Chapter 3

Kate parked her modest car next to James's collection of luxury vehicles. In all her time married to him, she hadn't once ridden in any of those cars.

Kate took the elevator from the underground garage and got out on the second floor, in the bedroom hallway. She passed a decorative mirror and instantly thought about fixing herself up. She let her hair down and removed her lab coat. She unbuttoned a few buttons on her shirt, hoping to show off her neckline.

Then Kate strode toward the bedroom, but when she walked in, James wasn't there. The bed held only the remnants of last night's intense passion.

Thinking it over, Kate figured he must be in the study, which was on the same floor. She didn't hesitate and headed straight there. She was already imagining herself sitting on his lap, the two of them starting something fueled by pure lust — on that armchair, or maybe even on the mahogany desk.

As she got closer, Kate heard voices coming from the study. James sounded serious, which dampened her enthusiasm.

Instead of going in, Kate decided to listen.

"No, Maycon! I don't have any feelings for this woman. Everything we have is just part of a deal."

Kate felt a hole rip open in her chest, guessing that James was probably talking to his friend about her.

"I can't put an end to everything right now. Things are tough. Mom is... you know Mom doesn't have much time left, and the company isn't doing well. It's better to leave everything as it is for now."

"..."

"I can't stand it. I hate it when she comes touching me — it disgusts me. But I have to put up with it for now."

Kate buttoned her shirt back up, feeling sick as she listened to James's words. He supposedly despised her.

"I can't wait to tell this woman it's over and finally live in peace with the woman I love. Yes, every day I'm more certain that I love her, and when all this is over, I want to tell her and have a real marriage with her."

Still listening, a tear rolled down Kate's cheek. She'd secretly longed for this — to hear her husband say he loved her. But now she was hearing that he wanted to say those words to another woman. Probably Miranda, his ex-girlfriend, the woman he would have married if Kate hadn't gotten in the way.

"Anyway, for now I have to manage all of this. Did you set up the dinner with Miranda for tonight?"

"..."

"Good. Tell her I'll pick her up at seven. Kate will still be at the hospital at that hour."

At that point, Kate couldn't bear to hear any more and ran. She grabbed her lab coat and headed for the garage. She felt like such an idiot for having felt remorse over the harsh words she'd said to James. While she'd been worrying about him, he'd supposedly been caring about another woman.

As Kate left, James continued his conversation with his friend, unaware that Kate had been standing at the door, listening to every word.

"Why don't you do it yourself instead of using me to pass messages to Miranda?" Maycon complained, tired of the whole situation.

"If I call her, I'll be giving her the opening to call me back. I'd rather keep my distance — maybe that way she'll give up on me and find someone else for her obsession."

"Just tell her you're not interested, James! This whole thing is annoying even for me. Miranda is insufferable and spoiled. You're not being a real friend by making me deal with her." Maycon was already irritated.

"I can't say that right now — you know why. Mom is sick, the partners don't trust my management, and if we lose Miranda's father's investment, the company will be at risk."

"Fine. And when are you going to go public with your marriage to Kate? What's the plan?"

"By then, I'll have found a better investor than Miranda's father. I'm sure of it."

James hung up, lost in thought. He wasn't in a comfortable position at all. He felt like he was walking a tightrope, balancing his personal life in one hand and his professional life in the other.

That day, Kate threw herself into work like never before. She visited every patient in her unit and did everything she could. When there was no work to do, she buried herself in her textbooks. The residency was the final stage of her training, and this was how she'd learn what the profession was truly like in practice.

But all that dedication wasn't just driven by her desire to learn — it was her attempt to keep thoughts of James from tormenting her heart.

It was eight in the evening when Kate went to Sara's room. Her shift was nearly over, and she liked visiting her mother-in-law at this hour. If she stayed a bit late, it didn't matter — being with Sara didn't count as working.

"My dear Kate, how are you?" Sara said, smiling, looking cheerful despite the paleness of her skin.

"I'm doing great, Sara. Today was packed. The patient in room 101, Mr. Ramirez, threw a fit about taking a bath — can you believe it? The nurses had to call me because he wanted to file a complaint about them."

"I heard! That filthy, shameless old man went at it again. He just wanted you to see that shriveled thing he's got between his legs! If I could get out of this bed, I'd slap that shameless geezer! Disgusting!"

Kate smiled at Sara's indignation, then sat down beside her and began combing her hair.

"Don't worry — he's not my type, Sara. You know that!" Kate said with a playful wink.

"I know, sweetheart, I know very well... Speaking of your type, how's that rascal son of mine doing?"

"Oh, James..." Kate's mood shifted instantly. She couldn't hide how angry she was at him. She took a deep breath and tried to force a smile. "He's fine. Apparently doing really well, I think."

"What's wrong, dear? Isn't he treating you right? Isn't he showing up in the bedroom?"

Kate's face turned red, and she stood up, turning her back to hide her reaction.

"N-no, that's not it..."

"From what I can tell, he has been showing up, hasn't he, dear? Thank God I didn't end up with a son who swings the other way!"

"Mrs. Sara! Watch what you say — that's very rude!"

"Oh, sweetheart, I'm not prejudiced, but... I only had one son, and if he didn't like women, how would he give me a grandchild? You know — a grandchild is all I want so I can finally rest."

Kate felt a lump in her throat. It was no secret that Sara was stubborn. Medicine had no cure for her condition, and Kate was certain the only thing keeping her alive was the hope of a grandchild.

"I love you, Sara. And I'm going to give you a grandchild. My test results are all good. I just don't know if James..."

"There's nothing wrong with my son — he's a stallion. When he was born and I saw his little thing, I said right away, 'This boy is going to give me lots of grandkids!' The problem is that he drinks. You need to tell him to stop drinking, dear."

"Could be, Mrs. Sara..." Kate said with a shrug. Sara was a bit stubborn, and there was no point getting into a debate with her.

"Haven't you felt any symptoms, dear?" Kate shook her head. "Your period hasn't been late?" Kate shook her head again. "Not even a little nausea?"

"No, Mrs. Sara. But that doesn't mean much — a woman might not have many symptoms early in a pregn—" At that moment, Kate opened a bottle of rubbing alcohol. The smell hit her nostrils and a terrible wave of nausea churned through her stomach.

Kate placed her hand on her abdomen and tried to breathe calmly, already tasting the bitter bile rising in her throat.

She looked at Sara and saw the old woman's eyes go wide.

"Could it finally be a symptom?" Sara asked.

"A symptom of what?" James said, walking into the room unannounced.

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