Chapter 1 She Was Done With Him
“Honey, is the baby in Belinda’s belly yours?” Dina Gardner’s face went pale as a ghost, unable to believe her ears.
Seven months ago, Blair Woodward’s older brother Alan Woodward had died in a car accident. She’d felt heartbroken for his newly widowed and pregnant wife, Belinda Hobbs, so she’d made soups every day, gone with her to every prenatal appointment, and done everything she could to help. And this was the thanks she got, a brutal stab in the back.
She’d never dreamed that Blair, the man who cherished her like a treasure and loved her more than life itself, would betray her like this.
“Explain yourself!” Her voice shook wildly as she stared daggers at Blair on the sofa.
The light threw shadows across his furrowed brows, swapping his usual poised elegance for a stifling weight that seemed to crush the air from the room.
He sighed heavily. “Dina, calm down. The Woodward family… needs an heir.”
The words hit her like a dagger straight to the heart.
Three years ago, she’d damaged her uterus saving Blair’s life, and the doctors had said conceiving would be nearly impossible.
Back then, by her hospital bed, he’d sworn up and down, “I only want you. Kids? Who needs them? I could go my whole life without.”
“Needs an heir?” Dina let out a hollow laugh, tears finally streaming down her face. “So you slept with Belinda? Blair, how could you be so vile?”
Slap! A stinging slap cracked across her face.
Her mother-in-law, Eileen Woodward, sneered with pure disgust. “You rude little brat, how dare you speak to Blair that way? With Alan gone, it’s only right for Blair to step in. This isn’t your place to throw a tantrum.
“Besides, you can’t conceive. What gives you the right to interrogate him? Blair hasn’t tossed you out on the street yet. You ought to be down on your knees, thanking your lucky stars!”
Dina cupped her burning cheek, staring at Blair in shock. She thought, ‘So… this is how he sees me now too? Thanking my lucky stars? His not despising me is supposed to be some huge act of kindness?
‘Was I the one begging to marry him back then? No, it was Blair who proposed nine times. He was the one who promised again and again that he didn’t need kids.
‘He was the one who showed up with that vasectomy proof, eyes red and pleading for another chance. I still have it locked away in my safe…’
As he caught sight of the red welt on Dina’s pale skin, a mix of pain and frustration flickered in Blair’s eyes. But with everything out in the open now, he had no choice but to say it.
He said, “With Alan gone, the weight of the Woodward family falls on my shoulders. I have to carry it. You… you can’t have kids. That’s just how it is. We both need to face reality.
“Don’t you love children too? Once the baby’s born, we’ll make it official: it’ll be yours, calling you Mom. Then we’ll be a happy family of three, no regrets.”
Dina felt bile rise in her throat, like she’d swallowed something rotten. “So I should get on my knees and thank you, Mr. Woodward, for handing me motherhood on a silver platter?”
“…Dina, I’m trying to have a civil conversation here. Do you have to be so snarky?” Blair’s brows knitted together, irritation flashing in his eyes.
Eileen said, “Shameless! We’re handing you Blair for nothing, and you’re whining like it’s some big hardship? You ungrateful bitch!”
Eileen lunged forward, shoving her roughly. “Get out! Scram! Go cool off outside and figure out how to act like a proper, obedient wife in this family. If you can’t wrap your head around it, don’t bother coming back.”
It was after ten at night, with snow swirling thick and fast, the cold biting straight to the bone. The temperature had plunged below zero.
They were really going to kick her out in nothing but her thin clothes.
Dina glanced instinctively at Blair, clinging to a desperate hope that he’d defend her. But she only met his conflicted, somber stare.
He frowned, fingers clenched white-knuckled. After a moment’s pause, he finally… looked away, turning his back.
He’d chosen silence. Letting Eileen bully her into submission.
Bang! The heavy, ornate door slammed shut in Dina’s face, the lock clicking into place with a cold, mechanical snap that pierced the air.
The freezing wind enveloped her instantly.
She stood rigid on the icy steps, gazing at the closed door like a soulless statue.
Three years of marriage… Blair had treated her so well once, truly, deeply.
She’d always kick off the covers in her sleep, and he’d patiently pull them back over her dozens of times a night without a single complaint.
If she lingered even a second too long on a designer gown in a magazine, it’d show up in her closet the very next day, along with every other piece from that season’s lineup.
He wasn’t big on travel, but if she mentioned wanting to go somewhere, he’d clear his schedule and jet off with her that same afternoon.
She’d been convinced she’d married the perfect man. But apparently, his love folded like a house of cards when faced with the Woodward family’s so-called “duties” and harsh “realities.”
When push came to shove between her and his family obligations, he didn’t even consult her. He just threw her under the bus.
He was banking on the fact that she’d moved far from home to Vreton, with no relatives or friends nearby, nowhere else to go.
Banking on her love for him, figuring she’d never walk away, that she’d just clench her jaw, swallow the bitterness, push down the nausea, and accept this illegitimate kid.
Banking on their marriage, assuming that as long as he dug in his heels, she’d be stuck, no divorce in sight.
But he’d overlooked one thing.
Back then, when Eileen had threatened to kill herself, she and Blair had been forced into a hasty little ceremony, and even now, they still hadn’t filed for the official marriage license.
In the eyes of the law, Dina wasn’t his wife at all.
A broken, frigid smile tugged at her lips, her eyes sharp with the cold, unyielding clarity that follows utter heartbreak.
She thought, ‘Blair. I’m done with you.’
Dina fished out her phone, her fingers stiff from the cold as she dialed a number she’d tucked away ages ago.
She spoke deliberately, “Does that offer from back then still hold? Hank.”
*****
“Mrs. Woodward, Mr. Woodward, Ms. Gardner hopped in a car and took off…” Amalia Lynn’s voice quivered with panic and concern.
“She what?” Eileen’s face contorted in disbelief and disdain. “Instead of groveling for our forgiveness, she dares to huff off in a rage? Is she out of her mind?”
“Well… this whole mess must’ve crushed her… She seemed genuinely heartbroken…” Amalia let out a sigh. “Mr. Woodward, maybe you should go after her? If you hurry, you could still catch her.”
Blair gazed broodingly out the window, his temper frayed, but he stayed put. “No point.”
He knew Dina inside out. Even in pain, she couldn’t walk away from their relationship.
This was just her throwing a fit in the heat of the moment; once she calmed down and saw reason, she’d slink back on her own.
Eileen said, “Right. Why bother chasing her? Like she could actually stay away from Blair. Come morning, she’ll come crawling back, tail between her legs, begging pardon.”
Eileen’s smugness grew, as if she could already see Dina bowing. “And when she does, no quick apology will do. We’ve got to drill a lesson into her, make it unforgettable: if she wants to stay a Mrs. Woodward, she’d better fall in line and behave.
“Blair, don’t you dare soften up this time. You’ve coddled her way too much. That’s why she’s gotten so uppity.
“The minute she’s back, ship her off for nanny training. Belinda’s far too fragile for the grind of raising a baby. It’ll suit that worthless, childless Dina just fine. Turn her into something useful for once and let her pitch in for the family.”
Amalia gasped, her stomach knotting up. She thought, ‘Humiliating someone like this… would Ms. Gardner really grit her teeth and take it again, like some doormat?’
She had her doubts, sure. She thought, ‘In the past, Ms. Gardner has always rolled over…’
*****
The next day, the snowstorm raged on without mercy.
A fully loaded Rolls-Royce Phantom crunched through the thick drifts, coming to a stop right outside the Woodward family villa.
Dina climbed out, clutching a crisp, new marriage license in her hand.
