Chapter 22 - Engaged to Somebody Else

Chapter 22: Engaged to Somebody Else Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Dr. Stevens told them, “Congratulations.”

Maisy, too, was pleased with the result because she finally did it. Although she didn’t know the gender of the fetus yet, she was already halfway done with her mission.

The doctor proceeded to go through the dos and don’ts during her pregnancy before he excused himself.

While Maisy’s lips broke into a wide beam, Jay, for a fleeting moment, looked dazed. But it vanished almost too quickly, his eyes returning to normal, and he smiled, “Congratulations.”

Her hands moved towards her still flat abdomen. She pondered an uncertain future, but the only thing set in stone was her becoming a mother.

Jay had not restricted her movements. Still, Maisy remained indoors as the first trimester was critical for the baby’s development. She couldn’t afford to be careless during the first few months. She reduced the usage of electronic devices, only flipping through TV channels to watch the local news when she was bored. Yet, the news headlines one day made her jaw almost drop. Like sharp daggers, the words pierced through her eyes.

The announcement was on Jay’s engagement to the daughter of a wealthy family in high society. The photo displayed on the screen was the two of them, arms wrapped around each other with happy smiles worn on their faces.

Tears began to well up in her eyes, filling up with an abundance of wet until they could no longer hold it. When she blinked, the tears rolled down her cheeks like streams of the river.

The rest of the day passed in a blur. She waited, longing for Jay to come home, but it seemed ridiculous. What was she waiting for, exactly? Memories of her promising him to deliver his child filled her mind. Though they only had a contractual relationship, he should have given her the respect she deserved for bearing his offspring. So what was she now, if he had gotten engaged? A mistress, a secret lover who would ruin the marriage of a happy couple?

Women in pregnancy were bound to have increased anxiety, feeling on edge, and always alert. And Maisy was lying on the couch with a fur blanket throw wrapped around her when she heard the door click open. She jumped awake.

Like any day else, Jay walked through the door without much emotion on display. The instant his gaze landed on her, it was merely the feasting stare of a predator on its prey.

“I saw the news. Your engagement,” Maisy said nonchalantly. Sure, she was calm, her composure collected on the surface. But the chaos within her roared on like the ocean waves smashing right into her. She had been waiting for this moment a whole day. She needed to hear his explanation.

“And what about that? Isn’t that normal? It’s a political marriage,” he replied with a matching tone. There was no element of surprise in his words. Political marriages in powerful families like his were quite common. As the branches of his family business spread higher, so should the roots go deeper and deeper beneath the soil surface. He ought to make sure the great tree grew, prospered, and lived

long.

She bit down hard on her lower lip until her brain sent her the pain signal as an indication to stop. She relaxed her grit. “What about me? What about the baby I’m carrying?” she questioned. The determination to obtain an answer reflected steely in her eyes. She was desperate.

He laughed, soft and low, and as if he had heard the biggest joke of his life. He fixed his eyes on hers. “Who do you think you are? What makes you think you can question me?” he scoffed.

He marched towards her and carried her to the long mirror a few feet away. His hand gripped her chin, tilting her head and forcing her to stare right at their reflection. “Look closely and tell me what you see.”

The girl in the mirror was in a restricted position, with a man shadowing behind her. While his hand cupped her chin, his other hand was big enough to clamp around her waist and lift her around effortlessly. Her complexion looked unhealthy and ghostly, the pale skin of her neck tainted with garish marks that had yet to heal. The strap of her silk nightgown had slipped off her shoulders during her struggle earlier, revealing her bare chest with similar crimson vivid patches that were stinging to her eyes.

Maisy shoved him away and straightened up her body, pulling her strap back up before tying a knot on her robe.

Jay stood upright as well, knowing that she had gotten the message he delivered. Once again, he circled his hands around her into an intimate pose. He leaned in, slowly drawing the tip of his wet tongue to her ear as he caressed her ear lobe. “That’s it. My good girl’s always obedient.”