Chapter 1

I was pregnant, but my boyfriend had run off, leaving me with only a few bucks in my pocket. Desperate and hopeless, I was already thinking about getting an abortion.

Right at that critical moment, I suddenly heard the voice of my coming son inside my belly. "Mom, don't do anything rash. My dad is the richest man in the country, but he has a strange habit.

"He loves picking up trash. Today he's going to throw away a limited-edition Hermès bag in a trash can over there."

I was half convinced and half doubtful, but I went anyway. And sure enough, I found it.

From that day on, I followed my son's trash-picking guide. From the garbage cans, I ended up pulling out luxury cars, mansions, and even shares in major companies.

Until one day, with my huge pregnant belly, I locked eyes with the trash-collecting billionaire in front of a garbage can.

At that moment, my son's voice sounded in my head again. "Oh no, why did Dad change the spot where he throws things away today? Our plan is going to be exposed."

*****

Osric Thornvale's message popped up on my phone. [Linnea, if you get rid of the baby, we can still be together. If you don't, we're done. It's your call.]

His words felt like a poisoned knife right through my heart.

I stared at the screen, and my whole body went cold.

All I had left was 5 bucks in my pocket. That was everything we owned.

I was three months pregnant, and the morning sickness was so bad that I had to quit my job. Osric thought I was holding him back, so he took all my savings and vanished without a trace.

All he left me with were those cold, heartless ultimatums.

Outside, summer was in full swing, and the cicadas were screaming, but I felt frozen to the core.

My stomach twisted with hunger.

I clutched that crumpled 5-dollar bill and walked into a dingy little clinic at the corner. "Doctor, how much for an abortion?"

The woman in the white coat looked up at me, her eyes full of contempt. "The cheapest one is 100 bucks."

100 bucks? I clenched the five-dollar bill so tight that my nails dug into my palm. "I-I don't have enough."

"If you can't afford the surgery, what are you even doing here? Having the baby will save the trouble. Don't come here to embarrass yourself," she sneered.

Her voice was shrill and harsh. Each word hit me like a slap across the face.

I stumbled out of the clinic, completely falling apart. I crouched by the curb, and my tears poured down in huge, ugly drops.

What was I even supposed to do? Was dying the only way out?

Should I really take this little one, who hadn't even had a chance to see the world, and jump off a building together?

Despair washed over me, drowning me completely. I even started figuring out which spot would let me jump without hurting anyone else.

Just then, a cute voice popped into my head. "Mom, don't do anything crazy."

I froze, totally stunned. Who was talking?

I frantically looked around, but there was nobody in sight.

"Mom, it's me, the one inside you," the voice echoed.

I stiffened, unable to believe it, as I placed my hand over my flat stomach.

Was I really hearing things? Was my head messed up from all this despair?

"No, Mom, you're not imagining it. Please, listen to me. Don't get rid of me. We can't give up." The voice piped up again, shaky and desperate, almost sobbing.

"My dad isn't that loser Osric. My dad is Tavian Sterling, the richest guy in the whole country," the voice blurted out.

I was totally floored.

Tavian? The guy who was like a god in all those business magazines?

Was this baby serious? Was he nuts?

I had only ever seen Tavian in magazines. How could I possibly be carrying his kid?

The voice said, "Mom, hear me out. My dad is not all there sometimes, and he's got this weird habit of tossing really good stuff in the trash.

"Today at three, he's going to dump that Hermès Diamond Platinum Bag into the third trash can right behind Central Plaza. Mom, hurry. Grab that bag, and we'll have money to live on."

I sat there, stunned, feeling like I'd somehow landed in a fantasy world.

Was I really supposed to follow my unborn kid's advice and go dig a Hermès bag out of a dumpster?

This was way more outrageous than anything you'd read in those insane webnovels.

But those cold, hard five bucks in my pocket and the hunger twisting in my stomach were painfully real.

Should I go or not?

If I went, at worst, I'd waste my time, and people would think I was crazy.

If I didn't, my baby and I might really end up starving on the streets.

I gritted my teeth, pushed myself up from the ground, and spent my last five bucks catching a bus to Central Plaza.

It was a long shot, but I had nothing to lose.

What if it were real?