Chapter 1
After spotting and being admitted to the hospital to save the baby, I looked up prenatal care tips online.
The algorithm pushed a desperate plea to my feed. [I found out my boyfriend's wife is pregnant, but he promised he'd divorce her for me. Should I believe him?]
Most of the comments were telling her to break up, but the woman kept defending herself. [But he's really into me. He gives me 15 grand a month, and he says he's totally over his wife.
[He says he misses me like crazy if we don't see each other for a day.]
Someone asked: [How did you meet a guy like that? He's loaded and actually into you.]
She replied: [I'm an intern at his company. Today, in a meeting, I secretly hooked my foot around his leg under the table. He texted me right away, saying he'd come over to my place tonight for some fun.]
My heart tightened as I instinctively reached for my baby bump. Barrett Kingsley had messaged me earlier, saying he'd be busy with an important client tonight and warned me not to call.
I took a deep breath and opened her profile.
Her latest post said: [Honey is as gentle as always. He cooked salmon salad for me.]
I tapped on the photo and kept zooming in, again and again.
The hands holding the salmon salad had a platinum ring on the left ring finger.
My stomach dropped. It was exactly the same ring as the one on my finger.
*****
My heart raced as I clenched my phone. No way, it couldn't be him. It must be a coincidence. But the deeper I scrolled, the more suffocating it felt.
[Honey says he's at his loneliest when his wife is pregnant. Lucky for him, my lips are always here to cheer him up.]
[He made this soup for me himself. It's so good for me.]
My stomach twisted violently. I tossed my phone aside, threw off the covers, and rushed to the bathroom.
I heaved violently over the toilet, but nothing came out, with only sour bile burning my throat.
"Sweetheart, I'm here," Barrett Kingsley said as he pushed open the hospital room door. When he saw me slumped by the toilet, his face instantly filled with worry. "Sweetheart, are you okay?"
He set down the lunchbox and hurried over, helping me up and settling me back onto the bed. "Is the baby kicking you again? Why is this little one so restless? Oh, and since I know your appetite's been off, I made you some soup."
As he spoke, he opened the lunchbox, scooped up a spoonful of soup, and held it out for me.
Just then, the nurse walked in and caught the scene. "Mrs. Kingsley, you're so lucky. Your husband brings you soup every single day. Men like him are rare nowadays."
The nurse shook the thermometer, glancing enviously at the lunchbox sitting on the cabinet.
I forced a smile. "Yeah, I guess I am pretty lucky."
I was so lucky that I got to drink the leftover soup he shared with another woman.
After the nurse left, Barrett noticed I wasn't going to eat the soup, so he put the spoon back in the lunchbox.
"Still not hungry? You've been through so much, sweetheart," he said, leaning in to kiss my forehead.
Instinctively, I turned my head away, dodging his kiss. A faint scent of body wash hit my nose. It was not the brand we had at home.
He straightened up as if nothing had happened and started gently rubbing my belly. "Be good, little one, okay? Stop kicking your mom."
I looked into his eyes and asked softly, "Was the client last night a real pain? You didn't come by at all."
"Yeah, I drank way too much. I didn't want to smell bad around you, so I crashed at the office," Barrett sighed, rubbing his temples. "See? I'm busting my ass to earn money for you and our little one."
I brushed his hand aside, and my hand happened to bump against the ring on his finger. My throat felt stuffed, like it was clogged with cotton, making it hard to breathe.
Right then, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He glanced at it, his face changing for a split second, then quickly dismissed the call.
"Some annoying sales call," he ran a hand through his hair and continued, "Sweetheart, I'll go ask the doctor about your numbers. Make sure you finish the soup, okay? It'll get cold."
With that, he turned and hurried out of the room.
After waiting about ten seconds, I tossed off the covers, barefoot, and quietly trailed after him.
At the end of the hallway, his voice, low and hushed, drifted from the stairwell. "Honey, don't make a fuss, alright? She's my wife, after all. If I don't show up at the hospital, people will gossip.
"Relax, you're my sweetheart. Once she's had the baby, I'll ask for a divorce."
I leaned against the cold wall, my fists clenched tight without realizing it. The sting in my palm snapped me back to reality.
I slowly walked back to my room, crawled into bed, pulled the covers up, and closed my eyes. Before I knew it, tears were rolling down my cheeks.