Lucian blamed everything on me. He thought if I hadn’t encouraged her to join the competition, she wouldn’t have died.
But what he didn’t know was that his beloved "lover" faked her death and ran away because she no longer loved him.
To keep him from being heartbroken, I kept this secret for years.
But even after ten years, I couldn’t warm his cold heart.
This time, I was truly exhausted. I no longer want the heart I couldn't warm.
With a loud bang, Lucian threw me into the corner of the wall.
The dull pain in my back almost left me breathless.
Instinctively, I held my stomach, but this only made Lucian angrier.
"I know you signed a surrogacy agreement with the Prescott Family. Once the child is born, the Prescott Family will acquire the struggling Aldridge Family. But I won't acknowledge your child! If you're smart, you'd better get rid of it as soon as possible."
Everyone present could no longer hold back and began murmuring among themselves.
Those mocking gazes fell upon me, cutting into me like a thousand knives.
They openly discussed the ridiculous and disgraceful ten years between me and Lucian, claiming I stole my late best friend's boyfriend, went bankrupt, drugged him to get into his bed, became a secret lover and even sold myself for investment.
They even mentioned the surrogacy agreement I signed with the Prescott Family.
Each accusation, each detail, pinned me on the shameful pedestal.
"I won't let anyone other than Astrid give birth to my…"
"Alright."
Before Lucian could finish his sentence, I interrupted him.
I used my elbow to support myself and slowly stood up.
He stared at me, his eyes filled with shock.
Maybe he thought I would never agree, which was why he called me over in the middle of the night to humiliate me in every possible way.
He likely had more despicable plans waiting for me. But he never expected me to agree so easily.
"What did you say?"
I gave a bitter smile and repeated, "I said, I’ll terminate the pregnancy."
As everyone's shocked gazes followed me, I slowly walked out of the private room. The noise of chaos and smashing echoed behind me, but when I closed the door, I shut out everything.
I dialed the number I had contacted a month ago.
"Astrid, you won. I don’t want Lucian anymore. He’s yours."
Astrid had returned a month ago, right when I had just discovered I was pregnant and signed the surrogacy agreement with the Prescott Family.