Chapter 3

"Only natural?" I let out a cold laugh. "Then, what about the agreement Henry and I signed? Is that just a worthless piece of paper?"

"Hazel!" Edmund's tone sharpened. "You are the lady of this family. You need to think long-term. As long as that woman doesn't set foot in this house and doesn't threaten your position, what's the harm in giving Henry a little room to breathe out there?

"Not to mention…"

His gaze drifted down to my flat stomach, and the implication was impossible to miss.

"It's been five years, and you still haven't given us anything. The Lancasters need an heir. Henry having a son out there is him thinking of the family's future."

A chill ran through my entire body. In their eyes, my inability to have children was my greatest failing. Henry's cheating was just him being soft-hearted, the illegitimate son was insurance for the family line, and my anger was me being petty and short-sighted.

"What if I said I want a divorce?" I stared Edmund down.

His expression darkened, and he slammed his coffee cup on the desk. "Don't be ridiculous! You think divorce is some kind of game? The stock price of our research commercialization firm can't take that kind of upheaval right now."

He narrowed his eyes. "That agreement you're holding is as much a leash as it is a safety net. You want to strip Henry of everything, drag his name through the mud, and just walk away? It's not that simple."

I clenched my fists so hard my nails bit into my palms. There was no warmth in this family, only calculations.

A knock came at the office door. An assistant stepped in, looking visibly uncomfortable. "Professor Lancaster, your son is here. He brought the child."

Henry walked in right behind him, carrying Aiden in his arms, with Vera trailing timidly behind.

"Dad." Henry couldn't even bring himself to look at me. He carried the boy straight over to Edmund. "Aiden heard his grandpa was here and insisted on coming to see you."

Aiden's face was pale, but he still managed to say sweetly, "Hi, Grandpa."

The tension on Edmund's face melted instantly. "What a good boy."

He reached out and ruffled the child's hair.

Vera stood in the corner and snuck a glance at me. The look in her eyes didn't match the fragile act at all. There was a flicker of triumph in it.

As long as Edmund accepted Aiden as his grandson, Vera didn't even need to marry into the family to be considered its greatest benefactor. And I'd be the one pushed out sooner or later.

Henry looked at me with a new edge of confidence. "Hazel, Dad already said it himself. Just think of it as doing this for the family."

The nausea I'd been holding down surged up all at once. I clamped a hand over my mouth and rushed to the bathroom, where I threw up until the room was spinning.

By the time I came back, Vera was already sobbing in front of me. "Ms. Whitaker, I know I shouldn't have come back, but Aiden needs heart surgery too. The best specialist in the country is right here in this city. I only came back to save my son's life."

She looked up at me, her face a portrait of helplessness. "The moment Aiden's surgery is a success, I'll take him and go. I'll stay out of your sight for good.

"Ms. Whitaker, you're a woman too. You've carried a child of your own. Please, have some mercy on a mother's heart."