Chapter 1

For the fifteenth time, I walked in on Mike Luther cheating right in front of me.

I was holding the divorce papers I'd just signed.

The girl wrapped around Mike shrank back, clearly terrified.

Mike just frowned and asked, "Why are you here?"

I slapped the divorce papers onto the coffee table, and the pen rolled to his feet.

"Sign it," I demanded.

He glanced at the 'voluntarily giving up all assets' clause and smirked.

"What trick are you pulling this time? Last time you trashed the kitchen, now you're trying to get sympathy?" he sneered.

The girl clung to his sleeve, quietly sobbing, and he protectively stepped in front of her.

"Julian's still young. Don't scare her," he said.

I didn't even look at the girl. I just rapped my fingertip against the papers, cold and resolute.

"This is your last chance. Sign it, and I'm gone the moment you do," I said.

He finally wiped the smirk off his face, picked up the papers, and flipped through a couple of pages.

"Didn't you say you'd drag this out until I was left with nothing?" he asked.

I curled my lips in a bitter smile, pulled the pregnancy report from my bag, and slapped it down next to the divorce papers.

"I'm done. The baby inside me? I don't want it carrying your name," I said.

*****

Mike stared at the pregnancy report, a sneer spreading across his face.

"Leila, you really think a kid is enough to threaten me? Last time you said you'd take me to court, and what happened? Nothing. This pregnancy report? Bet you faked it again, didn't you?" he scoffed.

I kept silent, my face cold, and pushed the divorce papers right in front of him.

"Sign or don't. It's up to you. This is your last chance. After today, the deal's off. Then I'll take everything I've got to court, and not only will you get nothing, but your name will be dragged through the mud," I said.

Mike picked up the papers, flipping through them again and again, suspicion written all over his face.

"Come on, this has to be a trick, right? Since when did you ever make things easy for me, Leila? Weren't you always dragging this out, saying you'd leave me with nothing? What, scared now?" he sneered.

"I'm too tired to keep dragging this out," I said.

I leaned back on the couch, my gaze cold as ice.

"I don't want this baby to carry your name. And the baby's father? He's getting impatient. He doesn't want to wait any longer," I said.

Mike paused for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"The baby's father? Leila, stop pretending. Who else could it be besides me? After all these years, haven't I always been the only one in your heart? You're just trying to use this kid to tie me down, hoping I'll come back to you. Well, forget it. It's never gonna happen," he sneered.

He barely finished his sentence when the doorbell suddenly rang.

I got up to open the door, and Dennis Flynn was standing outside.

He was the guy Mike and I had been helping out for eight years.

From his high school days all the way through college, we treated him almost like family.

When Dennis saw me, his eyes brightened instantly.

"Leila, I heard you weren't feeling well, so I made some soup to help you get your strength back," he said.

He walked in, and when he spotted Mike on the couch with the girl curled up beside him, his smile faded a bit.

But Dennis kept up the act, pretending he hadn't noticed anything unusual.

"Hey, Mike, you're here too. And who's this?" Dennis asked.

When Mike saw Dennis, his expression softened a little.

He figured Dennis was here to help him talk me out of leaving.

After all, Dennis had always treated him with respect all these years.

"This is my assistant, Julian Fred. She's here to discuss some work matters," Mike said, making up an excuse on the spot.

Dennis didn't call him out. Instead, he offered me the soup container.

"Leila, drink it while it's hot. I spent hours making it," Dennis urged.

As he spoke, his gaze lingered on my belly.

Mike noticed, and it only confirmed for him that I was faking it.

He scoffed.

"Dennis, perfect timing. Try to calm Leila down. She's causing drama again, waving some fake pregnancy report in my face, and now she's threatening to divorce me and take everything I've got," Mike said.

Dennis quietly moved to stand in front of me, shielding me without making a fuss.

"Come on, Mike, that's not right. We all know what kind of person Leila is. She'd never joke about something like this. And after everything she's done for this family over the years, don't you know how much she's sacrificed?" Dennis said.

His eyes flicked over to Julian, who was curled up in the corner of the couch, and his words carried a subtle warning.

Mike looked like he'd just heard the funniest joke in the world and slammed his hand down on the coffee table.

He snapped, "Dennis! Who do you think you are, talking to me like that? After all these years of Leila and me supporting you, was it all for nothing?

"We paid your way through college, found you a job, and now you dare to lecture the very people who helped you? So all that care from Leila just turned you into her little mutt, huh?"

His harsh words hit me like a punch to the gut.

I was about to say something, but Dennis glanced back at me, his eyes gentle and reassuring.