I Asked For Divorce When His Mistress Returned

Despair washed over me as I remembered leaving the hospital that day, swearing I’d take care of my child. But now...

Baby, it looks like I can’t keep that promise—and God, I don’t want to lose you. I haven’t even seen your face yet or heard you call me “Mom”...

I was cold. In pain. My consciousness began to slip.

The door banged open. I barely managed to lift my eyelids and recognized Carlos Richards’s familiar face.

I tried to move my dry lips. “Carlos...” I whispered.

Dizziness swamped me. I couldn’t tell if he was real or a hallucination. It was the middle of the night—he had no reason to be back at this hour.

Carlos scooped me up fast. His warmth wrapped around me, his heartbeat thundering against my ear.

Carlos, are you scared? Why?

“Stay awake, Adele! Don’t fall asleep!” His voice was a sharp command.

My eyelids felt like lead. I fought to keep them open, but the darkness pulled me under.

When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed. The second my thoughts cleared, my hand flew to my belly.

“Don’t worry—the baby’s fine,” a voice said. I realized I wasn’t alone.

I turned my head. My mother was sitting beside me, worry etched into her face. But there was anger there, too. “How could you hide something as huge as a pregnancy from your father and me?”

“Mom, I’m sorry.” I didn’t know how to explain.

She sighed, her tone softening. “Since you’re pregnant, focus on taking care of yourself. You know how much this child means. If you can have the baby safely, your life will be so much easier.”

A weight pressed down on my chest. To my mother, my child was nothing more than a bargaining chip.

When she finished, I looked at her and said quietly, “Mom, I’m going to have the baby and raise him myself.”

“What do you mean?” My mother’s eyes went wide with shock, her voice climbing. “You’re thinking about divorcing Carlos because Leilani’s back? How did I end up with such a thankless daughter? Another woman wants your husband, and you’re just going to let her have him?”

Hearing her call me “daughter” was bitterly ironic. Maybe, before Leilani came back, she really had thought of me as her child.

She had no idea that Leilani didn’t just want to take Carlos—she wanted my child too. I couldn’t let that happen.

“I’ve made up my mind,” I said stubbornly, unwilling to argue anymore. “Mom, thank you for everything. Go home and rest.”

My defiance seemed to set her off. She shot to her feet, seething. “Adele, I always said you were ungrateful! Your father cared so much for you, and now that the Richards family finally agreed to a settlement of $300,000? If that deal falls through, you and I are going to have a reckoning!”

Her words cut deep. No wonder she was here in the hospital—it was all about the Richards family’s money.

After dropping her ultimatum, she stormed out, her heels clicking sharply down the hall.

I curled up under the covers, tears sliding silently down my face. Exhaustion finally dragged me into a restless sleep.

When I woke again, night had fallen. Thirst pushed me out of bed for water, but I stopped when I heard voices outside the room.

“Mr. Richards, this is the surveillance footage from your office. It confirms Miss Olson was the one who locked the door from the outside,” said Ethan Johnson, Carlos’s chief assistant.

“I see,” Carlos said, his tone cold and detached.

The glass slipped from my hand and shattered loudly on the floor. Everyone outside jumped.

Carlos rushed in, crossing the room to my side in a few swift strides.

He glanced at the broken shards, then calmly lifted me back into bed. He went back to the table, poured a glass of warm water, and handed it to me, his voice steady. “Drink.”

I didn’t take the glass. I just stared at him, disbelieving, Ethan’s words echoing in my head. Last night, Leilani knew I was in the lounge. She had locked that door on purpose before leaving. If Carlos hadn’t come back, my child and I might not have survived.

Leilani had nearly destroyed us, yet Carlos seemed unfazed. Why?

The child I was carrying was his flesh and blood too.

Carlos met my gaze without flinching. Then he sat beside me, lifted me up a little, and offered the water again.

“Are you hungry? What do you want to eat? I can have something brought over.” His unexpected concern felt almost like mockery.

It was all for the child, wasn’t it?

“At least give the child the truth—don’t you think?” My throat was painfully dry. My voice came out as a raspy whisper, so rough I barely recognized it.

He could ignore my well-being, but the child was innocent.

Carlos’s brow furrowed slightly. “Leilani didn’t know you were pregnant,” he said in a low voice. “She was just acting on impulse.”

What a pitiful excuse. When a man chooses a woman’s side, no matter what she does, he’ll go to any length to protect her.

I lowered my gaze. “Carlos, let’s get a divorce.” It was the second time I’d formally asked him.

I almost begged. “I don’t want any of the Richards’ assets. Just let me and the child go. You and Leilani are still young. If you want children, you can have more...”

Before I could finish, pain shot through my wrist.

“Adele!” Carlos snapped, his dark eyes icy. “You’re carrying my child.”

His gaze grew more complicated, unreadable—just like I’d never managed to find a way into his heart.

I was stunned for a moment, then laughed bitterly. “So what? Are you still thinking about giving the child to Leilani?”

I said it deliberately, to remind him. Leilani hated me. She would never treat my child kindly.

I was willing to sacrifice everything—even not pressing charges against Leilani—as long as I could keep my child.

“You have no right to bring up divorce,” he sneered, his grip tightening on my wrist. His lips brushed my ear as he mocked, “Three years ago, I gave you the chance to leave. Now it’s too late.”