Chapter3

But greater hope leads to greater disappointment. Eric placed me in the best VIP room at the pack hospital. As my due date neared, I lay in bed all day, but Eric rarely visited, even though it was just one floor below his office. "The hospital can't manage without me right now. You should rest; there's a lot I need to handle. I'll visit when I have time." He was always in a rush. On the day of delivery, sixteen hours of labor pains made me bite my lips until they bled. The person who should have been holding my hand never appeared. After giving birth, I lay weak on the hospital bed. Jessica, Eric's new assistant, was beside me. "Mrs. Davis, your child is a healthy girl. Congratulations." I smiled at her. "Where's Eric?" "Mr. Davis went to meet with important hospital investors." Jessica's eyes darted, her fingers nervously twisting her clothes. I stared at her name tag—she'd only been working for two weeks, no wonder she didn't know that every hospital investor needed my approval. "What investor is more important than his wife giving birth?" My voice was soft, but it made sweat bead on Jessica's forehead. Seeing this young girl, fresh out of college, I didn't want to press her further and let her go. On the third morning, Eric finally appeared with a bouquet of white roses covered in dew. "You've worked hard, my little warrior." When he kissed my forehead, I caught the unfamiliar perfume lingering on his cuff. "She's so beautiful," his gaze at the crib was heartbreakingly tender. "Her eyes look just like mine." The pent-up tears finally burst forth. It wasn't an act—it was a tear gas mix of pain, hormones, and betrayal. "I almost died in the delivery room…" My sobs triggered sharp alarms from the monitor. "And where were you? Having dinner with which 'investor'?" Eric's Adam's apple bobbed violently, his blue eyes filled with guilt. "Forgive me, Mila." His posture, down on one knee, looked like a scene from a romantic movie. I turned my head, wiped my tears, and forced a weak smile. "Don't say you're sorry. You're my mate, my child's father, the man I love most." The words made my stomach churn, but they worked on Eric. Eric started appearing in the hospital room punctually every day, bearing carefully chosen gifts and a perfect smile. Lying in bed, counting IV drips, I activated the waterworks the moment he opened the door. "Remember when we first built the hospital…" My voice trembled with sobs. "To get your medical license, my father used all his connections…" I kept repeating all I'd done for him in the past because I knew these words would make him feel guilty, ensuring he'd compensate me generously when we severed the mate bond. I also knew his patience would wear thin quickly, making him miss how wonderful his crush was. And within ten minutes, his phone would vibrate, and he'd find an excuse to leave—to see Lucia. Thus, moving closer to him initiating the mate bond severance. On the twentieth day, as I brought up the time I pawned the family jewels for him, Eric suddenly smashed a vase. "Enough!" He tore at his tie like a trapped animal. "How many more times will you bring up the past? You're more suffocating than any shrew!" I let tears trace cold paths down my cheeks. "Then what do you want?" "Divorce." The word finally forced through his teeth. "Sign the agreement tomorrow." Watching his retreating back as he slammed the door, I dried my tears and checked my phone. What Eric didn't know was that I had long decided to sever the mate bond. Because he simply didn't have long to live.