Chapter 1

Selene:

With bated breath, I tap my feet anxiously against the cold, sterile floor, my breath shallow as I wait for the results of the test. 

I tell myself it’s probably just a fever. Or stress. Nothing more.

My eyes follow the doctor as she carefully pulls an envelope from her desk and extends it toward me.

 “Congratulations, Mrs. Hemsworth, you’re five weeks pregnant!” 

 My breath catches at her words. Five weeks? Pregnant?!

I can feel my hands tremble as I snatch the report from her, quickly scanning it. I can hardly believe what I’m seeing.  After three long years of trying… I’m finally pregnant!

“Please, do make sure you take enough rest. You actually do need it.” She says and I beam with excitement.

“Thank you so much, doctor.”

With that, I carefully tuck the report into my bag and hurry out of the office.

Today marks my third wedding anniversary with my beloved husband, Maximus. So, I pull into a gift shop, eager to find something perfect for him.

After a few moments of browsing, I pick out gifts I know he’ll love. I mean, these are just the right prelude to the real surprise. My hand instinctively rests on my stomach and a smile spreads across my face.

As I continue to look around, I absentmindedly glance at my phone. But my smile falters as I see nothing but a blank screen. No calls. No messages. Not even a "Happy Anniversary" text from Maximus.

Biting my lip, i try to convince myself he’s just caught up with work. He’s probably busy.

 After I’m done, I head straight to his office, my mind racing with excitement. I can already picture how Maximus will wrap me in a tight embrace when I tell him about the pregnancy.

The thought makes my heart race as I hurry down the hall, but as I approach his office, I’m met not with Maximus, but with his secretary, Rose.

“Uhm... Mr. Hemsworth says he doesn’t want to receive any guests today, ma’am,” she says, her tone flat and nonchalant.

I let out a low laugh. “I’m his wife, Rose. Not a guest. So, if you’ll excuse me…” I try to step forward, but she immediately blocks my way.

“I’m sorry, ma’am,” she replies, not even flinching. “But he says you’re included too. He wants some rest.”

What? My mind races, refusing to believe it. Maximus wouldn’t do this.

My eyes snap to Rose, who’s glaring at me with barely concealed contempt. I know she’s never liked me. She’s never for once to tried to hide it.

I open my mouth to respond, but before a single word slips out, the heavy door creaks open. All the air in the room shifts as Maximus steps into view.

Rose whirls around and quickly dips her head into a hasty bow. “I’m so sorry, sir. I tried to keep her away, but she refused to—”

“It’s fine.” He cuts her off and then pins his gaze on me. “Let her in.”

Rose quickly steps aside, and I shoot her a glare before walking past her and into the office.

As I walk in, a smile spreads across my face despite what had just happened. I just can’t help it. I’m about to tell Maximus the best news we’ve ever had!

“Maximus?” I say softly, my voice bubbling with so much excitement. “I’ve got some amazing news!!.”

But instead of the warm reaction I expect, Maximus doesn’t say a word. He just sinks into his chair, his face hardening again, and that coldness I felt earlier creeps back in.

“Amazing news?” he scoffs mockingly. “That can wait. We need to talk, Selene.”

The chill in his voice sends a shiver down my spine. Is something wrong?

 Without a word, he grabs a stack of papers from his desk and flings them toward me. They scatter through the air and lands in a messy pile at my feet. I feel unease creep up my spine.

 My hands tremble as I kneel down and gather the papers. Flipping through them quickly, I reach the last page and then..my heart stops.

“W-what... What are these?” I stammer as I glance back at Maximus. “Divo..rce papers?”

 He says nothing. I continue to desperately search his face for some sign of a joke. A mistake - anything to tell me this isn’t real. His eyes flicker with a brief moment of hesitation before hardening into a steely gaze.

“If Jess hadn’t disappeared, we never would’ve gotten married,you know?” he drawls, “Well, Jess is back now.”

I feel like the air is knocked out of me. I can’t breathe. Jess? How could he even think about someone who had run off a day before their wedding??!

“Maximus, please,” I choke out, my voice breaking as tears well up in my eyes. “We… we can work through this. We—”

“There’s nothing to work through. Just sign the damn papers, Selene.”

 My heart plummets. I know how Jess, my stepsister, had been Maximus’s fiancée three years ago. But the night before their wedding, she disappeared without a trace.

In the wake of her sudden disappearance, my family pushed me to step in. To marry Maximus. It was meant to be a marriage of convenience—an arrangement to save face for our families. Maximus, too, needed to marry to fulfill his grandfather’s condition and inherit the company.

At first, I went along with it. But somewhere along the way, I began to fall for him. I thought he had started to feel something too—those moments when his eyes softened when he looked at me, the way his touch lingered just a bit longer than necessary.

I can’t believe that all this time, he’s been waiting for Jess to come back. The woman he truly loved.

My heart twists painfully. I’d been holding onto a foolish hope—that I had time, time to make him see me, to make him love me. But here he is, sitting before me, cold and detached, while his thoughts are elsewhere. On her.

"Today’s our anniversary, Maximus! We’re also having a—" 

“You think I fucking care about that?” He cuts me off with a growl. “She’s back, and that’s all that matters.”

The words hit me like a slap, and I stand frozen, unable to process what’s happening. I can’t even speak, not until he opens his mouth again.

"You know..." he sneers,his cold gaze narrowing at me. “I'm starting to believe the rumors that you were responsible for Jess' sudden disappearance."

"W-what?" I stumble back as I feel the blood drain totally my face. “How could you believe that, Maximus? Jess left on her own!”

Rumors? Responsible for Jess’s disappearance? What the hell had she told him?

I see his gaze turn cold as he crosses his arms and leans back in his chair.  

“Maybe. But people talk, Selene. And the more I think about it, the more it makes sense. You had everything to gain—money, status. Maybe you wanted me all along and used Jess’s disappearance to trap me.”

"I never wanted this!" I choke, fighting back tears. "I only wanted to help my family. And then... I fell in love with you..."

“Enough!” He slams his hand down on the desk, the sound loud enough to make me  flinch. “Just sign the papers, Selene. Let’s not make this harder than it needs to be. Jess has always been the one I want.”

My hands are shaking as I flip through the papers, my eyes blurring as I search for the place where my signature is needed.

"Fine, I'll sign it," I murmur, my voice barely a whisper. A flicker of shock crosses Maximus’s face, but it’s gone in an instant, replaced by that cold expression. 

 After I’m done signing.  I grab my bag from the couch and stand up, my heart heavy as I head for the door.

“Wait,” his husky voice calls softly, just as I reach the doorframe. I hesitate, but I can’t bring myself to turn around.

He clears his throat. “What was the good news you wanted to share?”

“It’s never going to change anything,” I whisper before a single tear rolls down my cheek. 

I’m right. It won’t change abythijgzz With a heavy heart, I make my way out of his building.

Once I’m inside my car, I sit there for a moment, staring blankly ahead. That’s when my phone suddenly chimes with a text. I pick it up, still numb from everything that just happened.

“No… no!” My blood runs cold when I see who the text is from.