That thought crept into my mind again. I blinked against the burning sting in my eyes, despair written all over my face.

"Then let's just get rid of our baby," I said.

"No way!" Caleb rejected the idea immediately. His tone even carried a hint of reprimand. "Stop being so stubborn. Yvie and her baby are innocent. Why are you being so demanding?"

"But my baby and I are innocent too! Have you even thought about what kind of life they'll face once they're born?"

"I'll take care of it. How many times do I have to say it? Natalie, you never fail to disappoint me." With that, Caleb turned and walked out after slamming the door shut.

The following day, I woke up to find a dozen bodyguards stationed around the room.

My phone and laptop were gone, completely cutting me off from the world. I wasn't even allowed to leave the house.

Caleb was afraid I would abort the baby. But the irony was, he already had a child—at least in name.

I was trapped and locked away until my belly swelled and the so-called "safe period" of three months passed.

That day, chaos erupted from downstairs. Yvette's family had arrived with a moving crew.

Patricia shot me a disdainful glare the moment she saw me. "You're carrying a bastard and still have the audacity to stay here. How shameless."

"Yvette is just too kind for her own good. Because of her, Caleb has suffered enough," Albert added. He turned his gaze toward me. It was filled with nothing but contempt.

"Enough. There's no need to waste our words on a shameless woman like her. Just help Yvette settle in."

I found it laughable. The Grant family was so righteous and strict about morals. And yet, Yvette was carrying someone's husband's baby, and suddenly, shame didn't seem to matter anymore.

Meanwhile, the movers hauled bag after bag upstairs.

Yvette lingered near me with a smug smirk. "So what if you're Caleb's wife? It's just a title. You and that baby are nothing compared to me. And soon, it'll be me, Caleb, and our baby. We'll be a real family."

Her words cut deep. My hand flew across her face with a sharp crack.

But even that wasn't enough. I grabbed her hair and yanked her violently as my palm struck her again and again.

Yvette shrieked in pain until Caleb rushed home and pulled me off her.

I wanted nothing but to kill her. After all, a person who had already lost all hope was capable of doing anything.

Yvette sobbed uncontrollably, drawing Patricia and Albert into the room.

Patricia raised her hand and slapped me hard across the face. Caleb moved as if to stop her, but he pulled Yvette into his arms after seeing her tears.

"Caleb, this woman is getting out of control! She's carrying another man's baby, yet you still refuse to divorce her. And now, she's even hitting Yvie! If you don't throw her out, I'll take Yvie home with me. And then the Lawson family will have no rightful heir!"

Yvette lifted her head and shot me a triumphant smile.

However, Caleb didn't do as Patricia demanded. Instead, he released Yvette and walked over to stand beside me.

"Natalie is my wife. I won't let her leave. Yvie can stay here, too, but I don't want to hear such words again. They are both my children. They are equally important to me," he said.

Caleb didn't abandon me, but he didn't tell the truth either. Instead, he let me bear the shame and allowed them to humiliate me.

For Yvette's "peace of mind", Caleb wanted me to compromise.

And so, my bright, sunlit bedroom was taken from me. I was moved to a storage room in the basement.

"It's just a different place to sleep. Nothing else will change. You'll still get your meals on time," Caleb said.

But none of that mattered to me anymore.

To Caleb, neither I nor this baby truly mattered. I had already made my decision—I wasn't going to keep this baby. I wouldn't bring them into this world just to suffer.

Caleb must have given Yvette instructions because she no longer taunted me, although she lived in this house. She just acted like I didn't exist.

Every day, I racked my brain, searching for a way to reach the outside world. Eventually, I thought of Yvette.

But to my surprise, she refused me outright.

"Natalie, I have to listen to Caleb. You don't understand what we have. As long as it's what he wants, I'll do whatever it takes to make it happen."

It seemed like she wasn't trying to provoke me—her eyes told me that much. That unwavering determination wasn't something that could be faked.

Maybe I had been wrong about them.

The bond between Caleb and Yvette was unbreakable and built on a trust so deep that nothing could shake it. It was deep that Caleb would rather sacrifice his own wife and child than betray her.

Every night when he got home, he went straight to Yvette's room. He would sit by her bedside, carefully feed her warm milk, and stay until she fell asleep.

By the time he came to me, it was always late at night.

I ignored him. I just lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.

The room was cramped, barely big enough for a bed. There was no furniture and not even a single window. It wasn't even as good as the maid's quarters.

Yvette had taken over every other space in the house. There was a nursery for her baby and a piano room while the rest were packed with her things. Caleb even spent every night with her.

His presence in this tiny, suffocating space felt like an intrusion.

Neither of us spoke. The silence pressed down, and the air turned thick and stifling.

I was starting to feel irritated. "What do you want?" I asked.

Caleb sighed and sat at the edge of the bed. "Natalie, why can't you try to understand me? Why can't you just trust that I'll take good care of you and our baby?"

I let out a laugh and glanced around. "This is what you call taking care of us?"

Caleb frowned. "Natalie, if you hadn't married me, you wouldn't even be staying in a villa this luxurious. Yvette isn't like you. She's always been obedient and has come from a well-off family. Sticking her in a tiny room would be unfair to her."

For a moment, Caleb paused, then softened his voice. "Don't doubt my love for you. Just focus on having the baby. And stop thinking about getting rid of it."

That was when it hit me. In his eyes, I was someone who could be pushed around, and I was expected to accept whatever was handed to me.

Coming from his mouth, the word "love" felt cheap and meaningless.

I didn't believe a word he said. But right now, I had to act compliant. That was the only way I would find a chance to get out of here.

"I was just saying that out of anger. I'll have the baby. Give me my phone and my laptop. You know I have no one to contact anyway."

For the first time that night, Caleb smiled. "Alright. That'll give you something to do."

The moment I grabbed my phone, I sighed in relief.

No one knew that I—an orphan—had found my biological parents a year ago. But back then, I had been blindly and hopelessly in love with Caleb, so I hadn't reunited with them.

Thus, they had left me a phone number, telling me to call them if I ever needed anything and that they would always be there for me.

I used to believe Caleb would protect me forever. Now, I saw how pathetic I had been to think that.

My biggest mistake wasn't just loving the wrong man—it was handing over my entire life and love to someone who had never had a heart to begin with.

When Yvette was six months pregnant, she asked Caleb to go abroad with her to ensure a smooth pregnancy. He agreed without hesitation.

Not only that, but he bought her a house overseas, making sure she was as comfortable as possible.

Before leaving, he told me, "Natalie, just stay home and take care of yourself. I'll be there when the baby is born. Once Yvette gives birth, everything will be over. I'll make it up to you by then."

I listened to him and never argued.

Caleb watched me for a long time. His gaze lingered like he was trying to read my mind. For a second, I almost thought he saw through me.

Then, Yvette called his name, snapping him out of it. He turned away, only to stop abruptly and glance back at me with sharp, unwavering eyes.

"You need to keep this baby, Natalie. If you still want to be my wife, you'll have to give birth to it."

How laughable. Even now, he still thought the title of Mrs. Lawson held power over me.

I didn't even want this baby anymore. Why would I still want to be his wife?

"Then can I move back into my old room?" I asked.

Caleb didn't even hesitate to refuse. "No. That room belongs to Yvie now. Don't touch her things—she wouldn't be happy about it."

So, even with Yvette gone, I was still stuck in that tiny storage room. So, that was what Mrs. Lawson was worth.

Once Caleb and Yvette left, the weight pressing down on my chest finally eased.

I glanced at my phone. In 12 hours, my parents would come for me. I was worried that they might be at a disadvantage with so many bodyguards here.

But over the phone, Dad just laughed. "Don't worry, Nat. The Lawson family wouldn't dare cross me. You're my only heir. Anyone who dares to lay a hand on you is declaring war against me. And I'll make sure they pay a gruesome price for that."

His words sent a wave of relief through me. But before I could even take a bite of food, Patricia and Albert barged in, along with Caleb's parents, Grace Samson and Frank Lawson.

They stood over me, looking down at me as if my very existence was an insult to them.

Grace didn't spare me a glance before tossing a stack of divorce papers onto the table.

"You're not worthy of being Mrs. Lawson, and that fatherless child of yours has no right to be born. Sign the papers, and we'll let this go," she said.

Patricia sneered. "You're being so kind. After what she's done, the whole world should know just how shameless she is."

I met her gaze coldly. "And what about your daughter? She seduced a married man and got pregnant. Is she any better?"

The Grant family claimed to be superior, but they were willing to let their daughter be a homewrecker for the sake of wealth. At the end of the day, they were just as rotten as the rest.

A sharp slap cracked across my face.

"How dare you compare yourself to Yvie? She and Caleb are a perfect match. You're just an orphan. Do you really think you deserve to be Mrs. Lawson?" Grace spat.

I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth and stared at them. I wanted to commit their faces to memory and burn every expression into my mind.

I grabbed the pen and signed the divorce papers without a second thought.

They didn't even let me breathe before dragging me straight to the hospital.

Just before the procedure, I looked at them indifferently. "If the baby I'm carrying is actually Caleb's, and Yvette's baby is the one without a father, will you ever regret this?"