Only Discovered He Truly Loved Me After I Aborted Our Child

Elaisa's POV

When the Bourne family went under, it was Russel Meyer who picked me up and brought me back to his place.

For ten years, he treated me like I was his princess. I had everything I wanted, and everyone knew me as the girl Russel doted on, the brightest star in New York’s high society. Life was good—until that night. The night he came home drunk, and we crossed a line we shouldn’t have.

I had been holding back my feelings for years, and that night, I told him I loved him. But instead of hearing me out, he accused me of trapping him and said I’d drugged him. He called me shameless. Then, like a punch to the gut, he announced he was marrying his first love, Ivy Brennan.

Everyone expected me to blow up and make a scene like I usually do when I don’t get my way. But I didn’t. Instead, I quietly got rid of the baby. No one knew. On his wedding day, I packed my things and left without a word.

——

The day I found out I was pregnant, I got Russel’s wedding invite in the mail. It was fancy, gold lettering and all, and it felt like it weighed a ton in my hands. I crumpled up the pregnancy test results and tossed them in the trash.

As I turned to leave, I heard her voice behind me. Light, soft, and… irritating.

“Russ, come on, don’t touch me like that. There's a kid in front.”

My whole body froze, and I didn’t even need to turn around. Through the glass reflection, I saw Russel holding Ivy’s hand. He was wearing the suit I had picked out for him. My heart twisted in my chest, and I had to fight back tears.

Before Ivy, I was the only one who ever called him “Russ.” To everyone else, he was Mr. Meyer, the heir to the Meyer empire. But not to me. Since the day we met, I refused to call him Uncle or Mr. Meyer. He was just Russ. Even though he was eight years older, I stood my ground.

People thought Russel would be mad about it, but he wasn’t. He’d just smile, pinch my cheek, and say, “Ela, call me whatever you want. It’s fine.”

I never expected we’d be in each other’s lives for long. But then the accident happened—my parents died, and the Bourne family went under. Overnight, the people who used to smile on my face turned into vultures, coming after me with fake debts, trying to take what was left.

I was broken, but Russel swooped in like a hero. He came into the house, grabbed me by the hand, and said, “Ela, don’t worry. You’re coming home with me.”

That’s how I ended up with him. Not as Elaisa Bourne, but as Russel’s little princess. He even had my room redone all in pink. Knowing I was afraid to be alone, with a door that was always cracked open, so I’d feel safe at night. He filled my life with jewels, dresses, and love—everything a girl could ask for.

But all of that—the security, the warmth, the love—came to a crashing halt that one fateful night. He came home drunk, and we crossed that invisible line. For me, it was everything I’d dreamed of. But for him? It was a nightmare. The next morning, he looked at me like I was the worst person in the world.

“How could you do something so low, Elaisa? You make me sick.”

The next thing I knew, he had that door sealed, shutting me out of his life for good. Then came the news that he’d proposed to Ivy. That’s when I finally realized the truth—he wasn’t against marriage. He just didn’t love me.

I went from being the queen of this house to an outsider overnight. Ivy uprooted the flowers I had planted and tore down the swing Russel had built for me. And at night, when I couldn’t sleep, all I could hear was their laughter and passion echoing down the halls.

One of those nights, I called my second grandfather, who’d moved overseas, and agreed to go there to take over his business.

“Elaisa,” he said, “I don't have much time left. I regret not helping our family when I could’ve. Well, I don’t expect you to forgive me or take care of me now that I'm old. But I hope you’ll take care of the business when I’m gone.”

“Don’t worry, Grandpa, I will. There’s nothing here for me anymore, anyway.”

At first, I didn’t want to leave Russel. It hurt too much. But now, I’ve become nothing but a stain in his life, and there’s no point sticking around. All I wanted was a chance to say goodbye before I left.