Chapter 5

Maria stood in the doorway. "You'll know after you give the letter a read. I'm not going back with you. Just go home."

Richard ignored her and set her high heels in front of her. "Come on, Jonny's waiting for you. Come home with me."

"He only wants someone to do his homework for him. If I don't, he'll find someone else tonight." Maria turned her face away. "Just go. I'm not going back."

Without asking, Richard grabbed her ankle and dropped to one knee, his trousers creasing. "We both need you."

Maria gave a bitter laugh. "Seems like you need Eleanor more. She fixed everything at school today, and Jonny listened to her."

Richard's expression darkened, and he chuckled. "Are you jealous? No matter how good she is, she's not Jonny's mother."

"She could be, if you wanted her to." Maria pushed him off.

The amusement drained from Richard's face. He looked up at her. "What do you mean by that?"

"Why don't we get a divorce? You marry Eleanor and let her raise Jonny," she said casually.

Richard tossed the heels aside and stood with a dark expression. His tall physique shadowed hers as he stood by the doorway. "What did you just say? Divorce?"

"That's right. If there's someone better suited to be your wife and Jonny's mother, what are you waiting for?!"

Maria's anger flared as she lost control of her emotions. She felt his hypocrisy so sharply. Their marriage certificate was fake, yet he acted as if divorce was forbidden. One sentence, and their bond of seven years could be over. There wasn't even any paperwork that needed to be signed!

Maria turned away, but Richard grabbed her wrist. His handsome face was dark, his chest rising and falling in agitation.

"Without my permission, there will be no divorce. Say whatever you want, but don't throw that word around."

Maria met him with a cold expression.

"So what if I say it? It's not a crime. Or are you planning to keep both of us, your wife and your lover?"

If Richard chose to, even his seven-year wife could become a mistress in a heartbeat, and he could still marry Eleanor.

"When did you get so unreasonable?" Richard snapped. "There's nothing between me and Eleanor! You can't make things up just because you're unhappy."

"So what if I make things up? If you can't stand me, then divorce me!" Maria shoved his hand off. "Get out! I don't want to see you!"

Richard's patience ran thin. He pulled Maria into a kiss, trying to smother their argument by force and make them forget every shred of unhappiness between them.

A girl passing by the open door gasped at the scene.

Maria trembled and pushed him away. Richard held her by the waist and shut the door with one hand. He pressed her against it, one hand sliding up under her clothing, touching along her chilled skin.

Maria trembled even more. It wasn't only because of the agitation she felt from being sickly, but it was also the revulsion at his overbearing touch. How could he pretend to love her all these years, marry her, and have a child with her, and still treat her like this?

As all those thoughts flooded into her mind, she couldn't take it anymore. She shoved him hard and fled to the bathroom. She hadn't eaten, and her stomach spasmed.

Richard followed and steadied her. "Why are you throwing up again? This isn't just you feeling unwell. Come to the hospital with me."

"I'm not going…"

Before she finished, Richard scooped her up like a princess. Her head ached, and she felt too weak to struggle. She was also prone to motion sickness, so she was feeling even worse now. She shut her eyes and tried to stay still.

Richard drove fast, glancing over at her the whole way as he sped through traffic to the hospital.

They finally arrived.

Maria was registered, had her tests ordered, and then ran the tests…

Maria felt sick the whole time, swallowing her saliva while nurses took her through the tests as if she were some marionette. When she came out, Richard waited in the corridor with a cup of honeyed drink.

"Drink this. It'll make you warm."

She didn't take it. She sat down, pale.

"I shouldn't have argued with you today," Richard said. He hooked her pinky with his and gave a small smile.

This was one of those little gestures he used to charm her, as he wasn't someone who could charm with words. Maria felt a small, unwanted flutter in her chest as the familiarity awakened her memory.

"Let's go home after the tests, okay?" Richard asked.

Maria was just about to answer when a shadow fell over them.

"Richard, what are you doing here?" Eleanor's curious face appeared.

Richard released Maria's hand. "Maria's not feeling well, so I came with her for the tests. Why are you here in the hospital at this hour?"

Eleanor looked awkward and clutched her test results behind her back. "Oh, nothing."

Richard frowned. "Let me see."

She hesitated and handed him the paper. His face tightened as he read it. "Didn't you already have your cardiac bypass surgery? Why are you having chest pains again?"

"It's an old problem," Eleanor said, voice small.

"Keep taking your meds and rest. If you need anything, contact Morgan," Richard said gently.

Maria's chest sank. Morgan Davis was Richard's personal assistant. All these years, he had never worked for anyone other than Richard and her.

But for Eleanor, the rules were different. As expected of Richard's true love!

Maria's breathing grew quicker.

Richard bent and rubbed her back. "Feeling any better? You've been throwing up a lot. That's more than just a little sick. Let's see what the doctor says."

Throwing up a lot?

Eleanor's eyes narrowed and glanced at Maria's stomach, the gears in her head turning.

"I'm going to the bathroom," she said, then slipped into the exam room.

Inside, the doctor murmured to a nurse, "Throw that report away. Use the one I replaced. Don't say anything."

Eleanor waited until the nurse left and fished the crumpled paper from the trash. She smoothed it out. The two characters on the paper read—brain tumor.

She froze.

Outside, the nurse told Richard, "It's just mild gastritis. Some meds and she'll be fine."

Maria exchanged a relieved glance with the nurse. She had no intention of telling anyone about the diagnosis before she left and was grateful the doctor respected her wishes.

Richard draped his coat over her shoulders and said, "Let's go home."

"Richard…" Eleanor called, appearing again. "It's late, and cabs might be hard to find. Can you drop me off first?"

She clutched her chest as if fragile. Maria instinctively pulled her hand away from Richard, planning to use the moment to slip away. However, Richard squeezed her hand instead. "Maria's not well. I'll take her first and call you a cab."

Eleanor's face froze, and she clenched her fists.

Maria caught the look and realized Richard would never openly dote on Eleanor in front of her. She felt the sting of it and stepped into the elevator with him.

"I won't force you. I'll drop you at the hotel," he promised.

She hesitated, then got in.

Richard did drive her back to the hotel, but once again stepped into the elevator and went up. Maria wanted to quickly leave him outside, but he didn't expect the room door was already open.

A maid was making the sofa into a bed with Jonny's blue bear sheets.

Jonny sulked over homework and sniffed when he saw Maria. "It's late, and you're still nagging Dad and me. Dad has to get up early for work tomorrow!"

Maria's chest tightened. She ignored the boy and went to her bedroom, closing the door.

Outside, Richard scolded Jonny. Inside, Maria noticed Richard had brought over his clothes and laptop for the next day while they were at the hospital. She pursed her lips, not understanding what Richard wanted to do.

She went to turn off the laptop, then suddenly noticed the browser's search history. There was one entry that froze her and made her unable to move her eyes away.

Personal marital status search.

Her fingers went stiff as she clicked the history link and was taken to the results page—she couldn't even say why she did that.

She stared at the screen in disbelief. She had to check again to make sure she could believe the results she was seeing.

Richard's marital status was…

Married.

And in the field where the name of the wife was, two words were stated clearly.

Eleanor Cooper.

The color drained from her face instantly.

Richard hadn't just faked a marriage with her—he had secretly married Eleanor, too! On the household registry were Richard, Eleanor, and a child, as if they were the real family.

Maria felt like she had been a free nanny for seven years.

What about Jonathan? Did he know that Eleanor and Richard were actually married…?

The thought chilled her. She couldn't stop shuddering; she switched off the laptop and stumbled back.

She bumped into a warm, steamy presence. Richard stood there, wrapped in a towel, hair half-dry, his torso bare, his muscles beautifully contoured.

He didn't notice the strange looks Maria had. He smiled, voice low as if he was holding back his desire. "Feeling any better?"

Maria bit her lip, numb with shock.

Richard took her silence for consent. He swept her up, carried her to the bed, and leaned over her.