Our fifth wedding anniversary was supposed to be a celebration. Five years with my husband Nathan. Five months carrying our first child. I had even booked our favorite table at the little Italian restaurant where he first told me he loved me.
I thought it would be perfect, but rather I was dragged into a van by strangers in black masks.
When I woke, my wrists were bound, my mouth dry, and the air reeked of sweat and gasoline. The dim lightbulb above me swayed gently, illuminating the two men standing over me.
“Call your husband,” one of them ordered, shoving a phone into my hand. “Tell him the ransom. Twenty-million dollars. Now.”
My hands trembled as I dialed Nathan’s number from memory. My heart screamed for him to answer, to tell me everything was going to be okay.
But the voice that answered wasn’t his.
It was a woman. Moaning.
I froze, my heart plummeting into my stomach. The phone slipped from my fingers, clattering to the floor.
The kidnappers exchanged a look, confusion turning to irritation. “What the hell was that?” one snapped.
When I didn’t answer, his eyes darkened. “You think this is a game? Maybe we’ll just take what we came for.”
The other man’s gaze dropped to my swollen belly.
“No, please!” I screamed, kicking, fighting, the chair scraping against the concrete floor.
One of them pulled out a glinting blade. The cold air hit my skin as they ripped through the fabric of my dress.
Pain exploded in my abdomen—a searing, tearing agony that stole my breath. My scream was so raw it scraped my throat bloody. I felt warmth spill down my legs, the metallic scent flooding the room. My baby. My child.
And then—footsteps. Heavy. Certain.
The door burst open. Nathan. Gun in hand.
“Sorry,” he said, his voice almost casual. “I’m late.”
But his image was already fading, the edges of the world collapsing inward. The adrenaline drained from my body, replaced with cold, suffocating emptiness.
The next time I opened my eyes, it was to the sterile white walls of a hospital room. My body ached everywhere. My hands instinctively went to my stomach.
Empty.
The silence around me was deafening. I could hear my own heartbeat pounding in my ears. And then, outside the door, I heard him—Nathan.
“…make sure you pay the kidnappers,” he was saying into the phone. “Let them go and make sure they never come back to tell anyone I was the reason for the kidnapping and the loss of the baby.”
My breath caught.
The other voice on the line, a woman’s voice, answered coldly. “You know how evil you are? You just killed your son with Jasmine. And you pretended to be her savior when you planned everything. What if she learns the truth?”
“She won’t,” Nathan replied without hesitation. “That’s why she’ll never find out. I only wanted a child with Carrie. Now that she’s back, I’ll take care of her.”
The voice scoffed. “She left you for years, Nathan. And now you choose her over Jasmine? What about your wife who’s been there for you?”
“You know it’s always been Carrie, Mom,” he said, “Even when she left me. I married Jasmine because I needed her family’s influence. I still intend to keep her for as long as I need her… for business. And she’s barren now because I made sure of it. I had her ovaries removed.”
The floor tilted beneath me, even though I was lying down. I felt myself sinking again, my chest tightening until the darkness took me for the second time.
When I opened my eyes, Nathan was beside my bed.
“Jas—God, are you okay? I’m so sorry I was late. I’m sorry about the baby. I—”
“I called you,” I said weakly, my voice trembling, “and a woman answered.”
He blinked, then forced a laugh. “My phone was snatched before I got there. That’s why I was late. You think I’d do something like that to you? Never.”
I stared at him, the lie rolling off his tongue so smoothly it almost sounded like truth. Almost. But I knew better now.
I said nothing more. I just turned my head away.
Nathan leaned closer, brushing my hair back. “I’ll protect you from now on. I promise. You and the baby—” He stopped himself, his jaw tightening before correcting, “You and… our future.”
Before I could respond, his phone rang. Nathan reached for it and the butler’s voice came through. “Sir, something happened to Miss Carrie. She fainted due to lack of blood.”
Carrie. My half-sister.
Nathan’s expression shifted instantly, urgency flashing in his eyes. “I’ll come right away.” He looked at me quickly. “I’ll be back soon.”
As soon as the door closed behind him, the tears I had been holding back finally spilled over.
I couldn’t stay here. I couldn’t pretend anymore.
With trembling fingers, I grabbed my phone. My voice was raw when I spoke, but the words came out clear.
“Do you still want to marry me, Jameson?”
