Chapter 2

I locked eyes with him for a few seconds, then reached out my hand.

Camdyn looked confused.

"Both our families put in two million each to buy this place. Just give me my two million back, and I'll leave right now," I said.

"You..." Camdyn's eyes widened. "How can you be so calculative with me?"

"Dahlia's only staying here for a few months. Once we get married, you'll be moving back in anyway."

I didn't want to waste any more words. "Either pay up, or take Dahlia and get out!"

Dahlia looked like she was about to cry again. "Don't make things difficult for Camdyn. Forget the house, as long as I'm with him, I'd sleep on the street if I had to."

Camdyn's eyes flashed with pain. He yanked out a card and tossed it right at my face. "Take the money and get out!"

The icy bank card glanced off my cheek, leaving a sharp pain in its wake.

I took a deep breath, bent down, and picked up the card.

I forced a smile. "Camdyn, we're square now. Hope you two find happiness."

With that, I turned and walked away without a second thought.

I didn't notice Camdyn standing behind me, his brows furrowed as he stared at my back.

After a moment, Camdyn spoke quietly, but with conviction.

He said, "Sherlyn, I know you're just being stubborn right now. Sooner or later, you'll come to your senses. You're carrying my child. Who else are you going to marry?

"And all that trouble your family's in. Are you sure you can deal with it without me?"

I didn't say another word to Camdyn. I strode out, caught a cab, and went straight to the hospital.

Sitting in the taxi, I clutched the bank card so hard it pressed into my palm, but my hand was numb. I didn't register the pain at all.

Camdyn was right. My family had a whole pile of problems just waiting for me to deal with.

My dad saw a future in artificial intelligence and borrowed 15 million dollars to fund some tech research.

However, with zero experience, all that money went down the drain, leaving us buried in debt.

Relatives and friends avoided us like the plague, so my dad set his sights on the Finch family.

Just to get the Finch family's help, my dad drugged me and pushed me into Camdyn's bed. And just like that, I ended up carrying his child.

After that, I married Camdyn with his child, all to bail out my family's business.

But I spent my whole life swallowing my pride and compromising at every turn.

In the end, Camdyn even blamed me for Dahlia's death, saying it was all because I pushed him into marrying me.

This time, I was done being the scapegoat, and I refused to be my family's sacrifice ever again.

At the hospital, the doctor kept asking, "Are you really sure you want to terminate the pregnancy?"

I nodded without a second thought.

In my last life, I pinned all my hopes on this child.

When Camdyn turned his back on me, and my dad kept forcing me to beg the Finch family for money, my son was the only thing that gave me strength.

I poured everything I had into raising him, just so he could become the perfect heir to the Finch family.

But right before Camdyn died, my son took his father's side and harshly condemned me. "Mom, how could you force Dad into marrying you? You're the reason two real, living people died.

"No wonder Dad was always so cold to you. It was your fault all along. Guess people who seem pitiful always have something detestable about them."

If my own son thought I was so unforgivable, then let him hate me for the rest of his life.

This time, I was finally putting myself first. I was done with this son, too.

I went to the hospital at the scheduled time and went through with the surgery.

To my surprise, I unexpectedly bumped into Camdyn at the hospital. He was there with Dahlia for her prenatal checkup.

He was helping her along so gently, the look in his eyes softer than I'd ever seen before.

Back in my previous life, Camdyn never once came with me for any of my prenatal appointments.

After Dahlia passed away, he was drowning in guilt and grief, drinking himself into oblivion every single day.

Even when I was going through a dangerous labor, he never showed up, not once. I had to sign everything myself and pulled myself back from death's door, all on my own.

Camdyn looked up, shot me a glance, and his face fell.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

As if he'd just remembered I was pregnant too, his voice grew gentler as he explained. "Dahlia's baby isn't positioned right, so I brought her in for a checkup."

Then he glanced at my belly. "You should be fine. Just make sure to deliver our son safely," Camdyn said. "Don't worry. Once Dahlia has her baby and everything's official, I'll come get you and our son and bring you home."

With that, he put his arm around Dahlia and walked off, not sparing me a single glance.

As they turned away, I couldn't miss the jealousy and hatred burning in Dahlia's eyes.

I gave a wry smile.

Then I turned and headed toward the operating room.

After the anesthesia faded, I woke up in the hospital bed.

My belly still ached when my phone buzzed out of nowhere. It was my Dad.