Sitting in the closet, clutching the pregnancy test in trembling hands, I stared at the two undeniable lines.
“So, I’m really pregnant?” I whispered, tears welling up in my eyes.
I had been married to Lewis Clifton, my childhood friend, for two years, and the thought of finally giving birth to an heir filled me with joy. I could not wait to share the news with him.
But as I approached the door to his study, his voice stopped me in my tracks.
“You’re really coming back tomorrow, Ruby?” he asked, his tone brimming with excitement while clutching his phone.
Ruby Gilmore. My twin sister. She had been living in San Jose all this time, but then, she was returning to Switzerland. Her return seemed to light up Lewis in a way I never could.
Then came the words that shattered my heart.
“Don’t worry about Rose,” he mocked cruelly. “She’s like a dog, obedient to her owner. After all, I only married her to replace you temporarily.”
His words pierced me, cutting deeper than I thought possible. My fingers tightened around the test pack before I threw it into the trash, my excitement extinguished.
For two years, I had hoped he would love me, but it was clear his heart had never been mine. It had always belonged to Ruby. And with her beauty and charm, she would reclaim it effortlessly.
What I did not expect was the cold, calculated cruelty Ruby delivered when she just arrived at our house, her voice a venomous whisper.
“If I were you, I’d leave this world, Rose,” she threatened, her tone dripping with malice.
Fine. If that was what they both wanted, I would grant their wish. I would disappear from their lives entirely.
Standing on the edge of the bridge, the wind whipping against my face, I cursed them one last time, my voice filled with bitterness and despair.
“I wish them hell!”
***
A month had passed since the grand celebration of the 60th anniversary of Clifton Group's Diamond Jubilee.
The night was marked by elegance, laughter, and the usual dazzling charm of Lewis Clifton. But for me, that night held an entirely different significance—a moment I could never forget.
Lewis had been too drunk for the first time in our two years of marriage, and for once, he looked at me differently. His usual cold demeanor gave way to an almost primal intensity.
“Just obey me, Rose,” he demanded, pinning my hands above my head with unexpected force.
My heart pounded in confusion and anticipation. For two years, we had slept in separate rooms, our marriage devoid of affection, let alone intimacy.
But that night, Lewis was all passion and fervor, his words laced with a warmth I had not known he possessed.
I was drunk too, lost in the haze of the moment. I did not resist. Instead, I surrendered to him, yearning for even a fragment of love.
“Good girl,” he murmured.
And for the first time, blood flowed from my core.
The next day, Lewis acted as if nothing had happened. His coldness returned, and our lives resumed their usual routine of distant breakfasts and silent evenings.
Yet, I did not regret it. He was my husband, after all.
For weeks, the memory of that night lingered in the back of my mind, overshadowed by his indifference. But then I noticed something—my monthly period had not arrived.
“Could it be?” I whispered to myself, both anxious and hopeful.
My thoughts raced as I bought a pregnancy test from the pharmacy. That night, I sat in the closet, clutching the test pack in trembling hands.
“What should I do if it’s positive?” I muttered, my heart pounding.
Our marriage had been a mere arrangement between families, a partnership devoid of love.
Lewis had always treated me as a convenient stand-in for someone else. Despite knowing that, a tiny flicker of hope ignited within me.
“If I’m pregnant with his heir, maybe things will change,” I thought, my mind grasping at straws.
Minutes later, the result was clear—two lines.
“So, I’m really pregnant?” I whispered, tears streaming down my face.
Overcome with emotion, I abandoned all hesitation and rushed to Lewis’s study. For the first time in years, I dared to hope that he might show even a fraction of love for our child.
But as I reached the door, his voice stopped me.
“Ruby, are you really coming home tomorrow?”
Ruby. My twin sister. The one he had loved long before our marriage.
“Of course, I will make sure to pick you up at the airport,” he said, his tone soft and warm—so unlike the way he ever spoke to me.
“Don’t worry, I’ll try to finish my meeting on time, okay?”
A lump formed in my throat as he continued, “Also, I’ll ask Rose to cook dinner for you tomorrow. Just text me the dishes you want. I’ll make sure she prepares them all.”
My grip tightened on the doorknob, but I could not push it open.
“Don’t worry about your sister,” he added, his tone shifting to mockery. “She obeys me like a dog. If I tell her to leave, she’ll leave.”
Tears stung my eyes as I listened, frozen in place.
“When you come here tomorrow, I’ll send her away. Let’s celebrate our love properly this time,” he said with a laugh. “You know I only love you, Ruby.”
My heart shattered as I heard Lewis say before hanging up the phone, “I can’t wait to see you, my love.”
The weight of his words crushed the fragile hope I had carried moments earlier.
My husband—the father of my child—had never loved me. I was merely a placeholder for the woman he truly desired.
However, I still clung to a fragile thread of hope, a small flicker in my heart that perhaps Lewis would change once he knew about my pregnancy.
Summoning every ounce of courage, I approached the door to his study, my hand trembling as it hovered near the wood, ready to knock.
Before I could, the door swung open suddenly, and I stumbled forward, caught off guard.
Out of reflex, Lewis reached out and caught me in his arms, steadying me.
For a fleeting moment, I felt the warmth of his embrace—a warmth I had not known in the two years of our marriage.
It was our first hug, however accidental, and for a heartbeat, I allowed myself to feel it, to pretend it meant something.
But the moment dissolved as quickly as it had come.
“What are you doing outside my study room, Rose?” Lewis snapped, his voice sharp with irritation as he pushed me away.
