Chapter 1 I Don’t Want to Have Sex

Late at night, the villa bedroom was lit only by a dim bedside lamp. Wendy Shaw was trapped between the man's body and the soft mattress, her pleas crushed to nothing.

Marcus Sullivan's fingertips traced along her waist, his touch carrying the roughness of someone drunk.

The dull ache in Wendy's lower abdomen was getting worse. She tried to push him off, her voice shaking. "Marcus, my stomach really hurts. Please stop..."

Marcus grabbed her hands and pinned them above her head. "Cut it out, Wendy," he said, impatient. "Since when did you get so dramatic?"

It was like ice water poured over her. The cold and the pain spread from her stomach through her whole body.

The ache had been there for days, and now it was getting sharper. But once Marcus made up his mind about something, he never gave her a chance to explain.

He pressed his mouth against hers, his force so rough it felt like he might break her.

Just as the pain kept building and she was about to cry, his phone rang.

In the dark, one name lit up clearly on the screen: Cassie.

He let go of her immediately.

When he answered, his voice carried a softness and urgency Wendy had never heard from him before. "Cassie? What's wrong? ...Okay, I'm on my way."

He hung up and seemed to forget she even existed. He got dressed quickly.

Wendy felt her heart being torn apart piece by piece. No matter how much she begged, it meant nothing compared to one phone call from that woman.

His first love. His one that got away. She would always hold a different place in his heart.

But before she could even catch her breath, she felt something wet spreading onto the sheets.

"Marcus, I think I'm bleeding." The dull ache had turned into sharp, twisting cramps, like a knife turning inside her. Her vision was going blurry. "Can you please take me to the hospital?"

All she got back was a cold laugh.

"You heard Cassie say she wasn't feeling well, so now you're not feeling well either?"

Wendy couldn't breathe. The pain was becoming unbearable, and on top of it, the hurt and humiliation. She hadn't even heard what Cassie said. She was genuinely sick.

"The divorce papers are in the study. Sign them when you get a chance." He was buttoning his shirt as he spoke. "Someone accused you of plagiarism at that art show. I bought the painting they claimed you copied and had the news pulled. Consider it a parting gift."

Wendy's chest tightened. "Handling it that way makes me look even more guilty."

He didn't care whether she had actually been set up or not.

But her voice had gotten so weak that Marcus didn't even catch what she said.

She watched him actually about to walk out. She forced her voice as loud as she could manage. "Can you at least call an ambulance? I'm in so much pain..."

He still didn't believe her. He slammed the door behind him, leaving with one last cutting remark.

"If you're hurting that bad, go find your old flame to take care of you."

There was no old flame.

But she had no energy to think about being misunderstood. She used every last bit of strength to reach for her phone on the nightstand, pressing the screen several times before she finally got through to emergency services.

Wendy was rushed to the hospital in a daze, passing out from the pain several times on the way and coming back around each time. When she finally came to fully, she was lying in a hospital bed with an IV in her hand.

Fortunately, Dr. White was on duty in the ER tonight. Someone she knew.

His expression was serious. "Did you know you were pregnant?"

Wendy hadn't processed it yet. She just stared at him.

How could that be...

"You're about two months along. But you have a luteal phase deficiency along with subclinical hypothyroidism. The pregnancy is very unstable right now. There's a high chance of miscarriage."

Wendy sat there listening, feeling like she was in a dream.

Three days ago she had found out Cassie was back in the country. Then Marcus told her, in the tone of someone announcing a schedule change, to get ready for a divorce.

She had known about that woman since their wedding night. She had always known Marcus would never love anyone else. She had made her peace with it.

Three years of marriage, and she had never been able to warm his heart. It was time to accept that.

But now, of all times, she was carrying his child.

Wendy's hand moved instinctively to her stomach. She thought for only a moment before making up her mind. "Dr. White, can I ask you not to tell anyone about the pregnancy?"

"We always protect patient privacy, of course..."

"Including my husband. We're in the middle of a divorce."

Dr. White paused, a look of quiet sympathy in his eyes. "Of course. Don't worry."

Once the IV was done, Wendy finally felt a little better.

Dr. White gave her the medication. She tucked the bottle deep into her bag and slowly made her way out of the ER.

But she had barely taken a few steps when she spotted a familiar figure at the end of the hallway.

Outside the obstetrics exam room, Marcus stood close to the woman beside him, his posture gentle and protective, his black coat draped over her shoulders.

It was Cassie.

She was pregnant too.

Wendy stopped dead. It felt like someone had squeezed her heart in a fist. She could barely breathe.

She forgot to look away. She just stood there staring at the two of them, until they walked up to her.

"Wendy?" Cassie noticed her first and said hello.

Cassie had one hand looped warmly through Marcus's arm, the other resting lightly on her own stomach.

As she looked at Wendy, she leaned a little closer into Marcus, all shy and dependent, her eyes full of quiet triumph.

It hit Wendy like a blade.

Marcus looked up then. When he saw who it was, the softness on his face vanished instantly.

He didn't bother hiding his suspicion. "Wendy, did you follow me here?"

Wendy said nothing. She knew better than anyone that explaining would be pointless.

She took a slow breath, pushed through the nearly suffocating pain, and straightened her back. She looked directly at Cassie, then turned to Marcus.

"She's pregnant? Is it yours? How far along? News this good and you didn't say anything to the family?"

Cassie stepped back behind Marcus, her voice small and trembling, like she had been deeply wronged. "Marcus..."

"Wendy, don't say things like that." Marcus's brow furrowed hard.

"The family has been waiting for you to have a child. Isn't this something to celebrate?" Wendy looked at him steadily.

Marcus stepped closer and lowered his voice. "You're upset about the divorce, so you followed me here to make accusations?"

Accusations? Was Cassie not pregnant? Was she at the obstetrics clinic for fun?

"I'm sorry. This is all my fault." Before Wendy could respond, Cassie's voice broke, her eyes going red. "I should have just pushed through it. I shouldn't have called Marcus... called Mr. Sullivan. I'm sorry, Mrs. Sullivan."

"It's not your fault." Marcus glanced back at her, then without thinking reached out and drew her further behind him, as if Wendy might suddenly lunge at her.

Wendy almost wanted to laugh.

Of course. Whoever he loved, their child would matter more to him.

It was a good thing she hadn't mentioned her own pregnancy.

"Wendy." Marcus looked down at her, cold and assessing. "Don't think you have something to hold over me." There was no softness in his voice at all. "You're so clean? You've been writing letters to your lover for three years. You think I don't know?"

Wendy smiled. "You have no proof."

Because that person didn't exist. The letters had never been sent to anyone.

But Marcus took it as a challenge. "You really want to push me?"

"Yes." There was no point explaining. He would never believe her anyway. Wendy simply agreed. "Your divorce terms don't work for me. I want two billion."