Chapter 008

Fatima’s mind drifted back to the life she had lived. She had never been a troublesome child growing up.

She had been the one teachers relied on, the one who stayed behind to help tutor her classmates when they struggled.

She had chosen a profession that saved lives, a career where she felt the loss deeply whenever a patient died. She was a doctor, but more than that, she was a people person. She had always been kind, always understanding, always willing to give more than she received.

So how was the world repaying her kindness with this kind of cruelty?

What kind of exchange was this? She did good, and this was what she got in return? Her husband’s mistress’s pregnancy results in her hands?

“Fatima!” Violet’s voice cut through her thoughts, sharp enough to make her blink. “What do the results say?” Violet asked.

Fatima hadn’t even realized she had opened the brown envelope. Her eyes scanned the paper without really wanting to. For a brief, foolish moment, she wished it said negative. She knew it made no sense. This marriage was already broken beyond repair. There was no forgiving this. Three years? That wasn’t something anyone simply moved past.

“What do the results say?” Violet asked impatiently, snatching the paper and reading it herself. “What do you know… the affair has consequences.”

“Oh my God!” Leslie’s reaction came immediately. She reached for her flat stomach, her face lighting up in a way that made Fatima’s chest tighten painfully. Leslie looked genuinely happy, like this was the best moment of her life, completely ignoring the fact that her joy came at the cost of another woman’s marriage, another woman’s pain.

“Um–I’m sorry,” Leslie added quickly, her voice suddenly soft and sweet. “I know this isn’t the right time and—”

Violet cut her off before she could finish. They had known she was capable of it, but not that she would cross that line. It was her grandchild, after all.

“Mom?” Nicholas finally spoke. He had been silent the entire time, standing there like a man waiting for a storm to pass. It was clear he didn’t agree with his mother’s words.

“Oh, shut up,” Violet snapped at him. “I give you my company, my name, everything, and this is the embarrassment you want to bring to this family?”

“It won't be like that,” Nicholas said quickly. “Leslie will stay out of sight. No one will know.”

Fatima lifted her head at that. Their eyes met. His gaze stayed on her as he spoke, his voice lowering, almost pleading.

“I have it under control,” he added softly, as if hoping she would understand. As if Fatima was supposed to help him defend this madness.

“Wow.” The sound escaped Fatima before she could stop it. A low, broken laugh followed. It felt unreal for her. Like something out of a movie. She actually glanced around the room, half-expecting hidden cameras, wondering if this was some cruel prank. Maybe a twisted joke. Maybe some kind of sick test.

But deep down, she knew better.

The kiss she had seen. Their bodies tangled, slick with sex sweat. None of it could have been faked.

“I don’t care,” Violet said firmly. “She’s early. She’s getting an abortion.” Her tone was final.

Leslie’s face fell. She opened her mouth to argue, but the door opened before she could.

“Absolutely not!” Everyone turned toward the voice. “What are you saying right now, Violet?”

An elderly man walked in slowly, leaning on his cane. He looked to be in his late seventies. His name was David, Violet’s father, Nicholas’s grandfather.

“Dad?” Violet said, startled. She immediately scanned the room for a chair. “What are you doing here?”

“I had my checkup,” David replied calmly. “I heard your voice from the hallway.”

His eyes shifted to Fatima, and he gave her a small, gentle smile. He had always liked her. He still did. He admired her kindness, the way she carried herself, the grandchildren she had given the family. But he was old-fashioned – completely against the idea of abortion.

“I’m sorry this is happening to you, Fatima,” he said. “But in the old days, men had many wives. Five sometimes. It was normal.”

“So you’re saying he should marry her?” Violet snapped. That would destroy her image completely.

“Of course not,” David replied. “I know this era is different. Business partners will leave, reputations will suffer. But the child should be kept. Fatima can raise the child as her own. This is marriage and–”

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” Gisele said quickly, stepping in. “Your patient is here, Doctor Ashford.”

Fatima had sent the message herself. She needed a way out, and this was it.

She stood immediately. “I guess you’ll all have to excuse yourselves. It’s an emergency.”

She picked up her phone and pushed her chair in. All eyes followed her as she walked toward the door. When she reached Nicholas, his hand moved toward hers.

She stepped back.

“And Nurse Gisele,” Fatima added calmly, without turning around, “it’s Doctor Bennett. Ashford is my ex-husband.” Nicholas’s chest tightened at the words. Without another glance, Fatima walked out.

“Is everything alright?” Gisele asked quietly once they were alone.

“Yes,” Fatima replied, forcing a smile. “Thank you for that. Let me know when they leave.”

She turned away before Gisele could say anything else. Right now, she needed to be alone.

She went straight to the bathroom. After checking every stall and making sure no one else was there, she locked herself inside one and sat down. The moment she did, everything crashed into her once again.

The pregnancy test. Nicholas’s calm voice. The plans he had already made without her.

She felt stupid. So painfully stupid.

All the times she had trusted him without question replayed in her mind, and the tears finally came. She pressed her hand over her mouth, trying to stay quiet. She thought about the good memories, the park, the laughter, but even those were tainted now. In every memory, she saw him distracted, his attention always somewhere else, his eyes glued to his phone.

It was like everything she had ignored before suddenly made sense. Like her vision had been blurred all along, and now, painfully, it was clear.

“Gigi?” Fatima shot to her feet, wiping her face quickly when she heard footsteps.

“They’re gone,” Gisele said softly.

Fatima exhaled in relief. The last thing she needed was another doctor finding her there and turning her pain into gossip.

When she stepped out, Gisele stood by the sink, concern written all over her face. Anyone else would have broken down right there. But Fatima didn’t. She never did.

Instead, she straightened her shoulders. “I can’t deal with any complaints from the nurses today,” she said firmly. “Get back to work.”

“I’ll see you at lunch,” Gisele said gently before leaving.

Fatima stayed behind, giving herself a moment to breathe. To become the strong, feared doctor everyone knew. Not the woman whose marriage was falling apart.

She reached her office door when a nurse stopped her to ask for help with shift changes.

“I’ll speak to your supervisor,” Fatima said. “We’ll fix it.”

“Thank you, Doctor Ashford,” the nurse said gratefully.

Fatima watched her walk away, then entered her office. She locked the door behind her and leaned against it, closing her eyes.

“Breathe,” she whispered. She didn’t even know why she was at work. Her mind was too full. Her heart too heavy. She hadn’t even allowed herself to think about her children yet… about Bonnie.

“Ah, making sure no one disturbs us, I see.” Fatima’s eyes snapped open. Nicholas’s friend was in her office. Ian. The man who never missed a chance to flirt. Tall, broad-shouldered, with sharp features that always drew attention whether he tried or not.

“What are you doing in my office?” she asked, confused. When she left earlier, the Ashfords had been here.

“You stitched my wound,” he said casually, rising from her chair. “I came for a follow-up.”

He stepped closer. Fatima moved back instinctively, remembering how he had shown up at her door the night before with a bullet lodged in his arm.

“What are you doing?” she asked, panic slipping into her voice as he closed the distance.

“Well,” he said lightly, stopping just short of her, “you locked the door.”

He took two steps back, giving himself a perfect view of her.

“I thought you’d buy me a drink first but…” Using his good hand, he began unbuttoning his shirt, letting his gaze linger on her neck, the sinful intent behind it clear.

“I’m a man, despite the billion-dollar company I own… sometimes I go on sale,” he added with a wink, and the effect of it hit her lower belly, a gasp escaping her lips as a shiver ran down her back, making her body tingle in a way her mind refused to acknowledge – a truth she had denied since the day she met him.