After seven months of twin pregnancy, my husband’s boss sent me a photo of Eric in his bed. Hours later, they gave me the definitive betrayal: he left me for her, and she wanted one of my babies in exchange for accommodation. Little did they know what he had planned.
I was pregnant with twins when my life fell apart.
I was folding tiny bodies, daydreaming about baby names, when my phone rang.
Folded baby clothes | Source: Pexels
Folded baby clothes | Source: Pexels
My heart skipped a beat when I saw that it was a message from my husband’s boss, Veronica. I immediately assumed that something bad had happened to Eric at work, but the truth was much worse.
I opened the message, waiting for news of an accident, but I found a photo of Eric, lying on a strange bed, shirtless. Smiling at the camera.
If I had any doubts about what it meant, the caption made it perfectly clear: “It’s time for you to know. It’s mine.”
A shocked woman | Source: Midjourney
A shocked woman | Source: Midjourney
My hands got cold. The babies kicked inside me, almost feeling my anguish. Eric was cheating on me with his boss.
I immediately called Eric, but the voicemail jumped directly. I kept trying, but none of my calls came in.
At that point, it seemed to me that the twins took turns to treat my bladder as if it were a trampoline. I slowly went down to the sofa and put a hand on my belly.
A woman touching her pregnant belly | Source: Pexels
A woman touching her pregnant belly | Source: Pexels
“Calm down, babies,” I murmured. “Mom will take care of you, always. And whatever happens now, I know that dad… Eric will not abandon them, even if he has betrayed me.”
I would never have imagined how wrong I was.
When Eric came home from work that afternoon, he was not alone.
Veronica came in as if she were the owner of the place. Tall, self-confident, dressed in clothes that probably cost more than our rent. The kind of woman who drew attention just by breathing.
A man and a woman in an apartment | Source: Midjourney
A man and a woman in an apartment | Source: Midjourney
“Eric… what is this?” I stood in the living room, staring at them, trying to be strong even if it didn’t seem like it to me.
Eric sighed. “It’s simple, Lauren. I’m in love with Veronica, so I’ll leave you. Let’s be adults about it and not make a scene, okay?”
The words hit me like physical blows. Each one landed precisely where it hurt the most.
A woman is left speechless in shock | Source: Midjourney
A woman is left speechless in shock | Source: Midjourney
“You can’t be serious,” I whispered. “We’re going to have kids in two months.”
“Life goes on,” he said shrugging his shoulders. A shrug! As if he was talking about a change of plans for dinner, not about abandoning his pregnant wife.
Then Veronica crossed her arms, with her nails perfectly groomed squeaking against her designer blazer.
“And since this is Eric’s apartment, you’ll have to move out before the end of the week.”
A conceited woman | Source: Midjourney
A conceited woman | Source: Midjourney
I turned red. “Are you crazy? I have nowhere to go! I’m taking HIS children.”
“Gemins, right?” He tilted his head, studying my belly with cold calculation. “Or are they triplets? You’re pretty… swollen. I think I can offer you a solution.”
His lips curled in what I guess he thought was a smile. “I’ll rent you a house and cover all your expenses, but I want one of your babies.”
A woman looking at someone in disbelief | Source: Midjourney
A woman looking at someone in disbelief | Source: Midjourney
“I would like to have a baby, but there’s no way I’m going to do that to my body.” He turned a finger towards my belly. “You’ll never be able to raise twins on your own, so this is a win-win situation.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. That woman spoke as if she were talking about adopting a puppy!
“I will raise the child as if he were mine. They will have the best nannies and attend the best schools…” she stroked Eric’s chest, and he leaned towards her touch. “And you’ll have a roof. It’s a fair deal.”
A woman’s hand on a man’s chest | Source: Midjourney
A woman’s hand on a man’s chest | Source: Midjourney
Eric nodded as she spoke, as if the barter for one of our babies was reasonable.
I couldn’t breathe. How dare they turn my children into bargaining chips? I wanted to kick them both out, but they had me cornered. I had no family or close friends to whom I could turn.
But then a plan was formed in my mind.
“I have nowhere else to go,” I whispered, forcing tears in my eyes. “I’ll accept your deal, but I have a condition.”
A deeply concerned woman | Source: Midjourney
A deeply concerned woman | Source: Midjourney
Veronica smiled satisfied. “Smart girl. What is the condition?”
“I want to choose the baby you’ll have.” I snorted, looking down as if embarrassed. “Give me some time with them to decide which one will have a better life with you.”
He exchanged a look with Eric. They thought she was defeated, I could see it in her eyes.
“Okay,” he agreed. “But don’t take too long. When they are born, we will stay with the one you don’t want.”
I nodded, wiping a fake tear. “And… one more thing.”
A woman talking to someone | Source: Midjourney
A woman talking to someone | Source: Midjourney
Veronica sighed dramatically. “And now what?”
“They’ll buy me a house, they won’t rent it,” I said firmly. “I need security. If you don’t agree, I’ll leave and you’ll never see either of you.”
Eric sneered, but Veronica raised a hand.
“You’re insistent, but I’ll agree,” she said. “It saves me the hassle and delay of looking for an alternative solution. But you’d better do your part of the deal.”
A woman staring at someone | Source: Midjourney
A woman staring at someone | Source: Midjourney
I nodded, with the whole appearance of the shattered and defenseless woman they thought I was.
But inside? I was smiling. Because they had no idea what awaited them.
The following months were a game of patience.
Veronica bought me a three-bedroom house in a quiet neighborhood. She and Eric didn’t even see her, nor did they know the agent until the day we signed the papers.
A woman signing documents | Source: Pexels
A woman signing documents | Source: Pexels
I breathed a sigh of relief when I left the real estate agent’s office that day. The first step had been completed, and they still had no idea.
I updated them on the doctor’s appointments and let Veronica touch my belly when she visited me, talking about “her” baby. I told him that I was dying to choose which baby to stay with.
It was all a game to buy time while preparing the final blow.
A thoughtful woman | Source: Midjourney
A thoughtful woman | Source: Midjourney
I went into labor on a Tuesday night. I texted Veronica when I went to the hospital, but I made sure the nurses knew that I didn’t want her or Eric to be in the delivery room.
I heard them complain outside at one point, but the contractions were already strong and fast and I didn’t understand what they were saying.
Six hours later my babies arrived. Two perfect girls with locks of dark hair and lungs that worked very well.
A baby check after childbirth | Source: Pexels
A baby check after childbirth | Source: Pexels
The nurse smiled. “Do you want me to tell your husband and your… friend?”
“Tell them that the babies are fine, but that I need three days,” I said, hugging my daughters.
The nurse looked confused, but nodded.
I called the girls Lily and Emma. I memorized their faces, their cries and the sensation of their tiny fingers intertwined with mine.
A woman with a calculating look | Source: Midjourney
A woman with a calculating look | Source: Midjourney
On the second day I took the babies home. On the third day, I called Veronica.
She and Eric showed up after an hour. Veronica practically vibrated with excitement, and Eric followed her like a shadow.
“So,” he said with him, entering my house. “What’s mine?”
A conceited woman in a living room | Source: Midjourney
A conceited woman in a living room | Source: Midjourney
I took a deep breath, holding a baby on each arm. “None.”
His smile froze. “How do you say?”
I got up slowly. My body hurt, but my voice was strong.
“I’m not going to give you my daughter, Veronica. To neither of them.”
A determined woman | Source: Midjourney
A determined woman | Source: Midjourney
Eric groaned. “Don’t start with that dramatic nonsense…”.
“Did they think they could buy me a baby? As if I were a desperate idiot? Well, breaking news: I’m not.”
“Then I’ll throw you out of this house,” Veronica growled. “For me, you can live on the street.”
An angry woman yelling at someone | Source: Midjourney
An angry woman yelling at someone | Source: Midjourney
I smiled. “You can’t do that. This house is in my name.”
Veronica’s face ran out of color. “What? No, that’s impossible! Eric, tell him.”
Eric seemed just as confused. “We signed the papers together!”
“Yes. And they both gave it to me completely. They were too busy rejoicing to realize. My name is the only one that appears in the writing.”
A self-confident woman in a living room | Source: Midjourney
A self-confident woman in a living room | Source: Midjourney
Veronica stepped back, staggering as if he had slapped her.
“Oh, and one more thing,” I added, gently scaying Lily as she complained. “I stepped forward and told some people how Eric cheated on his pregnant wife and how he and his lover tried to buy his daughter.”
A woman with a baby in her arms | Source: Pexels
A woman with a baby in her arms | Source: Pexels
I pointed with my head at the phone I had on the table.
“Do not hesitate to consult the social networks. Last night I posted everything. The messages. The photos. Your sick baby thing. It’s all there. I also tagged your company, Veronica, and your investors. Even those charitable boards you’re part of.”
Veronica pounced on my phone. His face went from pale to gray as he moved.
A woman holding a cell phone | Source: Pexels
A woman holding a cell phone | Source: Pexels
“As you can see, they find your behavior very interesting.”
Veronica screamed, a sound of pure anger and despair.
Eric snatched his phone, with a paper-white face. “You’ve ruined us…”
“No. You have been ruined.”
A woman with a baby in her arms talking to someone | Source: Midjourney
A woman with a baby in her arms talking to someone | Source: Midjourney
Eric lost his job. Trying to sell his daughter did not fit well with the image of “family values” of his company. Veronica was not only fired: she was front-page news for all the wrong reasons and her social and business circles excluded her.
And me? I cradled my daughters to fall asleep every night in our beautiful house, happy to know that I had not only taken revenge.
