A Life Beyond Us

It didn't take long after the alumni get-together for everyone to notice something was off about Kathleen Whelan.First, she deleted every post about her husband, Greg Gilliam, from her social media.When Greg came home at night, she no longer left a light on for him.Then she stopped her IVF treatments.Five years ago, Kathleen and Greg had been in a car accident. At the moment of impact, she had thrown herself over him and shielded him with her own body.Greg had come out of the crash almost completely unscathed. Kathleen had been badly injured and remained unconscious for three straight days.Afterward, the doctors told her she would likely struggle to conceive for the rest of her life. But Greg's family wanted him to carry on the family line and give them grandchildren to dote on.So month after month, Kathleen went back to the hospital and endured injections with long needles. Every day, she hoped she would finally get pregnant.Eventually, she stopped handling the Gilliam

Before Kathleen left the studio, she printed out the divorce papers and took them home with her.Just as she expected, Greg had gone to see Rita. Gilliam Mansion was quiet and empty without him. The antique bronze figurine he'd bought at auction sat alone in the foyer.Andrew Percival, the butler, greeted her with a smile."Mr. Gilliam really put some thought into this. He knows how much you've been hoping for a baby, so he chose something so meaningful for you. Where would you like me to put it?"Once, Kathleen would have smiled.But now that she knew Greg had been hiding his child from her, she couldn't help wondering how long he had planned to keep it a secret. The gift suddenly felt painfully ironic.As if on cue, the next time Kathleen checked her phone, the first post on her feed was a photo of Greg and Rita celebrating her birthday together.Since going into business, Greg had become serious and reserved. But in Rita's photo, he was making a silly face at the camera, show

The sight of Terry's injuries and tear-streaked face sent a rush of anger through Greg.The bodyguards were still holding Kathleen. He had ordered them to put Terry's safety first, so if they had restrained her, Greg assumed she must have tried to hurt Terry."Why did you do this, Kathleen?" he demanded.Then he met her dull, empty gaze, and his chest tightened.His tone softened when he asked again, "Terry's hurt all over. What happened?"Kathleen had seen Rita pinch Terry herself. She hadn't injured him, yet Rita was trying to make her take the blame."You should ask Rita. She did it."Rita shook her head frantically.Kathleen's refusal to admit she had done anything wrong only made Greg angrier."You're saying Rita set you up? If you're going to lie, at least make it believable. You can't have children, so I'm having Rita leave Terry with you so you can raise him. Why would you still do this to him?"Once again, he was reminding her that she couldn't have children. But the

Greg couldn't understand how things had gotten to this point.He went back to the study. He was about to open his laptop when he noticed that quite a few files were missing.Back when Kathleen always wanted to be around him, she would sit with him while he worked. He worked at his desk while she sat nearby working on her designs.Over time, the study became as much hers as his. Half the files in the room were his, and the other half were Kathleen's.Neither of them liked anyone coming in without permission, so unless they specifically asked for the room to be cleaned, the staff stayed out.Greg frowned as he suddenly remembered what had happened the day before. This was where Kathleen and Terry had clashed the day before.Had Terry really done all this?Greg found that hard to believe. All of his own files were untouched. How had Terry managed to destroy Kathleen's sketches and nothing else while he was playing around?Greg called Andrew into the study again."How much did Ter

Greg's injury didn't stay secret for long. His parents soon heard what had happened and came over.They had already heard that Terry was the one who had hurt Greg. That alone was enough to make them dislike Rita before they even met her.With Kathleen gone, Rita was determined to win Greg's parents over and secure her place as Mrs. Gilliam.But the harder she tried, the more she rubbed them the wrong way. Her efforts only made them dislike her more.Greg's mother, Michelle Tate, sat on the couch and smiled at Rita. "Don't think that just because you gave birth to a Gilliam, you can push Kathleen out."She may not be able to have children, but Vincent and I have always accepted her as Greg's wife. If having his child were all it took to become part of this family, we'd be letting just anyone in."Rita had no choice but to keep smiling through the insults.Fortunately for her, Terry looked almost exactly like Greg had at that age, and Vincent softened toward him a little."Well,