Chapter 4

I didn't waste any more words on him. I brushed past him and walked toward my dad's ward.

Tears fell uncontrollably.

I never thought my marriage would end in such a disgusting way.

Julian quickly caught up and grabbed my wrist, his voice filled with annoyance.

"Enough! Stop making a scene, okay?"

"Calm down so we can talk about this rationally."

I turned my tear-stained eyes to him.

"Talk about what? Talk about how you two went behind my back to make a baby? Or how I’m supposed to generously accept your love child and play the perfect stepmom?"

"Julian, don't you find yourself repulsive?"

He choked on his words, unable to answer.

Just then, his phone rang.

The screen lit up with the caller ID: "My Sweet Becca."

It felt like a physical slap to my face.

He used to call me "My Sweet Chloe" on his phone. Then it became my full name. Now, his sweet pet name belonged to someone else.

Julian lowered his voice as he answered.

"Rebecca? What's wrong?"

Rebecca’s whiny voice came through the speaker.

"Julian, my stomach hurts a little. Can you come back and check on me? I'm scared."

Julian’s tone softened instantly.

"Don't worry, don't worry. I'm on my way. Lie down and don't move. Wait for me."

After hanging up, he glanced at me.

"Rebecca is feeling bad; I have to go. I won't go in to see your dad. We’ll talk about our stuff later."

With that, he didn't even look back as he ran down the corridor.

At that moment, my entire world crumbled.

Until my dad was discharged from the hospital, Julian never showed up again.

He claimed Rebecca had prenatal appointments that he absolutely had to attend.

I didn't care what he was doing anymore. I was focused entirely on finding the hit-and-run driver.

The police said there were no traffic cameras in that area, so they needed to do a door-to-door investigation to track down the suspect.

I took my dad home by myself and got him settled.

When I finally returned to my house that evening, I saw Julian and Rebecca leaning close together, staring at an ultrasound photo.

"Look, the baby is so cute! Does she look like me or you?" Rebecca asked dreamily.

Julian chuckled:

"Definitely like you, you little troublemaker."

They were chatting so excitedly they didn't even notice me walking in.

I stepped forward and snatched the ultrasound photo out of their hands.

"Since when did my study turn into a nursery?"

The room was now packed with a crib, toys, and various baby supplies.

Julian frowned:

"Rebecca is living here now. Once the baby is born, the three of us will raise her together, so of course she’ll sleep here."

"You don't even use the study anyway, so I repurposed it. Those old books of yours? Rebecca didn't need them, so I had someone throw them out."

I pointed at the mountain of baby gear.

He took it for granted:

"We needed to buy all this stuff. Even if Rebecca is my bro, she’s still a girl. She needs a lot of things."

I was too angry to speak. Oh, so now she was a girl.

Was there anything left in this house that actually belonged to me?

Rebecca stood up, walked over to me, and tried to link her arm through mine.

"Chloe, don't be mad. I know this is hard for you to accept right now, but we're going to be a family from now on."

I shoved her hand off me:

"A family? Who the hell is family with you?"

Rebecca gasped, startled by my outburst.

Julian immediately stepped in and shoved me hard, knocking me against the wall.

"Chloe, have you lost your mind?! She’s carrying our baby!"

My back throbbed with pain from the impact, but my heart was completely numb.

Looking at this man, I found the situation utterly hilarious.

I stared at him, my eyes ice-cold:

"Your baby? Julian, did you forget the fertility screening we did before we got married?"

His face instantly drained of color.

Rebecca took a terrified step back, nearly tripping over a toy.

"The medical report stated clearly that you have a severely low sperm count. The chances of you conceiving naturally are practically zero."

"So, tell me. Whose baby is she actually carrying?"