After the Divorce, He Begged Me Back Chapter 01
At my mother’s funeral, Holden Vance arrived late, his arm wrapped tightly around his secretary’s waist. He slid a set of divorce papers across the table toward me.
“You know the rules of the Vance family,” he said, his voice cold and detached. “Our family registry only recognizes legitimate heirs.”
“Amber is pregnant with my child now. I can’t let my baby be born without a legal father.”
Amber Ross stood nestled in his embrace, wearing a flaming red dress that mocked the mourning around us. She flashed a smug, patronizing smile.
“Chloe, you love him so much,” she purred. “You wouldn’t want him to go his whole life without a legacy, would you?”
Holden reached out, patting my head with a sickening tenderness.
“Don’t worry, it’s just a strategic divorce on paper,” he murmured. “Once Amber and I sign the marriage license and the baby takes the Vance name, I’ll divorce her.”
“Then I’ll remarry you. You’ll still be Mrs. Vance in the end.”
As the funeral dirge blared through the speakers, my arm, clad in a black mourning band, trembled violently.
We had been married for five years. Holden always claimed he hated children, forcing me through two agonizing abortions.
During the second procedure, a horrific complication arose. The surgeon had to perform an emergency hysterectomy, stripping away my right to ever become a mother.
Yet here he was, claiming he couldn’t let another woman’s child grow up fatherless.
I watched Amber deliberately thrust her stomach forward in a silent taunt. My fists clenched so hard my fingernails bit into my palms.
In my world, a divorce meant exactly what it was. There was no such thing as a fake one.
……
Seeing me frozen in place, Holden stepped closer and brushed a tear from my cheek.
“You get to be a mother without any of the pain,” he whispered. “Aren’t you happy?”
I slapped his hand away with every ounce of my remaining strength, staring back at him with dead eyes.
“If we’re divorcing, there’s no need to ever remarry.”
Holden’s expression darkened for a split second before returning to his trademark, arrogant smile. He gripped my chin, forcing me to look at him as he tilted his head.
“You’re a useless, barren woman,” he sneered. “Who else would ever want you besides me?”
The words hit my chest like a physical blow. The air around us turned to ice.
He turned and pointed a careless finger at my mother’s memorial photo.
“Mom would have been thrilled,” he added. “Her biggest wish was to see us have a child. Now she can finally rest in peace.”
His words carved into me like a dull blade, flaying me alive piece by piece.
When my mother was alive, she dreamed of becoming a grandmother. But when I first got pregnant and excitedly rushed to tell her, Holden stopped me.
He had stroked my hair, his voice laced with artificial devotion.
“Chloe, pregnancy is too brutal, and I can’t bear to see you suffer,” he had told me. “Besides, you know how messed up my childhood was. I’m not ready to be a father yet.”
“Let’s just wait a few years. Once we’ve enjoyed our time as a couple, it won’t be too late.”
I believed his lies. I hid the pregnancy from my mother and quietly had an abortion.
Two years later, I found myself holding another positive test.
The moment I got the ultrasound confirmation, I called Holden, bursting with joy. He deployed that same gentle, persuasive tone again.
“Chloe, my career is at a critical turning point right now,” he sighed. “A baby is just a burden to the company. We’re still young, and we have all the time in the world. Get rid of it, okay?”
Though my heart shattered, I didn’t want to become a burden to his ambitions. I agreed.
But that procedure went horribly wrong. The doctor made a fatal error, causing massive internal bleeding.
To save my life, they had to remove my uterus entirely.
I spent three days in a coma. Holden stayed by my bedside without sleep, tending to me around the clock.
When I finally woke up, he held my hands, tears streaming down his face.
“Chloe, don’t worry,” he sobbed. “For the rest of our lives, I will stay by your side. I will never leave you.”
Those vows still echoed in my ears, yet here he was, celebrating another woman carrying his child.
I was nothing but a pathetic joke, a fool who bought into his sweet poison time and time again. My mother went to her grave never knowing I could never carry a child.
Staring at her smiling picture, my vision turned red. I lunged forward and slapped Holden across the face with everything I had.
“Don’t you dare bring up my mother,” I hissed.
Holden cupped his bruised cheek and let out a low chuckle. He looked up at me, his gaze dripping with disdain.
“Chloe Vance, you and your mother lived off my dime for years,” he said. “I paid every single one of her hospital bills.”
“Your mother gave me nothing but a few hot meals when I was starving. What I gave back is enough to support you for a lifetime.”
I stared at him in utter horror, my face burning, unable to squeeze out a single word.
The life-saving support my mother gave him when he was a helpless boy was reduced to “a few hot meals.”
Seeing my silence, he pulled the divorce papers from his leather bag and threw them directly at my chest.
“Like I said, it’s just on paper,” he added. “Since you’re a broken machine who can’t produce an heir, I found someone to do it for you. You should be thanking me.”
“Sign it when you’re done crying. Amber has an ultrasound appointment, and we’re going to be late.”
He turned, taking Amber’s hand, and walked away without looking back.
The moment the doors slammed shut, my legs gave out, and I collapsed onto the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.
