Chapter 1
After being diagnosed with a brain tumor, I uncovered two truths: my marriage certificate with Hayden Spencer was fake, and our six–year–old son, Matthew Spencer, knew–and still wished someone else were his mother.
It was then that I realized the seven years I had spent hiding my identity, cutting ties with my family, and giving my all to this household had been a colossal joke.
So, I chose to vanish from the lives of my cold–hearted husband and ungrateful son. However, I had three things to do before I could finally leave.
First, I would have to cancel the candlelight dinner I had booked a month in advance for our seventh anniversary, leave the parents‘ group chat at Matthew’s kindergarten, and exit the dozens of health and wellness groups I had joined for their sake.
Second, I would have to contact my doctor, Jeremiah Petersen, and undergo a fit–to–fly assessment, and secure just enough medication to keep my body functioning long enough to cross the ocean.
Third, I would have to call my brother for the first time in seven years. I would pour out the sorrow I had endured, explaining how I regretted ever marrying so far from home and that my only wish was to go back.
“Mrs. Spencer, your brain tumor is pressing on your nerves. You need to decide soon.”
Jeremiah’s voice echoed in Nicole Jensen’s ears as she stood frozen in the sterile hallway, the sharp
scent of disinfectant thick in the air.
Her whole body trembled as she gripped the crumpled test results, creased beyond recognition, in her
hands.
She had been having constant headaches, nausea, and even random nosebleeds lately. She had assumed
it was from staying up late or being overstressed, but the truth was far worse.
He had given her two options. The first was to undergo surgery, with only a 50% chance of survival. The second was conservative treatment, which included medication and chemotherapy. She might lose all her hair, but it could buy her a few more years.
Nicole was terrified of gambling on a 50% chance. She had always hated needles, let alone betting her life
on a cold, sterile operating table. However, if she skipped the surgery, the tumor would keep growing, and she would eventually die a slow and painful death.
She closed her eyes, and images of her husband, Hayden, appeared in her mind. They had been married for seven years. She loved him deeply and had always imagined growing old with him. Even more, they
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had a son together–their pride and joy, the handsome and intelligent Matthew.
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As she thought of the two people who meant the most to her, Nicole suddenly felt a wave of courage rise in her chest. She stood up and pushed open Jeremiah’s office door.
“Dr. Petersen, I’ve made my decision. Please schedule the craniotomy for me.”
Jeremiah looked at her solemnly. “There’s only a 50% chance of survival. Aren’t you afraid?”
Nicole smiled. “I’m not. I believe my husband and son will be there for me. As long as they are, I have nothing to be afraid of.”
Jeremiah nodded. “Alright. I’ll schedule the operation for one month from now.”
She walked out of the hospital, eager to get home and find comfort and support from Hayden and Matthew. However, the housekeeper told her Hayden had gone to the office.
Without hesitation, Nicole hurried to Spencer Group and stood outside the CEO’s office. Before she could step inside, she overheard a man’s voice through the crack in the door.
“By the way, Hayden, won’t Nicole be pissed when she finds out you made Gloria your secretary?”
Nicole froze. She peeked through the gap and saw Caleb Gibson, Hayden’s best friend.
Gloria Ashford, whose name hit her like a punch, was no stranger to her. She knew all too well that Gloria
was Hayden’s first love from ten years ago.
Hayden sat at his desk, eyes cast downward. He wore a black shirt with the collar slightly open and sleeves half–rolled, radiating the air of a cold, restrained man.
“Don’t pry into my business,” he snapped, clearly annoyed.
Caleb shrugged with a smirk. “Look, I only put on a show around Nicole all these years out of respect for you, but everyone around knows you two aren’t even legally married.”
He guffawed, adding, “Did you forget I was the one who forged that marriage certificate for you?”
Colors immediately drained from Nicole’s face. She froze outside the door, paralyzed by the shocking
revelation.
What on earth had she just overheard? She and Hayden were never legally married?
Hayden sat angled away from the office door, oblivious to the figure lingering just beyond it.
Caleb, sounding curious, continued, “Why are you so quiet, Hayden? Now that Gloria’s back, aren’t you getting rid of Nicole?”
He laughed lightly, then added, “I mean, if Nicole hadn’t clung to you so desperately and gotten you drunk that night, you never would’ve slept with her. She got pregnant, and that was the only reason you agreed to that fake marriage.
“You practically did it so the kid could have your last name. Poor Gloria… She was heartbroken for years
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and finally had the courage to come back.”
Nicole held her breath. Her brain felt like it was swelling, and pressure pounded in her skull. She clamped a hand over her mouth, trying desperately not to throw up.
Caleb had been there the night at the bar he spoke about. He knew she hadn’t gotten Hayden drunk. Instead, Hayden had been drugged by a rival company, and she had willingly stepped in, stayed with him
at the hotel, and become the antidote.
So, why was he twisting the story now, pushing all the blame onto her?
He chuckled. “So, when are you finally gonna give Gloria the title she deserves? Make it official and marry her in style! If she hadn’t gotten sick back then and left because she didn’t want to drag you down, Nicole
wouldn’t have had the chance to slip in at all.
“Let’s be honest here–she stole a spot that was never hers to begin with. The real Mrs. Spencer was always supposed to be Gloria!”
Hayden’s expression darkened as he lifted his eyes. They were as cold as the dead of winter and carried a sharp warning. “I had a child with Nicole…”
Nicole trembled uncontrollably from head to toe. Her knees nearly buckled. She couldn’t take it anymore
and rushed off toward the restroom. The rest of his words remained a mystery to her.
Inside the stall, she threw up violently. She didn’t know if it was the tumor making her sick… or the truth.
A passing employee, startled by the sound, rushed in and offered her a tissue.
Nicole took the tissue with red–rimmed eyes and forced a smile that looked more like a grimace. “Thanks
… but please don’t tell Hayden I was here.”
She turned and stumbled out of the company building, her legs barely keeping up with her spinning head.
She wandered the busy streets like a ghost, thoughts tangled in the memories of the first time she met
Hayden.
Seven years ago, Nicole was a renowned designer abroad, holding her own as the creative director in her brother’s jewelry company. At that time, she had nothing to do with Hayden.
Then, on a business trip, it happened.
Just as she stepped out of her hotel, the seam of her skirt tore, nearly exposing her in broad daylight.
Amid her panic, a man stepped out of a sleek black Maybach and shrugged off his perfectly pressed suit
jacket before handing it to her.
“Wrap it around your waist,” Hayden had said–calm, effortless, but enough to cut through her anxiety like light through fog.
Nicole looked up and saw a face so impossibly handsome it could only belong to someone favored by the angels. At that moment, she fell hard. She couldn’t get him out of her head from then on.
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She pulled every string she could, asked her brother for help, and created work opportunities, all to get closer to Hayden. Even knowing he still pined for the woman who had left him without a word, she never
backed down.
Then, on one drunken night in a hotel room, a moment of weakness led them here–a family of three and a marriage that was never truly hers.
Nicole still remembered what she had asked Hayden on their wedding night. “I never asked you to make
it up to me, so why did you still choose to marry me?”
For the first time, the usually cold and unreadable man had looked at her and slowly said, “Because I
want to give you and our baby a home.”
It was those words that made Nicole dive headfirst into this marriage.
She gave up everything–including her rising career–and, despite her brother’s strong objections, stayed
in the country to build a family with Hayden.
She cooked, cleaned, raised their child, and played the perfect wife in a one–sided fairytale, but now, she finally saw the truth. Their marriage had never even existed.
To him, she had never been his real wife. For seven long years, he played pretend, knowing his heart was
with another woman.
Nicole’s heart bled with that painful realization.
She made up her mind that she would take Matthew with her if she survived the surgery next month. Hayden could marry whoever he wanted without having to worry about their child anymore.
At the thought of Matthew, she regained the little strength she had left. She rushed back home, only to overhear a conversation between him and the butler.
“Taylor, do you think Mommy will be sad if she finds out she and Daddy are never truly married?”
Nicole’s eyes widened in shock.
The butler, Taylor Sutton, smiled amicably. “Well, there’s nothing we can do about it. Mr. Spencer doesn’t love Mrs. Spencer–you knew that well.”
“Honestly, I never really liked Mommy,” Matthew pouted, his voice a childish mutter. “I like Ms. Ashford more! She’s so nice; whenever Mommy drops me off at Daddy’s office, she gives me lots of yummy
snacks and fun toys.
“She’s everything Mommy isn’t. Mommy says snacks are bad for me and that I should study harder. She’s so annoying… I wish Ms. Ashford could marry Daddy instead.”
Nicole clenched her fists so tightly her nails dug into her palms. The pain in her chest was so overwhelming that she nearly passed out on the spot.
Even the child she had carried for ten months had turned on her, just like his cruel and heartless father. It
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turned out all those years of picture–perfect family life had been a sweet–looking nightmare. It had all been a hoax.
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She thought of her elder brother, Shawn Jensen, and his pleas not to marry so far from home–his warnings that she might get hurt. She should have listened. If he knew what Hayden had done and how Matthew behaved, he would probably fly over and beat Hayden half to death.
Nicole blinked away the sting in her eyes, turned quietly, and walked downstairs. The hope that had pushed her toward the craniotomy, as well as the love she thought was worth risking her life for, were all gone.
She sat down in the living room, pulled out her phone, and made a call. “Shawn, I’m filing for a divorce soon. Will you take me home?”
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