Chapter 3 Walk Away from Home, Don't Look Back

James sat behind his desk, while standing across from him was a woman—none other than Maria Smith, the actress who had recently been caught up in a scandal.

When Gloria left the industry, Maria was still an inconspicuous minor actress.

And now here she was in James's office.

When he saw her, James's eyes clearly flashed with panic, and he instinctively moved to pull away the report on his desk.

Gloria sensed something was wrong and stopped him. "Don't move."

She rushed over. Maria called out carefully. "Gloria, don't get the wrong idea, I just—"

Gloria ignored her expression and went straight for the paper on the desk.

It was a pregnancy test report: [Maria, seven weeks pregnant, fetal heartbeat detected.]

Details flooded Gloria's mind like a tidal wave.

The blurry figure in that photo, and what he said last night about making a mistake.

Gloria felt her whole body plunge into an ice cellar, pinning her in place.

She gripped the report tightly, lifted her head to meet James's unfathomable eyes, and asked in a trembling voice. "Is this child yours?"

In that moment, she desperately hoped she was overthinking it. James loved her so much—how could he possibly do something this outrageous?

Before James could speak, Maria jumped in. "Gloria, it's all on me, not James."

Before she could finish, Gloria raised her hand and slapped her across the face.

Gloria's eyes brimmed with tears that didn't fall, forcing down the sob in her voice. "You knew he was my husband and still became a homewrecker. You deserved that slap."

James showed no intention of protecting her. He stood up and glanced at Maria. "You should go."

Gloria wasn't the type to make a scene. A homewrecker was hateful, sure, but it took two to tango. She didn't continue giving Maria a hard time.

Her gaze fell on James's handsome face. They'd grown up together in the slums. He was a brilliant student, a genius, while she became famous in the entertainment industry thanks to her stunning looks.

She worked herself to the bone taking roles to support his dreams. Even though her uterus was injured, James proposed to her the moment she woke up.

Later, she became a huge star while his company thrived.

The day Gloria won Best Actress, she left the entertainment industry, willing to keep their marriage secret and be the woman behind him.

She thought they were in perfect harmony, that their love could overcome anything.

But after gaining wealth and status, she discovered he had cheated.

It turned out he wasn't immune to temptation either.

Tears slowly rolled down Gloria's cheeks. Through her blurry vision, she saw James pull a contract from his drawer and hand it to her with an explanation.

"Gloria, the child is mine, but I never touched her. You'll understand once you read this."

The contract clearly stated in black and white that Maria would receive twenty million dollars and promotional resources for bearing him a child.

James explained. "Gloria, I only provided a sperm sample for her to do IVF. I chose her because she looks about fifty percent like you."

"It's not that I didn't think about using your eggs. Your body is too weak, the egg retrieval process is painful. Your uterus was injured back then—forget whether the embryo could successfully implant, even if it did, there's a risk of miscarriage. I couldn't bear to watch you go through all that suffering only to lose the baby in the end."

At this, James took Gloria's hand, saying gently, "Gloria, she and I just have a business arrangement. According to the agreement, after she gives birth, she'll disappear completely. The child will be raised by us. We'll be just like before, okay?"

Gloria slapped him across the face. "James, do you think I'm the kind of person who can be generous enough to raise your child with another woman as my own?"

"When we started dating, I told you—if you ever fell for someone else, you had to tell me. My love can be passionate, it can be steady and long-lasting, but the one thing it can't tolerate is infidelity."

A trace of anxiety crossed James's stern features. He urgently tried to explain. "I wasn't unfaithful. From start to finish, you're the only one in my heart. That visit to the theater wasn't my idea—she said her stomach hurt, so I went to check on her."

Gloria flashed a mocking smile. "So for these nine months, whenever she has any need, one phone call and you'll go running, is that it?"

"I promise there won't be a next time, Gloria. I just wanted a child so badly."

How could Gloria not know how much he loved children? That's why she gave up everything, just to have their child.

Now she was carrying his child, but he already had one with someone else.

God had played a cruel joke on her.

Seeing her painful expression, James pulled her into his arms, heartbroken. "Gloria, I truly never touched her. My body, my heart—they're all yours. Please forgive me, okay?"

Gloria opened her eyes. She asked, "What if I want you to get rid of the child in her belly?"

James froze and was silent.

"If you really love me and want to keep our marriage going, get rid of this child, and I'll pretend today never happened."

She loved him. She didn't want to throw away eighteen years of their relationship—from friendship to love to the family bond they had today.

She felt people who made mistakes deserved one chance to make things right.

As long as he cleaned up this mess, she would tell him that she was also carrying his child.

But James said firmly, "Gloria, this child is very important to me."

Gloria laughed, tears still on her face.

She broke free from his embrace. Though he'd pampered her these past years, her self-respect had never been broken.

Gloria roughly wiped the tears from her eyes. "James, you can't have your cake and eat it too. I can't tolerate your betrayal, and you can't give up this child, so I choose to step aside and let you have what you want. Let's get divorced."

James grabbed her hand. "Impossible. I will never divorce you."

Gloria pried his fingers off one by one. She lowered her head, her voice soft yet so heavy.

"James, I gave you a chance."

She threw Maria's pregnancy report in his face. The sharp edge cut a bloody line across his cheek.

But she didn't look at him again and turned to leave.

James followed her home. Gloria went straight to the bedroom to pack.

Her gaze swept over every piece of furniture, every detail of the house, and her heart ached uncontrollably.

This place held all their beautiful memories. She slowly removed the wedding ring from her finger, tears falling onto the ring and seeping into the black velvet box.

James pressed down on her hand. "Honey, does it really have to come to this? I didn't cheat. I didn't fall out of love. You know how much I love you."

Gloria looked up and saw the bloodshot in his eyes.

She actually wished he could be worse, just a bit worse. Then she could leave without looking back, instead of feeling like her heart was being torn apart.

She had to bury their love with her own hands, stabbing herself in the most vulnerable place again and again.

Gloria's voice was hoarse. "James, people who make mistakes should be punished."

She only took a few everyday clothes, pulling her suitcase away in the late autumn.

James blocked her at the car. "If you don't want to see me, I'll leave. But where will you go alone?"

Staying in that house full of their beautiful memories—every minute, every second would be torture.

She was afraid she'd remember all his good points. She was afraid she'd soften.

"Don't worry, I'm not a child anymore. I won't do anything stupid."

She pried his fingers open. "James, let's both cool down for a while."

With that, she got in the car, closed the door, and started the engine.

James stood by the roadside, his eyes that loved her so deeply filled with pain. He said. "Gloria, you promised you'd never leave me."

If this were before, she would have thrown herself into his arms without a second thought.

Gloria didn't stop. The moment James was out of sight, her tears broke through, streaming down her face uncontrollably.

Her nails dug deep into the steering wheel cover. She told herself over and over. "Keep going forward. Don't look back."