Chapter 2

Jared was taken aback. However, his expression darkened almost immediately.

"Angela, I know that you're only spouting nonsense because of your pregnancy hormones. I will pretend I didn't hear what you just said.

"Get some rest. I asked the doctor to check on the baby's gender. We're going to the Dickson manor tomorrow for the gender reveal party."

As Jared left, he slammed the door so hard that it shook the walls in the room.

I swallowed the bile rising in my throat. Then, I called my lawyer, Pete Ramos.

"Help me draft a divorce agreement."

…

Early the next morning, I saw that Jared and Selena were already seated on the couch when I arrived at the Dickson manor with my heavily pregnant belly.

Selena stood up to greet me, smiling with practiced poise.

"I was working deep into the night last night, so I asked Mr. Dickson to keep me company. You don't mind, do you?"

I withdrew my hand and sat down in the seat farthest away from Jared.

He looked mighty displeased about it and looked like he wanted to say something about it, but he ultimately didn't.

As the matriarch of the family, Jared's mother, Karen Platt, personally accepted the gender test report from the doctor. Moments later, she announced to the rest of the family, "It's a girl."

At once, the rest of the female relatives began whispering among themselves. "And there I thought she was pregnant with the next Dickson heir—turns out it was just a girl after all."

"Hmph. And she thinks she can act so entitled even though she's just carrying a girl in her belly, demanding this and that and spending so lavishly like she thought money grew on trees. She was just trying to cash in on her baby. Serves her right for carrying a girl."

"Let's see how she's going to continue holding her head high in the family after this!"

Jared's face turned grim the moment he heard them.

"That baby is still my child even though she's a girl. And I will not have you gossiping about it."

The whispering and jeering ceased at once.

However, Karen walked up to me with a look of displeasure and disapproval on her face.

"Since this child cannot inherit the Dickson family business, you will have to pay back all the expenses we've spent on you so far. After all, the cost of upbringing for a girl differs completely from that of a boy. It was clearly written in the agreement."

I clenched my fists as a dull ache spread through my chest.

"Boys and girls are both the same to me."

Jared gave me a dark, pointed look. "Watch your attitude," he said in an irritated tone. "Rules are rules. You will be paying back every single expense incurred without a penny to spare!"

Then, he told Selena to bring over the itemized bill for the past seven months of my pregnancy. It also included the non-refundable postpartum nanny fees, expensive nutritional supplements, and the past seven monthly prenatal check-ups.

Selena flashed a practiced, professional smile and said, "Don't mind me for saying this, but women really ought to be independent and work for their own income. Relying solely on a man to provide for you will only make them despise you sooner or later."

Then, she showed me the bill total.

"The total comes to 308,000 dollars, Ms. Baxter. We accept cash and card, but no credit."

I was made to pay back everything just because I was pregnant with a girl. It was utterly absurd.

When Jared saw that I wasn't moving a muscle, he frowned hard and said, "You're not going to be able to worm yourself out of this bill. The agreement and gender test were both notarized by lawyers. You only have your own womb to blame for failing to give me a male heir."

Back when he found out that I was pregnant, he had wept with joy and excitement and acted like a flustered young man. But now, just because it turned out to be a girl, his attitude underwent a 180-degree turn at the snap of a finger.

The other people began murmuring amongst themselves, piercing into my ears. The baby seemed to have sensed my distress and kicked me hard in the womb, sending a sharp pang through the rest of my body.

I steadied myself against the wall, nearly collapsing to the floor.

Jared instinctively reached out to support me, but his attention was snatched away by Selena's sudden scream.

"Mr. Dickson! My dad is having a heart attack! He needs a huge fund at once to save his life… I need to go and get the money to save him…"

Jared immediately grabbed his coat and said, "I'll come with you. You can use my card for his bill."

I was drenched in cold sweat from the pain and tried to call out to the other people around me for help. However, Karen didn't even spare me a glance and instead led the other people away.

I only managed to slowly recover with the family doctor's help.

Just as I was about to hail a cab back to my grandparents' house, I received a frantic call from Grandpa.

"Angela! Our field back home has been sealed off! All of our crops have also been smashed and destroyed!"