A Second Chance With The CEO After Divorce

"Sorry, Ms. Nelson, you haven't been able to keep the baby," the doctor said gently to the woman in front of her.

Belinda Nelson sat in the doctor's office, her eyes fixed on her phone screen as she absorbed the grave news, distractedly scrolling through her newsfeed.

Displayed on the screen was an image of a man and a woman exiting the airport side by side.

The woman, identified as Cathy Miller, was a burgeoning star in show business, recently returned from a three-year educational stint abroad.

Accompanying her was Kristopher Cox, CEO of the leading Cox Group in Nawrin.

Unbeknownst to the public, Kristopher was also Belinda's spouse and the father of her unborn child.

The online comments celebrated the pair as a perfect match, oblivious to the fact that Kristopher had been secretly married for the last three years.

With a heavy heart, Belinda locked her phone and faced the doctor. "So, the baby... it didn't survive?"

The doctor, sympathy evident in her eyes, shook her head. "Ms. Nelson, given your terminal condition, your body has been unable to nourish the fetus for quite some time."

She slid the pregnancy termination notice across the table toward Belinda. "The fetus is now deceased. We must proceed with the abortion soon to safeguard your health."

Belinda glanced back at her phone, a bitter smile touching her lips as she caught sight of the online chatter about the celebrity couple. "Please, arrange the surgery."

She used to hope to have a child more than anyone else did.

Despite her best efforts, she failed to sustain the pregnancy.

Perhaps the child sensed that Kristopher wouldn't be kind to them after Belinda's passing and so decided against entering this world.

That was fine. She was now free to pass on without concerns.

While Belinda lay on the operating table, the doctor asked once more if any family members were with her. Just then, she overheard the nurses outside.

"I'm so jealous of Cathy. She disappears for three years, and the moment she returns, she has the CEO of Cox Group by her side."

"Cathy was Kristopher's first love. She moved overseas for three years, and he faithfully waited all that time. Kristopher's devotion to her is remarkable!"

"But haven't you heard the rumors that Kristopher is married?"

"Pure speculation! Kristopher adores Cathy deeply. He could never marry anyone else..."

The nurses' chattering stabbed at Belinda's heart like daggers.

She shut her eyes tightly and murmured, "It's too noisy."

The doctor then burst through the door, yelling into the hallway.

Silence enveloped the room.

As the doctor reentered, Belinda looked up serenely and instructed, "No anesthesia, please."

She was determined to endure the agony of her child being taken from her.

She told herself this was what she deserved after years of blind devotion to Kristopher.

The ordeal in the surgery room lasted only half an hour, but the pain seemed endless, sweat drenching her body as her attachment to Kristopher, and their unborn child, slipped away.

Staggering out of the surgery, Belinda locked eyes with Kristopher, his gaze seething with fury.

He closed the distance swiftly, his hands clamping down on her shoulders, his handsome face contorted with rage. "Belinda! How could you decide to end our child's life without telling me?"

As she lifted her head, the sting of sweat blurring her vision, Belinda noticed a woman in a white dress behind Kristopher.

It was Cathy.

With a bitter twist of her lips, Belinda murmured, "It seems I made the right choice."

Kristopher had not come alone to confront her about the abortion. He had brought Cathy, allowing her to witness Belinda's lowest moment, uncaring of how this spectacle would hurt her.

What was left for Belinda to cling to?

"Belinda!"

Kristopher's gaze locked onto her, his normally tranquil eyes now aflame with fury. "How dare you say it's a right choice to end the pregnancy! The baby was ours! I had no clue about the baby, and you decided to terminate the pregnancy without even telling me!"

"Do you even care?" Belinda cut him off, raising her head to meet his gaze, now blazing with rage. "I tried to tell you. I called you two hours ago. Where were you then? I also sent you several messages before the surgery. Didn't you think to check?"

Kristopher's face tightened with rage.

Two hours ago... Cathy had just landed at the airport.

He scowled and pulled out his phone to see if he had indeed missed a call from Belinda.

As he stood there, scrolling through his call log and messages, a deep sense of despair took hold of Belinda.

Kristopher's frown deepened as he checked his messages and WhatsApp. There was nothing.

He frowned, his icy gaze shifting to Belinda. "I thought the airport was so loud that I missed your call. Turns out, you never even called."

He flashed the screen of his phone, his expression dripping with scorn. "A flood of calls and messages? You're slipping in your lies, Belinda!"

Belinda gave a cold, mocking smile. "Am I the liar, or are you? You erased my calls and messages to pin this on me, didn't you?"

As she spoke, she pulled out her own phone. "Kristopher, did you forget that I have records too?"

"Oh-!"

Just then, a soft moan echoed from nearby. "My belly hurts..."

"Cathy!"

No sooner had Cathy's pained voice reached them than Kristopher was on his feet, rushing to her side. "What's the matter? Is it your belly again?"

Cathy, tears streaming down her face, nodded. "Kristopher, it hurts so much..."

"Let's get you to a doctor. Hand me the registration form from earlier."

Cathy meekly handed him the document, and together, they left, their closeness evident.

Belinda, fresh from an abortion, stood frozen, her phone clutched in hand as she watched her husband enter the obstetrics and gynecology department with another woman.

Lowering her gaze, she scrolled through her phone's recent call log, a bitter smile playing on her lips.

Even with proof that Kristopher was lying, what would it change?

It only highlighted how little he cared for her.

She had convinced herself that Kristopher was here for her, having seen her urgent messages.

Instead, he was merely accompanying Cathy for a check-up and had stumbled upon her by chance.

How absurd!

After picking up her medication, Belinda left the hospital. The moment she reached home, a sharp pain stabbed through her stomach, a burning sensation swirling within.

Grabbing a tissue, she dashed to the bathroom, where the toilet quickly turned red from her vomiting blood.

Clinging to the toilet, she lost track of time as she continued to vomit until she passed out.

She was nudged awake over an hour later by her cat, Fluffy.

Gently patting the cat's head, she weakly made her way out of the bathroom.

Her body faltered, and after a few steps, she collapsed with a loud thud.

Through her daze, she noticed a pair of handcrafted luxury leather shoes advancing towards her from the door, stopping right in front of her.

Then, a cold, mocking voice uttered from above, "Belinda, you chose to abort the baby. Now you're playing the victim? Spare us the act. Nobody's falling for it."

Belinda lay on the floor, tasting the blood in her throat, as she pushed herself to stand.

"Why are you back?"

Wasn't he supposed to be at the hospital, doting on his precious Cathy?

Kristopher, watching Belinda's face twist in disdain, leaned back elegantly on the sofa. "Cathy's just beginning to establish herself here. Imagine the scandal if it came out she was at the gynecologist today..."

"And why should that concern me?"

Belinda narrowed her eyes, her smirk dripping with sarcasm. "As your wife who's just miscarried, should I be upholding your mistress' reputation?"

It was clear now why Kristopher had rushed back; he feared Belinda might expose everything and tarnish his beloved's future.

"How dare you use the word 'mistress'?" Kristopher snapped back.

Belinda fixed her gaze on him, her words deliberate and biting. "If Cathy valued her reputation, she wouldn't be involved with a married man, wouldn't have health issues, and certainly wouldn't seek treatment at public hospitals."

Kristopher's eyes darkened with fury. "You knew Cathy held my heart even when you married me. And still, you let my grandfather marry us while I was unconscious. How can you call her a mistress?"

Belinda's smile soured. "Yes, I made a mistake then."

Three years earlier, after Kristopher's car accident left him comatose, Cathy had fled the country.

Belinda believed Cathy had truly left him for good, prompting her to implore his grandfather, Anthony Cox, to arrange their marriage. She vowed to nurture him for as long as she lived.

For nearly six months, she tended to him with great care, and gradually, Kristopher began to recover.

The severe gastric cancer she developed was largely due to the erratic lifestyle she maintained while caring for him.

She had naively believed her sincere affection would thaw his heart, but instead, she found herself drained and forced to end her pregnancy.

As his lawful spouse, she was powerless to call Cathy a mistress without facing his sharp rebukes.

It became evident that Kristopher was ungrateful and would never be touched no matter how much she cared for him.

With this realization, Belinda gave Kristopher a bitter smile and resignedly said, "If it's her you want, so be it."

She knew it was time to let go of herself.

The marriage should have dissolved long before, but it was she who had desperately clung to it.

The despair and surrender in her gaze seemed to annoy Kristopher. "What are you implying?" he demanded.

"Kristopher."

A chill enveloped Belinda's heart.

After five years together, as their relationship neared its conclusion, Belinda was surprised by her own serenity, unable to muster even a tear. "Let's get a divorce."

"A divorce?"

Kristopher paused, then sneered, "What game are you playing, Belinda? Aborting our child and now seeking a divorce? If I agree, you'll tell my Grandpa that I force you to do it, won't you?"

"I have never gone to your Grandpa to complain. I didn't before, and I won't start now."

Belinda smirked as she squatted down and retrieved the divorce papers from the drawer of the coffee table.

Just then, the ringing of a phone cut through the silence.

"Cathy."

Kristopher sprang to his feet, his voice laced with anxiety. "What's the matter? Okay. I'll be right there!"

He ended the call swiftly, grabbed his jacket from the sofa, and made for the door.

Belinda, clutching the divorce papers, frowned deeply and called out to him, "Sign these before you leave. It'll only take a second."

He seemed not to hear her at all. The door slammed shut behind him as he left.

Belinda shut her eyes, sinking into a brief silence. Eventually, she opened her eyes, picked up a pen, and signed her name on the final page of the agreement.

Tossing the papers back onto the table, she scooped up her cat, Fluffy, and ascended the stairs to pack. While packing, she called her friend Madisyn Thomas in Rozand to come get her.

It had become clear to her.

In Kristopher's eyes, she paled in comparison to Cathy.

A single call from Cathy was enough to make him disregard her completely.

She had been harming herself over a man who now seemed trivial, especially as she faced stage IV stomach cancer with only three months to live.

Resolved, she decided she no longer wanted to waste her remaining time on a marriage that had no future.