5

Jay:

I’m happy Betty finally said we should get a divorce. I've always wanted to hear it from her after a long time. I walk inside my room, loosening my tie.

The contract says she had to be the one to file for it. That was one of the conditions her father insisted on before signing that deal with my stepfather. Back then, it felt like a trap I willingly walked into. Now it feels like freedom handed to me on a silver platter.

Even though I'm excited, the truth is I never treated Betty right. Not even once.

I exhale slowly, running a hand through my hair as I walk further into the room. My eyes drift absentmindedly across the space, but my mind isn’t here. It’s stuck somewhere between the past and the present, tangled in memories I don’t want to fully face.

Betty didn’t deserve to be treated wrongly.

She was kind to me actually. Betty is the kind of woman who would wake up early just to make sure everything in the house ran smoothly, who would wait for me even when I came home late without explanation, who never raised her voice no matter how cold or distant I was.

She was a good wife. As a matter of fact she was the best kind of wife any man could ever ask for.

And yet I never gave my affection in return, didn't give her even basic decency most of the time.

My chest tightens slightly, but I push the feeling away almost immediately. There’s no point dwelling on it now. What’s done is done.

Because no matter how good she was I never loved her.

My heart has always belonged to someone else.

To Jewel.

Just the thought of her name pulls something warm and alive through me, something that instantly drowns out the guilt.

I smile faintly as I move toward the bed, my mind drifting back to where it all started.

We were kids when I first met her—carefree, inseparable, always finding reasons to be around each other. She wasn’t just a part of my life; she was my life. Growing up with her felt like the most natural thing in the world.

And even when she left for Canada to study, the call, the messages, the way my heart reacted every time I heard her voice, my love, nothing changed.

Distance didn’t weaken what we had, it only made it stronger.

I let out a quiet breath, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

And then everything got complicated.

I can still remember the day my stepfather told me about the deal. His business partner was willing to sign a massive contract, one that would elevate everything, but there was a condition attached.

I have to marry his daughter Betty.

At first, I refused. I didn’t even hesitate. The idea alone felt wrong, forced, and suffocating. I already had someone I loved. I wasn’t about to throw that away for business.

But my mother... I closed my eyes shortly, remembering the look on her face that day. The way she pleaded with me, her voice soft but desperate, asking me to just consider it. She didn’t know about Jewel. She thought this was just me being stubborn, refusing something that could secure our future.

She begged me.

And I gave in to her please. But because I couldn’t say no to her.

That was the moment everything changed.

I swallow hard, my gaze dropping to the floor for a second before lifting again.

Telling Jewel was the hardest part.

I had to beg her to understand, to wait for me. I told her it was temporary that the contract marriage would only last three years. Three years, and then everything would go back to the way it was supposed to be.

I remember how quiet she was at first and then how she finally agreed.

She said she’d wait.

And she did.

A full year passed. A year of pretending. A year of living in a marriage that never felt real, never felt right.

And then Jewel returned to Paris, and the moment I saw her again, I knew I was done pretending. I couldn’t hold myself back anymore.

Everything I had buried, everything I had tried to control, it all came rushing back at once.

Because she’s the one I love.

I exhale slowly, leaning back slightly as I stare at the ceiling.

It’s not my fault.

That’s what I keep telling myself.

It’s not my fault that my heart chose Jewel. It’s not my fault that I couldn’t love Betty the way she deserved.

Some things just can’t be forced.

A small smile returns to my lips as my gaze shifts toward the bed.

I reach for the divorce papers.

“Best birthday gift ever…” I murmur under my breath, a faint chuckle escaping me.

Betty didn’t even realize it, but she gave me exactly what I wanted.

Freedom.

I grab the pen from the bedside table, holding it between my fingers as I stare down at the papers for a moment longer.

Then I signed it.

I brought out my phone, to text Jewel.

"Let's get married."

She was typing back."I can't wait but you have to divorce that woman first!"

All done, when the divorce is finalised we're done.

I left the mansion to meet Jewel, at our usual hotel. When I reached the hotel, workers greeted me as I stepped inside, and the receptionist handed the key to me.

“Welcome sir.” The receptionist said and I smiled.

I used the key to the room and opened it.

“Baby!” Jewel screamed as she saw me, she was coming out of the bathroom, her body wrapped in a towel.

“I missed you.” She said and I hugged her tightly, my hand pulled away the towel.

“I missed you more, and right now I just wanna bury myself inside you.” I muttered, my hands caressing her backside.

I lifted her up and she grinned as I dropped her on the bed feeding my eyes with her nakedness.

“I thought you wanted to spend your birthday night with that wife of yours?” She said, biting her lips seductively, her hand already unbolting my belt.

I smiled, I'd propose to her properly once my divorce with Betty is finalized.

She turned her around, holding the headboards, shooting her butt cheeks at me. I glance at it with desires in my eyes, her skin is so white and my gaze traced to her pink inviting hole.

I slapped her butt, spat on it before rubbing them.

"Uhmmm." she moaned uncontrollably.

My pant dropped and I stepped out of it, climbed the bed and spreading her legs very well.

"You're sinfully beautiful." I whisper in her ear.

Then with a quick move, I pull down my hand and penetrated inside her.

"Fuck!"She screamed, and i held her leg in place.

I hissed in pleasure and started banging her so hard from behind.

***(Next morning)

I’m still caught somewhere between sleep and my arms wrap around Jewel when my phone starts ringing.

Jewel was sleeping peacefully in my arms.

I frown slightly, reaching for it without much thought, my voice rough with sleep as I answer.

“Hello?”

“Is this Mr. Blackwood?”

My brows knit together slightly. “Yes. Who is this?”

“I’m calling from the hospital.”

I sit up slightly.

“Hospital?” I repeat, confusion creeping in. “Why are you calling?”

“Your wife, Betty, was involved in an accident."

“An…accident?” I echo, slower this time.

“Yes. She was brought in last night, but...”

“Is she okay?” I cut in quickly.

“Yes,” the voice replies. “She is out of danger. And fortunately her unborn child is safe too.”

My grip on the phone tightens, my mind going blank as those words sink in.

Unborn child?