Chapter 3

The pain sapped all the strength out of me. All I could do was lie on the ground like a pathetic mess. By the time a kind person helped me get to the hospital, I had already missed the best window for treatment.

As a designer, my right hand was my most important asset. Yet, I had to watch as the doctor inserted pin after pin into it.

I realized what it meant to feel consumed by a sense of despair.

Three days later, Donald uploaded an Instagram story. In the photo, he and Gigi were all wrapped up in each other's arms—and he was wearing the suit I had designed. Meanwhile, the dress Gigi wore had been custom-made to my exact measurements, making her look like a clown in a costume instead.

Less than two minutes after posting that photo, Donald called me.

"Have you cooled off yet? It's Gigi's birthday today. She wants to clear the air with you. Don't forget to bring her a handsome gift."

His breezy tone made it seem like nothing ever happened, but the pain in my hand was a constant reminder of what I had gone through.

"Fine."

A handsome gift, huh…

Throughout the last five years, I didn't take any money from my family. I managed to save up over a million dollars, but I used most of it to buy the bars of gold I used to try and make Donald happy.

After the surgery I had to get done, I had less than a dollar in my bank account.

Gigi wanted a handsome gift from me, right? Well, I wondered if making her lose everything she ever had counted as one!

By the time I made all the arrangements, it was time.

Donald stood at the entrance with an arm around Gigi, and the two of them looked like a newlywed couple.

When they saw me, they immediately clasped their hands together with their fingers intertwined.

"How dare you come empty-handed, Jeanette?" Donald questioned with a dark look on his face. "I didn't expect you to be such an embarrassment. Look at the rags you're wearing! You even have a bunch of bandages on you. How disgusting! You're doing this on purpose to cause trouble for me, aren't you?"

Gigi could no longer hide the joy in her eyes. Doing her best not to smile, she shook her head and said, "Forget it, Donnie. All that matters is she came today. In any case, as long as you're here, I don't need any gifts at all.

"But… I do have a surprise for you…"

At the mention of that, Gigi abruptly started stroking her abdomen. Just that alone was enough to make my breath catch in my throat. My hand tightened around my phone.

Despite having been in a relationship with me for years now, Donald never did anything too intimate with me. Even though I tried my best to get him in the mood, he would stubbornly choose to cool himself off with a cold shower instead.

Later on, I found out why. He said his first intimate encounter was an important one, and he couldn't let a golddigger like me be the one who shared it with him.

Meanwhile, all of the colleagues who were present started cheering. Only then did I realize that Donald's parents, Frank Hoover and Martha Thorpe, as well as his younger brother, Shawn Hoover, were present as well.

"Donnie, although it's my birthday today, nothing would matter if you weren't here," Gigi said. "I know you're not interested in getting married, but I worry about you feeling lonely in your old age, so… I secretly decided to have your baby."

She slowly lifted her eyes and stared at Donald earnestly.

"The baby has been with me for over two months now. I think it's going to be a girl. She'll be so pretty. She'll look just like you."

I came to an abrupt stop as my mind went blank. Mom had died young, so it was my aunt who was the motherly figure in my life. She passed away two months ago, and during that time, Donald accompanied me through my grief.

But it turned out that he spent his days with me and his nights getting it on with Gigi.

I had thought that was a sign he truly cared about me. In reality, he was just trying to make it up to me after cheating on me.

Frank and Martha were the first ones to clap and congratulate them.

Some of the guests couldn't resist whispering among themselves. Donald had always been known for his ruthlessness. He forbade office romances, and the last one who tried to keep it from him even ended up getting sued by him.

But now, he simply patted Gigi comfortingly and said, "In that case, I shall fire Jeanette. After all, she was the one who seduced me first and shamelessly pestered me into making her my girlfriend. A woman like her is a disgrace to the company."

Immediately, everyone started eyeing me with curious, amused gazes. They all knew I had been blatantly cheated on.

"Are you done?"

To everyone's surprise, I merely smiled faintly after hearing Donald's declarations.

"Guess it's time for me to share my gift."

With a clap of my hands, a swarm of police officers swiftly filled the place, which wasn't very large to begin with.

Gordon Lewis, the police captain in charge, greeted me politely, "Ms. Swan."