Chapter 1
The operating room door slammed shut behind Nina Sherman. She leaned against the wall, her stomach cramping so badly that cold sweat broke out on her forehead.
She pressed her hand to her belly, where a tiny life had once grown. Just thirty minutes ago, it was gone.
The clock at the end of the hallway read 3:17 PM.
Her phone had rung seventeen times, all from the same person: Cole Finch.
On the eighteenth ring, she answered.
"Where are you?" Cole's voice was simmering with anger.
"At the hospital," she replied.
"What happened?"
"I had a miscarriage," Nina said, her voice as calm as if she were talking about the weather.
There was a five-second silence on the other end, followed by the crash of a chair and the shattering of glass. Cole's voice suddenly turned frantic. "What did you say? Which hospital? Stay right there."
"Don't bother coming. Cole, let's end this. I want a divorce."
"Nina!"
"I've already signed the divorce papers. They're in the study drawer." Nina stared at the patchy sunlight on the hallway floor. "Let Wendy Lynn be Mrs. Finch. She's pregnant, right? Well, my baby's gone, so hers can finally be born with everyone's blessing."
"What are you talking about? Wendy's baby isn't mine."
"The eighth time," Nina interrupted him coldly.
"What?"
"This is the eighth time you've had me donate blood for Wendy." Nina closed her eyes. "Every time, you tell me it's your responsibility, that she needs help. Every time, you say I'm your wife and I should understand."
"Nina, listen to me. Wendy has leukemia."
"Yeah, I know. She needs regular transfusions. She's got that rare Rh-negative blood, and I'm the only one in the city with the same type. So I guess I'm just supposed to keep donating blood to her forever, right?"
"That's not what I meant."
Nina opened her eyes and stared up at the ceiling lights. "The doctor said my body was too weak. All that blood loss made me severely anemic, and my uterus wasn't getting enough blood. The baby had stopped developing a long time ago."
The sound of a car door opening came through the phone. Cole's voice was frantic and jumbled. "Nina, I had no idea you were pregnant. Why didn't you tell me?"
"I did," Nina said softly. "Three months ago, I showed you the pregnancy test. You told me not to make a fuss, that Wendy had been admitted to the hospital and you weren't in the mood to talk about it."
Cole fell silent.
Nina continued, "Two months ago, I asked you to come with me for my prenatal checkup. You said you were busy with work and sent the driver instead.
"Then Wendy wanted some apple pies, so you had the driver go buy them for her. I ended up waiting alone at the hospital entrance for two hours."
"Nina..."
"A month ago, my morning sickness was really bad, and I wanted something sour. When you came home, I asked you to bring me some cranberries. But you brought back sweet cherries, Wendy's favorite.
"You said you happened to pass by the hospital, and she wanted some, so you bought them for her. But you forgot the cranberries I wanted."
Nina kept her voice low.
"This morning, my stomach hurt so much that I couldn't even stand up. I called you, but you said Wendy needed someone with her for her checkup, so you told me to take a cab to the hospital alone. So I did.
"I took a cab, checked myself in, and signed the surgery consent form by myself."
"Nina, please. Don't say any more. I'm almost there."
"Cole," Nina cut him off. "Do you know what's really ironic? Wendy's on the nineteenth floor, and the OB-GYN is on the twelfth.
"In the past three months, you've come to the hospital forty-seven times for Wendy, and every time, you passed the twelfth floor. Not once did you ask if I wanted a checkup."
There was nothing but breathing on the other end.
Nina slowly pushed herself up, her stomach cramping so badly that she almost lost her balance. "I met you when I was nineteen, married you at twenty-two, and now I'm twenty-eight. It has been nine years.
"You always said Wendy was pitiful, that she had no parents, that her health was always fragile, and told me to be more understanding. Alright, I tried.
"You always said you were just friends, that helping her was your responsibility, and told me not to overthink it. Alright, I didn't."
She took a deep breath, but the tears still fell. "But Cole, when your wife was lying on that operating table, where were you? You were up on the nineteenth floor, keeping your precious 'responsibility' company.
"And when your own child died, where were you? Still on the nineteenth floor, with your 'responsibility'.
"Now your 'responsibility' is pregnant. Whether the baby is yours or not, you can finally marry her out in the open. I'm giving you both what you want."
"Nina!" Cole yelled, his voice cracking. "I'm begging you. Stay put. I'm almost there. You can't drop the hammer on me like this."
"Cole." Nina let out a soft, almost mocking laugh. "When I was lying on that operating table, I kept thinking, if you showed up, if you stopped me, I'd forgive you one more time."
"Nina..."
"But you never came."
Nina hung up.
The clock at the end of the hallway showed 3:23 PM.