His Wife by Contract, His Regret by Choice

JENNIFER'S POV"You've been diagnosed with retroperitoneal sarcoma. I'm sorry," the doctor said in a soft, empathetic voice, pulling me out of the daze I hadn't even realized I was trapped in."Huh?" I looked at her blankly, one hand instinctively pressing against the dull ache in my abdomen. My mind refused to process what she'd just said, as if the words had simply floated past me without meaning."It's a rare type of cancer that develops deep inside the abdomen," she explained gently, her eyes filled with sympathy. "I'm afraid it's already in an advanced stage."My mind went completely blank."You only have three months left to live," she continued quietly, giving me a small, apologetic smile as though she wished she had better news to offer.Three months?Wait... what?How could everything turn upside down this fast?My whole life... I had lived as Vivian, my small sister's shadow. First my parents always chose her over me, and then my husband, Damian, who never once looked at me

JENNIFER'S POVMy eyes felt heavy as I slowly tried to open them. The bright white ceiling came into view, followed by the familiar smell of disinfectant.I was lying on a hospital bed.Slowly, I pushed myself up against the headboard, only for a dull ache to spread through my entire body, especially my abdomen. I instinctively wrapped an arm around it, remembering everything that had happened before I lost consciousness.Before I could gather my thoughts, the door to my hospital room was pushed open with force.Bang!My mother, Amanda, stormed inside. The moment our eyes met, she strode toward me without saying a single word.Slap!A sharp sting exploded across my cheek as my head snapped to the side. Before I could even react, she glared at me with undisguised disgust."Have you finally had enough of your little performance?" she spat angrily. "Jennifer, how long are you planning to keep pretending?"I slowly turned back to look at her, my cheek burning from the slap."Mum..." My vo

DAMIAN'S POVThe drive home was unusually quiet. I kept my eyes fixed on the road ahead, yet my thoughts refused to stay there.For some reason Jennifer's words kept replaying in my mind."I'm dying."Then..."I want a divorce."I tightened my grip on the steering wheel, she had never behaved like this before, not once in all the years I had known her.Even when we were children, Jennifer had always been the quiet one. While the other children fought over toys or complained whenever something wasn't fair, she would simply stand to the side without saying a word. She never demanded attention, never threw tantrums, and never asked anyone for anything. Even after we got married, she accepted every arrangement without complaint. No matter how unreasonable my requests were, she always nodded and quietly did what was expected of her.So why...why was she suddenly acting so differently today?I let out a slow breath, trying to push those thoughts aside.Maybe she was simply overwhelmed. Anyo

Jennifer's POVThe airport announcement echoed through the terminal, one flight after another being called over the speakers. People hurried past with their luggage, families embraced before parting ways, and children laughed excitedly as they waited to board.I sat quietly by the boarding gate, my carry-on resting beside my feet. My phone had been vibrating nonstop inside my coat pocket ever since I left the villa.Taking a slow breath, I finally pulled it out. The screen was flooded with missed calls and unread messages.The first one I opened was from Vivian.- Vivian: You're throwing a tantrum and leaving me to die, aren't you? You wouldn't actually dare go through with this. If anything happens to me, Damian and Mom and Dad will drag you back. You can't run.A bitter smile tugged at my lips that even now she still believed I belonged to them.The next message was from Amanda. - Amanda: Where have you disappeared to now? Stop being childish and get back here immediately. Vivian s

Damian's POVIt had been over two weeks since Jennifer walked out of the hospital.Midnight had long passed, yet the lights in my office were still on. The untouched cup of coffee beside my laptop had long gone cold, and stacks of reports covered almost every inch of my desk.My eyes remained fixed on the screen in front of me, but I hadn't actually read a single word in the last ten minutes."Anything?" I asked into the phone, my voice low with exhaustion.There was a brief silence before my assistant replied apologetically."I'm sorry, Mr. Sterling. We've checked every possible lead again. Flight manifests, hotel registrations, banking activity, credit card transactions, CCTV footage, and every online account Mrs. Sterling has ever used." He paused before continuing. "There's... nothing. It's as if she disappeared from the world completely."I slowly closed my eyes."Keep looking.""Yes, sir.""I don't care how long it takes," I said, my grip tightening around the phone. "Expand the