Chapter 1 Don’t Look Back
“Congratulations, Ms. McPherson. You’re pregnant,” the doctor told Eileen McPherson.
As soon as she heard it, she burst into tears.
During the past three years, she’d been trying everything to get pregnant, including all kinds of treatments and several ovulation induction shots. But she always ended up in disappointment.
And now, it had finally happened! Eileen couldn’t help weep tears of joy.
Wendy Duran, her attending physician, handed her a tissue. “It’s early stage, so we can only confirm the pregnancy. Ms. McPherson, please take extra care of yourself during the first trimester. We’ll do more detailed examinations when the fetus grows bigger.”
“Thank you.” Eileen couldn’t wait to share the great news with Fremont Woodward, her husband.
He had been craving a child long before she stepped away from the spotlight.
Finally, their dream had come true!
She took out her phone but then put it back. It was such a big thing, and she wanted to tell him in person.
At this thought, she went to his company without telling anyone.
Walking out of the elevator exclusive to the CEO, she headed straight to the top-floor CEO’s office. Knowing Fremont was in his morning stand-up meeting at this hour, she decided to go to his office first to surprise him.
Clutching her bag’s strap, she pushed open the office door, her heart racing with excitement and nervous anticipation.
She couldn’t help picturing the look on Fremont’s face when he learned the news.
Would he cry out in excitement like her?
As the door opened with a beep, the smile on Eileen’s face froze.
Fremont sat behind his desk with a woman standing across from him—it was Chelsea Sherman, a C-list actress currently trending due to scandalous rumors with him.
She had been nothing but a nobody scrambling for bit-parts when Eileen had left showbiz.
And now, here she was, in Fremont’s office.
An obvious trace of panic flickered in Fremont’s eyes as he saw Eileen, and he subconsciously wanted to pull the test report on the desk away.
Eileen’s gut told her something was off. She blurted out, “Don’t move!”
She strode toward them, and Chelsea explained cautiously, “Eileen, don’t get the wrong idea. I was just…”
Ignoring her, Eileen picked up the piece of paper.
It was a pregnancy test report, confirming that Chelsea was seven weeks pregnant, and a fetal heartbeat had been detected.
Immediately, images from the past few weeks reeled through Eileen’s mind.
Everything suddenly made sense now—the blurry figure in that photo, and Fremont’s confession last night, saying he had made a mistake…
Eileen stood in place, feeling every drop of blood in her body freezing.
Clutching the sheet, she looked up at Fremont’s deep eyes and asked in a trembling voice, “Is the baby yours?”
How she wished he’d say no. He loved her so much. How could he ever do this?
But, before he could say anything, Chelsea spoke up, “Eileen, blame me if you want. It’s my fault. Mr. Woodward…”
Eileen slapped across her face, cutting her off.
Tears welled up in Eileen’s eyes, but she refused to let them drop. She said, trying her best not to sob, “You know he’s my husband, but you still slept with him. You deserve this slap.”
Fremont showed no intention of defending Chelsea. He stood up, glanced at her, and said, “Go back.”
Eileen had never been the unreasonable type. Mistresses were despicable indeed, but it took two to have an affair. She didn’t continue to give Chelsea a hard time.
Instead, her gaze fell upon Fremont’s striking face. They had grown up in the slums together, with him being the outstanding overachiever with impeccable character and her being the lucky girl who rose to fame in showbiz thanks to her good looks.
She had worked relentlessly, taking all kinds of parts to support his dream. Though her uterus had been hurt during the shooting, Fremont had proposed to her the second she woke up from a coma.
Later, her popularity skyrocketed, and his company thrived.
She quit showbiz on the day she claimed her Best Actress award, willingly stepping down to be the woman supporting him.
She thought they’d be in passionate love and live happily ever after.
Yet, after they had fame, power, and everything, he betrayed her…
Turned out he was no different from other men.
Tears streamed down Eileen’s face slowly, blurring her vision. Meanwhile, Fremont took out a contract from the drawer.
Handing it over to her, he explained, “Eily, I’m the baby’s father, but I’ve never slept with her. You’ll know after you read this.”
It was stated clearly in the contract that Chelsea would receive 3.2 million dollars and resources for bearing his child.
He continued, “Eily, all I did was provide a sperm sample for IVF. I chose her only because she resembles you.
“I thought of using your eggs, but given your frail condition, the extraction process would have been unbearable. Your womb is already damaged, and who knows if the embryo will implant? Even if it did, the risk of miscarriage still existed. I couldn’t bear to put you through all that.”
As he spoke, he held her hand and added gently, “Eily, it was purely a deal. She’d be gone for good after giving birth. We’ll raise the baby. Nothing has changed. OK?”
Eileen slapped him hard. “Fremont, do you really think I can accept the baby of you and another woman? Am I that forgiving in your eyes?
“I told you clearly when we first dated. If you ever love someone else, you must tell me. The only thing I can’t stand is betrayal. This is my bottom line.”
Flustered a bit, Fremont eagerly tried to explain. “I didn’t betray you, Eily. You’re the only one I love. Besides, I didn’t want to visit her on set that day in the first place. I was there only because she said her belly hurt.”
Eileen scoffed, “So, in the following nine months, you’ll go to her every time she calls, right?”
“I promise I won’t do this again. Eily, I just want a child so badly.”
Of course Eileen knew exactly how much he adored kids. That was why she sacrificed everything—just to make his dream come true.
Now, she was finally pregnant, but another woman was bearing his child, too.
How absurd.
Seeing her close her eyes and shed tears, Fremont pulled her into his embrace with distress in his eyes. “Eily, I swear I’ve never touched her. I’m still yours, both physically and mentally. Forgive me, will you?”
Eileen opened her eyes and asked, “What if I want her to get an abortion?”
Fremont froze, falling silent.
“If you really love me and want our marriage to continue, take her to an abortion. Then I’ll forget about everything that happened today.”
She loved him. They had been together for eighteen years, and what they had had already transcended friendship and romance. They were family.
To her, those who made a mistake deserved a second chance.
As long as he corrected his mistake, she’d tell him about her pregnancy.
However, in the next second, Fremont said, “Eily, the baby is very important to me.”
Eileen laughed through tears.
She broke free from his embrace. Years of life in luxury had never eroded her pride.
Wiping away the tears on her face roughly, she said, “Fremont, you can’t have it both ways. I can’t accept being betrayed. Since you can’t bear to give up the baby, I’ll leave so that you can be with her, with the baby. Let’s get a divorce.”
Fremont grabbed her hand at once. “No way! I’ll never divorce you. I…”
She pried his fingers off one by one, lowering her head.
“You’ve had your chance, Fremont.” Her voice was still as gentle as ever, but they were powerful enough to break Fremont’s heart.
She tossed Chelsea’s pregnancy test report onto his face, the sharp edge cutting his cheek.
Then, she left without looking back.
She returned home, and Fremont followed.
Once stepping inside, she headed straight to the bedroom to pack up. Along the way, everything that came into her view was like a sharp knife, stabbing her heart.
Every corner of this villa held their happiest moments. She slowly took off the wedding ring, her tears dropping onto it before soaking into the black velvet box.
Fremont pressed her hands. “Eily, do you have to do this? I didn’t cheat on you. Never. You know how much I love you.”
She looked up and saw his bloodshot eyes.
Somehow, she suddenly hoped he had done something worse. It’d make leaving so much easier, sparing her from great heartache.
Now, she was forced to put an end to their relationship, to stab herself in the weakest spot again and again.
She said, her voice hoarse, “Fremont, one’s gotta be punished for one’s mistakes.”
She left with nothing but a few everyday clothes in her suitcase on this late autumn day.
Fremont stopped her by the car. “If you don’t wanna see me, I’ll leave. Where are you supposed to go?”
Another second in that villa filled with their beautiful memories was sheer torture.
If she stayed, she’d recall everything he had done for her, and she might waver.
She said, “I’m not a baby. I won’t do anything stupid.”
Prying his fingers off again, she added, “Fremont, let’s take some space.”
With that, she got into the car, closed the door, and started the engine.
Standing on the roadside, Fremont gazed at the car vanishing into the distance, his eyes filled with agony and affection. “Eily, you promised you wouldn’t leave me…” he murmured.
If it were before, Eileen would have thrown herself into his arms without hesitation.
But she didn’t stop. The second his figure shrank to a mere dot, tears flooded down her face uncontrollably.
She clutched the steering wheel so hard that her nails dug into the cover. “Keep going forward. Don’t look back…” she told herself repeatedly.
