let me go, James,” I whispered, my voice barely audible. “We‘ re done. I’ll live my life, but… I don‘ t ever want to see you again.”
