Perfect timing

Audrey stood by the full-length mirror in her bedroom, still dressed in the silk robe Larry had bought her during their brief “honeymoon” weekend after the rushed registry wedding. She looked at her reflection with narrowed eyes—not in admiration, but in calculation.

She wasn’t comfortable.

Not even a little.

Something in the air was shifting. Larry was there with her, yes. Physically. He answered her texts, picked her up from appointments, even indulged her little whims when necessary. But she wasn’t blind—his heart was elsewhere.

With her.

June.

Audrey paced the floor barefoot, the cold tiles grounding her as her mind buzzed in a frenzy. “This wasn’t supposed to be this hard,” she muttered under her breath. “She was supposed to be history.”

But June Williams wasn’t fading quietly into the past.

If anything, she was rising—again.

The media had started buzzing, posting subtle snapshots of June’s growing public reappearance. Paparazzi had even snapped her coming out of a charity event looking breathtaking. And worst of all, her name was now being whispered in high-end business circles again—like a phoenix rising from ashes that should have long cooled.

And Larry?

Oh, Audrey could see the way he tensed up when June’s name was mentioned—even in passing. The flicker in his eyes, the subtle tightening of his jaw. It wasn’t over. Not for him.

The seed of rage rooted itself deeper in her.

She had done everything. Lied. Manipulated. Forged a pregnancy report. Even married him. But it still wasn’t enough. His mind was still on June.

What else was left to do?

Audrey sank onto her bed and stared blankly at the ceiling, mind racing. She had been racking her brain for days, searching for a way to eliminate June from the equation completely—but nothing clean had come up. The more she tried to strategize, the more tangled her web became. June wasn’t reckless. She had people. She had power. She had… presence.

Audrey wasn’t stupid. Any wrong move could blow up in her face.

So, for now, she'd need to wait.

But not passively.

If she couldn’t take June out yet, then she would need to dig deeper roots into Larry. Make him need her. Make him trust her. Make him love her—or at least believe he did.

The fake pregnancy was her anchor. The one thread that kept her in his life. That tied him to her in obligation, if not affection. But that thread was thin, fragile. A lie that could unravel with one DNA test or a whisper from someone suspicious enough to start digging.

No. She had to be smarter than that.

She reached for her phone and opened her calendar, carefully marking the dates. “We need to have another ‘doctor’s appointment’ soon,” she whispered. “Maybe let Larry overhear something ‘sensitive’ about a complication. That’ll reel him in emotionally.”

Then her mind shifted. What if... she actually got pregnant for real?

Her eyes widened slightly. That would change everything. No more forged reports. No more pretending. If she gave Larry a real child, he would be tied to her forever. He wouldn’t have a reason to doubt. And even if he still longed for June, he’d never leave a child behind. Not Larry.

She would give him no reason to walk away.

As for June, Audrey would be patient. Calculated. She wasn’t done with her. Not by a long shot. But taking her down would require precision. Timing. And maybe a few people who could do the dirty work for her.

She picked up her phone again and made a few calls to old contacts people who owed her favors. She wasn’t setting anything in motion yet, just… planting seeds.

For now, she’d play the devoted wife, the glowing mother-to-be, the woman Larry had no choice but to build a life with.

But inside?

Audrey was sharpening her claws.

So she made a plan. Not a dramatic one this time. Just a soft, manipulative play on the very thing that glued her to him: the baby.

By mid-afternoon, she lay on the couch in the living room, the curtains half drawn. She waited until she heard Larry’s car pull into the driveway. Then she let out a soft whimper. It grew louder, more frantic. By the time he opened the front door, Audrey had curled up into a ball on the floor, her face tight with a convincing blend of fear and agony.

“Larry!” she screamed, clutching her abdomen. “The baby… oh God, the baby!”

Larry’s briefcase hit the floor with a thud. He was by her side in seconds.

“Audrey! What’s going on?! Where’s the pain?! Is it sharp? Dull? Where?!” he fired questions like a panicked doctor, his hands fumbling as he tried to gather her into his arms.

Audrey whimpered again, burying her head into his chest. “I don’t know... It started suddenly. I think something’s wrong, Larry... I’m scared...”

His chest tightened. Despite the doubts and emotional chaos in his head, the word baby still triggered something in him a protective switch. He gently lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bedroom, placing her carefully on the mattress.

“Do you want to go to the clinic?” he asked, already reaching for his phone. “We can go right now”

“No,” Audrey said, her voice barely above a whisper. “Just… just lie beside me. Please. Massage my back, like you did last week. It helps.”

Larry hesitated.

“Please, Larry,” she added, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

He sighed and lowered himself beside her, his hands resting on the curve of her back as he slowly, rhythmically began to rub small circles. Her body relaxed under his touch. Her tears dried up. And a subtle smile curved her lips—where he couldn’t see it.

She inhaled deeply. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“It’s fine. You just need rest,” Larry replied flatly, eyes focused on a point on the ceiling. His mind, even now, wasn't entirely present.

“Do you still think about her?” Audrey asked quietly, almost too softly to hear.

Larry’s hands paused. A long silence filled the room.

“I think about a lot of things,” he finally said, avoiding her eyes.

Audrey turned to face him, the faux pain gone from her expression. “She doesn’t love you, Larry. You know that, right? She’s moved on. With that... that pretty boy Xander.”

Larry’s jaw tightened. “Don’t talk about her.”

“Why? Because you still love her? After everything she did?” Audrey's voice sharpened, but she quickly softened it again. “I’m here, Larry. I’m the one carrying your child. The one who stayed.”

He looked at her then, really looked at her—for the first time in days. Her hair, tousled from the pillow, her hands resting protectively on her belly. He couldn’t tell anymore what was real and what wasn’t. His heart was a battlefield. But the guilt was strong. And Audrey knew how to wield it like a blade.

“I just need you to care, Larry,” she whispered, reaching for his hand and placing it on her stomach. “Just until the baby comes. Then everything will fall into place.”

Larry gave a small nod, more out of resignation than belief.

Audrey smiled faintly as she turned her back to him again, letting him resume the massage.

It’s working, she thought. Bit by bit, I’ll win him back. And June... June will be nothing more than a name in his past.