I walked down the corridor of the grand office building with light steps. A smile never left my face. Today, I carried the happiest news of my life so far—the sperm donation procedure had been successful. A tiny life was now growing inside me… our child.
Yes, mine and my husband’s.
We had been hoping and waiting for this for five years of marriage with no sign of a child.
“He’s going to be so happy,” I whispered softly, gently caressing my still-flat belly. “Finally, our dream of becoming parents is coming true.”
I took the elevator to the top floor where my husband’s office was located. I knew he would be busy, but I couldn’t wait any longer to share this news. I was sure he would greet it with one of his warm hugs, just like always.
I pressed open the door labeled Ronan Thornhart—my beloved husband.
It was unlocked.
Slowly, I pushed it open, my smile still wide.
But that smile didn’t last more than two seconds.
My body froze.
Right in front of me, Ronan—my husband—was kissing a woman. His arms wrapped around her waist, their lips locked with hunger and passion. But that wasn’t even the worst part.
The woman… was my friend. Rowena Virell.
“R-Ronan…?” My voice cracked.
They both immediately broke apart, startled. Rowena looked down and quickly buttoned up her blouse. Ronan stood frozen for a second, then rushed toward me in panic.
“Sierra, this—this isn’t what it looks like,” he blurted out, reaching for my hand.
I stepped back.
My breath hitched. My chest felt like it had been slammed with a sledgehammer.
“Not what it looks like? Ronan… I saw it with my own eyes! You… the two of you—!”
“I can explain everything!” he said, his voice louder now, but desperate.
My eyes began to fill with tears. I shook my head.
“Why her, Ronan? Why her? She’s my friend. Someone I trusted… You both—”
“I made a mistake, it was just one time—I… I regret it, I really do…”
I looked at him, my heart breaking.
“I came here to tell you… that we made it. I’m pregnant, Ronan. Our child is growing inside me,” I said, placing a hand on my belly. “And this is how you welcome the news? With betrayal?”
Ronan fell silent, his mouth open, but no words came out. Maybe he was also hurting… but it was nothing compared to the pain I felt.
I turned my gaze to Rowena, who was still looking down, her face turned slightly away.
“Rowe… how could you do this to me? I’m your friend, Rowe—and this man is my husband! How could you be so heartless?”
I couldn’t hold back my anger and yelled at her.
But once again, she said nothing. Whether she felt guilty or simply didn’t care—I didn’t know.
Without waiting for an answer, I turned around and walked away.
Tears streamed down my face, but I held them back until I was out of that room, out of their sight.
A day that should’ve been the beginning of my happiness... had become a wound I would carry for a long time.
***
The sky had started to darken, clouds thick despite the day not yet reaching nightfall. I walked home with trembling steps and a weak body, after witnessing my own husband cheating—with my friend, no less. My heart was shattered. The world had lost all its color.
I thought that was the worst of today.
But I was wrong.
As soon as I arrived home, my phone rang loudly. The screen showed an unknown number, but the ID displayed the name of the hospital where I had undergone the insemination process a few weeks ago.
“Hello?” My voice was faint.
“Good evening, Mrs. Sierra. This is Duskveil Hospital. We kindly ask that you come in as soon as possible. There is something important we must discuss with you in person, regarding the insemination program,” said a woman’s voice on the other end. Formal, yet uneasy.
My heart dropped.
“I-Is something wrong with the pregnancy?” I asked, panicked.
“We’ll explain everything once you arrive. Please come immediately.”
Without another thought, I grabbed my car keys and rushed to the hospital—still wearing the same outfit I had on when I saw my husband’s betrayal. My hands trembled on the steering wheel. Amid all the heartbreak today, the one thing that kept me going was the little life growing inside me. I had waited five years for this. I couldn’t lose it.
Upon arriving, I was led directly to the office of Dr. Lyra, the doctor who had handled my insemination.
Her face turned tense the moment she saw me.
“Mrs. Sierra, we are terribly sorry for this… mistake,” she said quietly.
I furrowed my brows. “What do you mean? What happened?”
She lowered her gaze briefly before looking straight into my eyes.
“There was an error during the donor sample selection process. The sperm we used… was not your husband’s.”
The world stopped spinning.
“W-what…?” I whispered, my body collapsing into the chair. “Not Ronan’s? Then… whose?”
Dr. Lyra swallowed hard and opened the folder in her hand.
“According to the lab’s matching code, the donor implanted in your womb is… Mr. Caelan Duskborne.”
I sat up, as if the name had been plucked straight out of a nightmare.
“Caelan Duskborne? He’s the CEO of the company my husband works for! That cold, terrifying man?”
The doctor nodded slowly.
“I know this is hard to believe, but we have confirmed it. We are prepared to take full responsibility for this critical mistake.”
My head was spinning.
This couldn’t be real.
How on earth had the sperm of someone like Caelan Duskborne—a man I never imagined would enter my life—ended up growing inside me?
“Why… did he donate?” I asked weakly.
“That’s… personal information I’m not authorized to disclose. But one thing’s for certain—he doesn’t know about this.”
I closed my eyes.
The wound from Ronan and Rowena’s betrayal had not yet healed, and now I was faced with another truth—
The child I carried… did not belong to the man I called husband.
But to a stranger whose power could make anyone kneel.
***
Aksara