Chapter 4

By morning, the news had already spread across the city.

Damien Cole and his wife heading for divorce after Lily Jones returns.

Every media page carried a different version of the story.

Some called it a tragic reunion.

Others called it justice.

Most blamed Aria.

Again.

Rainwater slid across the taxi window as Aria stared outside quietly, her suitcase resting beside her in the backseat.

Her phone buzzed nonstop.

Messages.

Notifications.

Articles.

She ignored all of them.

The driver glanced at her through the rearview mirror. “Miss, are you sure this address is correct?”

Aria looked down at the cheap apartment address saved on her phone.

A studio apartment Noah had quietly arranged for her months ago “just in case.”

Funny how even Damien’s best friend prepared for the possibility of her leaving before she ever did.

“Yes,” she answered softly.

The taxi stopped in front of an old apartment building squeezed between two restaurants.

Nothing luxurious.

Nothing elegant.

But at least it was hers.

Aria stepped out carrying her suitcase while cold wind brushed against her face.

The moment she entered the building lobby, two women near the elevator suddenly recognized her.

One whispered immediately.

“That’s Damien Cole’s wife.”

“The sister?”

“Yeah. The one who ruined Lily’s life.”

Aria kept walking.

Upstairs, the apartment looked even smaller than she expected.

One bed.

One window.

Tiny kitchen.

Silence.

After years inside the massive Cole mansion, the emptiness here should’ve frightened her.

Instead, it felt strangely peaceful.

No servants watching her.

No whispers behind her back.

No Damien.

That thought lingered longer than she wanted.

Aria set her suitcase down slowly before sitting on the edge of the bed.

For the first time in years, nobody expected anything from her.

No pretending.

No surviving another cold dinner across from Damien.

No waiting outside his study while he ignored her for hours.

She should’ve felt relieved.

Instead, her chest felt strangely hollow.

Her phone buzzed again.

This time, it was Noah.

Aria hesitated before answering.

“You made it?”

“Yes.”

A pause followed.

Then Noah sighed quietly. “The media’s going crazy downstairs at Cole Group.”

“Not surprising.”

“Damien’s in a terrible mood.”

Aria looked toward the small window. “That’s not my problem anymore.”

Noah went silent briefly.

“You really signed that easily?”

The same question Damien asked last night.

Aria smiled faintly to herself. “What was I supposed to do? Beg him to keep me?”

Noah didn’t answer.

Because they both knew Damien would’ve hated that too.

“I’ll transfer some money to you,” Noah said instead.

“You don’t have to.”

“It’s not from Damien.”

Aria knew that was a lie immediately.

But she was too tired to argue.

After ending the call, she finally opened social media.

Big mistake.

Photos from the banquet flooded every platform.

Damien holding Lily.

Damien looking at Lily.

Lily crying in Damien’s arms.

Headlines painted them like tragic lovers finally reunited after years apart.

Meanwhile Aria barely appeared in any photo at all.

Except one.

A blurry image of Damien catching her before she fell near the staircase.

The comments underneath burned worse than the headlines.

She’s still clinging to him.

Damien clearly loves Lily.

Aria should’ve divorced him years ago.

Gold digger.

Aria locked the phone immediately.

A sudden wave of dizziness hit her.

She pressed fingers lightly against her temple and stood up slowly.

Maybe she hadn’t eaten enough yesterday.

Or slept enough.

Probably both.

She moved toward the tiny kitchen and opened the fridge Noah stocked earlier.

The smell of food hit her suddenly—

And her stomach twisted violently.

Aria barely made it to the sink before throwing up.

Afterward she stood there breathing slowly, gripping the counter tightly.

Something felt off.

Very off.

A memory surfaced immediately.

The exhaustion she had been quietly ignoring for weeks. 

Aria froze.

“No…”

But even saying it aloud sounded weak.

Because deep down, she already knew.

Two hours later, Aria sat quietly inside a private hospital waiting room.

She wore sunglasses and a mask despite the warm temperature indoors.

Not because she was sick.

Because reporters would absolutely lose their minds if someone recognized Damien Cole’s wife alone in a hospital the morning after divorce news exploded online.

The television mounted near reception was already discussing her marriage again.

“…sources close to the Cole family claim the divorce may finalize within days…”

Aria looked away.

A nurse finally approached her politely.

“Miss Jones?”

Aria stood immediately.

“This way please.”

The examination room smelled faintly of antiseptic and lavender.

Cold, bright, and clinical. 

The female doctor looked through several test results quietly while Aria sat across from her trying not to overthink.

Finally the doctor removed her glasses.

“Well,” she said gently, “there’s nothing seriously wrong with you.”

Aria released a breath slowly.

Then the doctor smiled.

“Congratulations, Mrs. Cole.”

The words made her tense instantly.

“You’re pregnant.”

Silence filled the room.

Aria stared at the doctor without speaking.

Pregnant.

The word echoed strangely in her mind.

The doctor continued speaking about vitamins, stress, and prenatal care, but the sounds blurred together.

Because all Aria could think about was Damien.

And the timing.

The child was conceived barely weeks before Lily returned.

Aria looked down slowly toward her stomach.

A child.

Damien’s child.

The irony almost hurt.

After five years of a cold marriage, the one thing tying them together forever arrived right after their divorce.

The doctor handed her the medical report gently. “You should avoid stress as much as possible during the first trimester.”

Aria almost laughed at that.

Avoid stress.

As if her life allowed such luxury.

“Does your husband know yet?” the doctor asked casually.

Aria folded the report quietly. “No.”

“And you plan to tell him?”

That question lingered longer than expected.

"No."

Aria pictured Damien standing beside Lily last night.

The way he looked at her.

The way he signed the divorce papers long before speaking to her.

Then she imagined bringing a child into that environment.

A child growing up unwanted.

No.

Her fingers tightened around the report slightly.

“I’ll handle it myself.”

The doctor studied her carefully but didn’t push further.

After leaving the office, Aria walked slowly through the hospital corridor still trying to process everything.

Pregnant.

She stopped near a large window overlooking the city.

For years, she survived alone emotionally even while married.

Now she truly wasn’t alone anymore.

That thought frightened her more than she expected.

Her phone suddenly rang again.

Damien.

Aria stared at the screen.

For several seconds, she considered ignoring it.

Then she answered quietly. “What?”

“You left without taking the driver.”

Straight to the point. 

Typical Damien. 

“I don’t need one.”

“You’re still legally connected to the Cole family until the divorce finalizes.”

Aria frowned slightly. “So?”

“So reporters are following you already.”

As if proving his point, flashes suddenly exploded outside the hospital entrance downstairs.

Reporters.

Damn.

Damien continued coldly, “Where are you?”

“Why?”

“I asked a question.”

Aria moved farther from the window instinctively. “Hospital.”

Silence.

Then Damien’s voice sharpened immediately.

“Hospital?”

“It’s nothing serious.”

“What happened?”

Interesting.

He sounded almost concerned.

Or maybe just suspicious.

“I’m fine.”

“What hospital?”

Aria closed her eyes briefly.

Even divorced, Damien still sounded controlling enough to suffocate a room through a phone call.

“I’ll handle it myself.”

Before Damien could respond, a nurse accidentally bumped into Aria while passing by.

The pregnancy report slipped from Aria’s fingers.

Papers scattered across the floor instantly.

Aria bent down quickly—

But another hand reached the documents first.

A man wearing a black cap grabbed the medical report.

His eyes flicked across the page.

Then his expression changed instantly.

Without warning, he turned and started walking away fast.

Aria’s heartbeat jumped sharply.

“Wait!”

The man moved faster.

Straight toward the emergency stairwell.

Aria followed immediately despite the dizziness hitting her again.

“Stop!”

The man shoved the stairwell door open aggressively.

The medical report remained clenched tightly in his hand.

And suddenly Aria understood something terrifying.

Whoever grabbed those documents hadn't done it by accident. And somehow, that frightened her more than anything else.