PREGNANT AND ABANDONED

“Sign it.” Those words fell cold and merciless. Isabella Carter stared at the document lying on the table before her, her fingers trembling slightly as her eyes locked onto the bold letters at the top. DIVORCE AGREEMENT For a moment, the world around her seemed to stop. The air felt heavy. Her chest tightened so painfully she could barely breathe. Three years. Three years of marriage… And this was how it ended? No warning, no explanation. Slowly, Isabella lifted her eyes. Andrew Collins sat across from her in complete calmness, dressed in a perfectly black suit that matched the coldness in his eyes. His expression remained unreadable, almost bored like this meeting was no different from the business negotiations he handled every day. Not the end of a marriage. Not the destruction of someone who had spent three years loving him silently. Just another transaction. “Is there a problem?” Andrew asked calmly. His voice was low and emotionless. The same voice that had once made her heart race. Now it only hurts. Isabella swallowed hard, trying to steady herself. “Why?” That single word carried everything she had buried for years. Every lonely dinner. Every sleepless night waiting for him to come home. Every moment she convinced herself that if she loved him enough, eventually… he might love her back. Andrew didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he leaned back slightly in his chair, his fingers tapping once against the armrest. A small movement, controlled and calculated. “This marriage has served its purpose.” Her chest tightened violently. Purpose?. That was all their marriage had been to him. A contract marriage nothing more. “Three years,” Isabella whispered, her voice trembling despite her effort to remain calm. “And that’s all it means to you?” Andrew’s expression didn’t change. “It was never supposed to become anything else.” The words cut deeper than she expected. Because despite everything…A part of her still had hoped. Three years ago. “You’re marrying him.” Her father’s voice had been firm and absolute, leaving no room for disagreement. Isabella remembered standing frozen in the middle of the living room, disbelief flooding her chest. “Andrew Collins?” The billionaire heir. The untouchable man whose name dominated newspapers, business magazines, and elite society. A man completely out of her world. “It’s only a contract marriage,” her father had explained coldly. “Three years. That’s all.” “And after that?” Isabella asked quietly. “You walk away.” At least, that was how everyone described it. But nobody warned her that feelings didn’t follow contracts. Nobody warned her what it would feel like to slowly fall in love with someone who looked at her like she didn’t exist. Back to the present. “I understand,” Isabella said softly. But her shaking hands betrayed her. Andrew slid the papers slightly closer toward her. “I’ve already arranged the settlement,” he said calmly. “The Westbridge property has been transferred to your name. You’ll also receive monthly financial support.” “I don’t want it.” For the first time since the conversation started, Andrew paused. His eyes lifted fully to hers. Cold gray meeting wounded brown. “What?” “I said I don’t want anything from you.” Her voice remained soft. But steady. Andrew frowned slightly, clearly not expecting resistance. “Don’t be irrational.” A faint smile touched Isabella’s lips. But there was no warmth in it. “I’m not being irrational,” she said quietly. “I just don’t want to owe you anything anymore.” The room fell silent again. Andrew studied her carefully now. Something about her felt unfamiliar today. This wasn’t the Isabella he knew. The quiet wife who tolerated everything without complaint. The woman who waited endlessly for his attention. The woman who always looked at him with hope in her eyes. But now… That hope was gone. And somehow, that unsettled him. “Sign it,” Andrew repeated, colder this time. Isabella lowered her eyes to the document again. Her name stared back at her. Mrs. Isabella Collins. Her chest tightened painfully. Slowly, she picked up the pen. Her fingers trembled around it. A thousand memories flashed through her mind all at once. Their wedding day. The first night she moved into the mansion. The countless meals she ate alone. The nights she fell asleep waiting for him. The moments she convinced herself that small gestures meant something. That one day, he would finally see her. What a foolish dream, Isabella whispered. Her hand paused for a second. Then….She signed. She placed the pen down carefully and pushed the document back toward him. “It’s done.” Andrew look down at the signature before nodding once. “As of today, you are no longer obligated to remain in this marriage.” The words stung. Obligated. That was all she had ever been to him. Not a wife. Not someone he loved. Just an obligation. “I know,” Isabella whispered. She stood up before he could say anything else. For one brief second, their eyes met again. And something flickered in Andrew’s eyes. Something unreadable. Too fast to understand. Gone before he could identify it. “Take care of yourself,” he said flatly. The irony almost made her laugh. Three years together…And that was all he had left to say. Isabella simply nodded. Because if she speek now, she might break completely. Then she turned around and walked away. Step by step. Without looking back. The grand doors of the Collins Mansion closed behind her with a heavy sound. Isabella stopped walking. The cold night air hit her instantly, sharp against her skin. For a moment, she just stood there beneath, trying to breathe through the pain crushing her chest. Everything felt unreal. The mansion behind her had once felt enormous and intimidating. Now it simply felt empty. Just like the marriage she had spent three years trying to save alone. Her hand moved to her stomach. The moment her fingers rested there, her composure shattered completely. Tears slipped silently down her cheeks. “I’m sorry,” she whispered brokenly. Not to Andrew. But to the tiny life growing inside her. Because she had found out this morning that she is pregnant. The word still didn’t feel real. At first, she had been terrified, then happy amd hoping. For one brief moment, she believed maybe this child could change something between them. Maybe Andrew No. She closed her eyes tightly. That hope had died the moment he handed her those divorce papers. A painful sob rose in her throat. “He didn’t want us,” she whispered softly. The tears kept falling silently. And for the first time in years… Isabella finally allowed herself to grieve. Not just for the marriage. But for herself. For the woman who spent three years begging quietly for love she was never going to receive. A cold breeze passed through the night. Isabella wiped her tears quickly before anyone could see her. Then she reached into her bag and pulled out her phone. Her fingers move briefly over one contact. Daniel Hayes. She stared at the name for several seconds before locking the screen again. No. Not yet. She couldn’t let anyone see her like this. Not tonight. Taking a shaky breath, Isabella walked toward the gate slowly, dragging her suitcase behind her. One suitcase. That was all she had taken from the mansion. Three years of marriage reduced to a single bag. The thought made her chest ache all over again. Behind her. Inside the mansion. Andrew remained standing beside the table long after Isabella left. The signed divorce papers rested silently in front of him. Everything had gone exactly as planned. So why did the room suddenly feel so quiet? His eyes shifted slowly toward the doorway she had walked through moments ago. The silence irritated him. Normally, at this hour, Isabella would still be somewhere nearby. Preparing dinner. Reading quietly. Waiting for him. Now there was nothing. Andrew loosened his tie, a strange frustration settling in his chest. Unfamiliar and uncomfortable. His phone rings suddenly. Abigail Scott. Andrew stared at the screen briefly before answering. “Is it done?” Abigail asked softly from the other side. Andrew’s eyes remained fixed on the divorce papers. “Yes.” A soft laugh came through the phone. “Good. You should’ve ended it a long time ago.” Andrew didn’t respond immediately. Instead, his mind drifted briefly to Isabella’s face moments ago. The emptiness in her eyes. The way her hands shook while signing. Something about it lingered unpleasantly in his thoughts. “Andrew?” His expression hardened instantly. “It’s over,” he said coldly. And yet… For some reason… Those words didn’t feel as satisfying as they should have. Outside the mansion gates, Isabella stopped once more and looked back at the massive building behind her. Three years ago, she entered that mansion believing she could eventually become Andrew Collins’ real wife. Tonight, she was leaving as someone he had discarded without hesitation. But neither of them knew one thing. The divorce Andrew demanded tonight…Would one day become the greatest regret of his life.