CHAPTER 4

Hannah pov

The cool medical gel spread across my lower abdomen, sending a slight chill through my body as Dr. Rose glided the ultrasound wand over my skin. 

The soft, rhythmically whooshing sound echoed around the quiet private clinic suite. 

My eyes never left Dr. Rose's face as she stared intently at the monitor.

I knew I would be able to read her expression before she even spoke. 

The air in the room was thick with anticipation. 

I squeezed my eyes shut and pressed a hand against my chest, my heart pounding so wildly it felt as if my whole life had been leading up to this single moment.

Was I finally carrying James’s child?

It was foolish, really. I had broken the cardinal rule of our arrangement: 

I had fallen deeply in love with a man who was entirely out of my reach. 

I was an orphaned, discarded heiress with nothing to my name, while James Vance was the feared CEO of a multi-billion-dollar empire. 

Our families had been ruthless corporate rivals for generations. We were doomed from the start.

To James, I had never been anything more than a contract bride, a strategic pawn incapable of touching his cold, guarded heart. 

But looking at the ultrasound screen, a small ray of hope flared within me. 

Maybe—just maybe—this news would change everything between us.

Dr. Rose’s face softened, and a warm smile broke across her lips.

"Congratulations, Hannah," Dr. Rose said gently, turning the monitor toward me.

I stared at the screen, tears blurring my vision. 

Even if I couldn't make out much on the black-and-white display, the steady, rhythmic thump of a tiny heartbeat filled the room.

"Oh..." A breathless whisper escaped my lips, my voice cracking with emotion. 

“I'm really... pregnant?"

"Yes, you are," Dr. Rose laughed softly, leaning down to pull me into a tight, comforting hug.

I buried my face against her shoulder and cried, releasing two years' worth of pent-up heartache and anxiety. 

I hadn't realized how desperately I wanted this baby until this exact second.

"I need to tell James right away," I said, pulling back quickly and wiping away my tears, my eyes suddenly bright with excitement. 

"He's going to be so overwhelmed... He wanted this child so much."

"Take it easy getting up," Dr. Rose cautioned with a smile as I scrambled off the examination table to grab my purse.

"I can't wait a second longer," I practically beamed, pulling out my phone as I hurried out the door.

To James: I’m on my way home. We need to talk immediately. Please wait for me.

I sent the text, a foolish grin plastered across my face. 

I felt a rush of overwhelming happiness. 

Little did I know, it would be the last time in a very long time that I would ever feel that way.

When my taxi pulled into the winding driveway of the private Vance penthouse estate. 

I noticed James's sleek black sports car parked outside. Taking a deep, steadying breath, I stepped into the foyer.

The lights were dimmed. James was sitting on the leather sofa in the dark, waiting for me.

"Oh! You're home early," I said, startled, a bright smile gracing my face as I unbuttoned my coat. 

“I didn't think you'd be here so fast. Let me hang my coat and I'll make us dinner—"

"Hannah."

The sharp, ice-cold tone of my name made my hands freeze on the buttons. 

My stomach dropped into a bottomless pit.

I turned around slowly to face him. 

His face was void of any emotion—his silver eyes cold, distant, and dead.

"Have you... already eaten?" I asked softly, trying to fight the sudden tightness in my chest.

"No," James said coldly, clearing his throat as he stood up.

“I got your text. But I have something to tell you first."

My eyebrows pulled together. Did he already know? No, that was impossible.

Over the past two years, I had learned to read every subtle shift in James's mood. 

The hard set of his jaw, the rigid posture, the detached glint in his eyes—none of this was good news.

"What is it?" I asked, my voice dropping to a barely audible whisper.

"It's about us," James broke the silence, his tone completely flat. 

"I can't keep doing this anymore, Hannah. This marriage isn't working."

The words felt like a physical blow to my chest. 

I stumbled back a step, gripping the back of a dining chair to keep myself upright. 

“What...?"

"It's been two full years," James said, tossing a thick sheath of legal documents onto the marble glass table. 

"The contract period is ending, and you've been unable to provide an heir. There's no point in dragging this out any longer."

"James, wait—"

"I want a divorce," he interrupted sharply, his voice echoing loudly off the floor-to-ceiling glass windows.

"A divorce?" I stuttered, tears welling up in my eyes. 

"Two years... I gave two years of my life to you!"

"And you gave me nothing in return, Hannah!" James barked back, stepping toward me with mounting irritation. 

"You knew what this was from day one. It was a business arrangement. There's no reason to waste any more time."

"But I love you!" The words burst out of me before I could stop them. 

I looked at him desperately, foolishly hoping for a softening of his gaze, a moment of hesitation.

Instead, James let out a harsh, bitter scoff.

"You can't love me," he sneered, shrugging his broad shoulders. 

"This was purely transactional. I made that crystal clear from the start—"

"I don't care about the transaction!" I cried out, stepping closer to him. 

"I love you, James!"

James clenched his fists, his jaw tightening until the muscle ticked. 

“Well, I don't love you!" he yelled directly into my face. 

“I don't love you, Hannah. I never have, and I never will. You were just a contract to me!"

I don't love you. I never have.

The words rang in my ears like a death sentence.

"So... that's it?" I whimpered, clutching my purse tightly against my stomach. "You're throwing me away?"

"I'm severing our union," James stated, his tone devoid of any humanity. 

"I, James Vance, hereby void our contract and terminate this marriage, effective immediately."

My heart shattered into a million unfixable pieces. 

The man who had pulled me out of the rain two years ago was completely gone. 

Standing in front of me was the true James Vance—a heartless tyrant who discarded people the moment they lost their utility.

"I accept the divorce," I whispered, barely recognizing the hollow sound of my own voice.

James didn't waste a second. 

He pulled a sleek Montblanc pen from his breast pocket and signed his name at the bottom of the divorce papers with brutal efficiency.

"You have until tomorrow morning to sign the documents and pack your belongings," James said coldly, tapping the paper. 

“My legal team will wire a generous severance settlement into your account. You can go wherever you want."

"I don't want your money," I said, a tear slipping down my cheek and landing directly on the signed paper.

"Suit yourself. I have nothing else to say to you," James said, brushing past my shoulder as he walked out toward the foyer.

Before the front door even swung shut, the high-pitched, giggling sound of a woman's voice echoed through the hallway.

Driven by a painful burst of curiosity, I crept toward the hallway and peeked around the corner.

Standing by the private elevator was James, his arms wrapped around a stunning, tall blonde woman in a revealing designer dress.  

She was gorgeous, polished, and belonged perfectly in his elite world—everything I was not.

"Come on, let's go upstairs, baby," the blonde giggled softly, draping her arms around his neck.

James pulled her close and crashed his lips onto hers, leading her toward the secondary suite. 

But just before he turned the corner, his silver eyes glanced back toward where I stood behind the shadow. 

He knew I was watching. He knew I was completely destroyed.

And he didn't care at all.

That was the exact moment the final spark of love inside me died.

To think I had been foolish enough to imagine a future where we could be a real family—James, me, and the precious child growing inside my womb. 

A child he knew nothing about.

And a child he would NEVER know about.

James Vance was a monster. 

He didn't deserve to be a father to my child, and he certainly didn't deserve me. 

If he knew I was pregnant, he would try to take my baby away just to secure his corporate inheritance.

I walked back to the glass table with steady, determined steps. 

My hands were trembling, but I picked up the pen and signed my name next to his on the divorce line.

I hurried to the guest bedroom, packing only the clothes I had brought with me two years ago.

I didn't take a single piece of jewelry, designer clothing, or luxury item he had bought me. 

On the bedside table, I slipped off the massive diamond wedding ring and left it behind.

Walking out of the penthouse doors, the cold night wind whipped through my hair. 

Two years ago, I had walked into James's life broken and desperate. 

Tonight, I was leaving broken-hearted, but completely free.

I gently placed both hands over my barely swollen stomach as I walked out into the city night.

"It's just you and me now, little one," I whispered into the darkness.

I was heading toward an uncertain future, far away from Kingsbridge and the Vance empire. 

But no matter what happened, one thing was absolute:

James Vance would never find out about his secret baby. Never.