A Second Chance at Lies

It was the day before the first Valentine’s Day since we gave marriage another try. Feeling unwell, I went to get myself checked out at the hospital. The doctor held the examination report and said with a smile, “Congratulations. You’re four weeks pregnant. The baby is doing great.”

With the test result in hand, I was excited to share the good news with Casen Moretti.

The moment I looked up, there was Casen, escorting a pregnant woman into the next room with the most tender look on his face.

The woman with a bump was Charlie Lisbon, a close friend Casen grew up with. The best part was that Charlie had always been in love with Casen.

As if possessed, I followed them.

In the treatment room, the doctor told Casen with a grin, “The baby is due next week. As parents, you can start putting together the baby’s essentials.”

Casen turned to Charlie, his expression softening in a way I hadn’t seen before.

“You’ve done so well.:

Charlie kept her head down bashfully, her voice tinged with delight.

“I don’t find it hard at all. I’m happy to carry your child.”

Stunned on the spot, I couldn’t believe my ears.

Amid my daze, I picked up on Charlie’s smugness in her question to Casen.

“Surely, Donna won’t take it well if she finds out that I’m expecting your child.”

Casen’s voice turned icy.

“It was a mistake. I was drunk and mistook you for Bonnie. I expect you to take this secret to your grave.

“Bonnie must never find out, or don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

My body went stiff, and my mind blank.

I stood there frozen as Casen emerged from the room, his arm around Charlie.

When his eyes met mine, Casen jerked his arm back with panic flashing across his face.

“What are you doing here, Bonnie? Don’t take this the wrong way. I’m just here as Charlie’s friend for her checkup. She has a husband!”

Brushing off the hurt look in Charlie’s eyes, Casen put all his attention on me.

As his gaze fell on the medical papers in my hand, his expression shifted to one of frantic.

“Are you ill? Where does it hurt? Why didn’t you ask me to come with you?”

The concern in his eyes seemed genuine. I had always been his priority.

Hiding the report behind my back, I kept my voice flat to sound like I didn’t care.

“Oh, I’m fine… It was just indigestion. The doctor prescribed me something for the upset tummy.”

Casen let out a sigh of relief.

Not sparing Charlie another look, Casen put his arm around me tenderly and walked me out of the hospital.

“I’ll take you back to the estate. I’ll get the chef to make something easy on the stomach. You should stay at home and rest for the next few days.”

“Casen…”

Charlie’s voice trailed behind us. Yet, Casen didn’t stop even for a second, as if oblivious to her cries.

Letting out a shriek, Charlie slammed into a cart in the hallway.

Casen’s muscles tensed up. Without a second thought, he released his grip on me and rushed to pull Charlie into his arms.

The nurse hurried along to examine Charlie, ascertaining that the unborn child was unharmed.

Turning back, I didn’t miss the heartache and distress across Casen’s face.

“Casen, you should take Charlie home.”

Casen looked at me in hesitation. My gaze held steady as if I was talking about the weather.

“The driver is waiting for me at the entrance. He’ll get me home safely.”

I didn’t give Casen a choice because his voice didn’t matter.

The driver took me to a remote, secluded location on my request.

Somewhere out there was a secret agency that would fulfill even the strangest request for the right amount of money.

I slapped my bank card down on the table.

“I want you to stage my death. I want to vanish from Naples in three days, to a place no one can find me.”

Since divorce couldn’t set me free from Casen, death would.

My child and I would cease to exist in Casen’s world.