My CEO husband developed a strange illness. His heart chose me, but his body chose his intern.

He would vanish for ten days every month to see his intern for "treatment."

“Zoe, the doctor says it’s a physiological dependency. My body chose Molly, but you’re the one I truly love, now and always!”

To make me believe him, he swore vicious oaths and even went so far as to hurt himself to prove his love.

My eyes burned red, but in the end, I softened.

It wasn't until I was late in my pregnancy, when a falling billboard struck me and I miscarried. I called my husband again and again, but he never picked up.

Then, moments later, I saw the intern’s post online.

The caption wrote: [Unlocked a new identity: Mom. From now on, we’re a happy family of three!]

In the photo, my husband looked at her with gentle affection. His hand rested on her belly and her prenatal report clutched in his other hand.

That was when I realized the one his heart and body had chosen all along was her.

At that moment, I knew our marriage was over.

The moment I saw Molly’s post, my blood ran cold. It felt like a poisoned blade had pierced straight through my heart. The pain was so sharp it stole my breath.

Today was the fifth anniversary of my marriage to Jeremy. To celebrate, I went out with my pregnant belly, picking up flowers and a cake.

I never expected that just as I stepped out of the bakery, a billboard, torn loose by the wind, would come crashing down. Its sharp edge pierced into my stomach. Panic surged through me as I fumbled for my phone and called Jeremy for help.

I called over a dozen times. He did not pick up once.

He used to answer instantly every time. Confused, I was about to call again when I saw Molly’s post.

No wonder he had not answered. He was with her at a prenatal checkup!

Molly was someone Jeremy had hired as an exception. He claimed he had developed a strange illness, an almost obsessive physical dependency on her. He said she was his cure. Every month, he would disappear for ten days to go to her for “treatment.”

Whenever he came back, there would be glaring red marks along his collarbone, and his body would carry her distinct perfume.

It hurt, and I would wipe away my tears without realizing it. Every time, Jeremy would drop to his knees, slap himself, and cry as he begged for forgiveness. He even went so far as to hurt himself, swearing vicious oaths just to prove his love.

“Zoe, the doctor says it’s a physiological dependency. My body chose Molly, but you’re the one I truly love!”

“Don’t worry. The position of Mrs. Lane will always be yours. No one can take it from you.”

In the end, I softened. I let him go to her again and again for his so-called treatment.

I told myself that it would be enough as long as he loved me.

Now I see it clearly. Both his body and heart chose Molly. He picked her, leaving me and our baby behind.

A sharp pain in my abdomen made me come back to my senses. Warm liquid spread beneath me. I watched helplessly as more and more blood flowed, the bright red blooming across my white dress.

“My baby, my baby…”

I clenched my teeth and called an ambulance for myself. Then everything went black.

I had a long dream. In it, there was a little girl with two tiny pigtails, smiling as she called out to me, “Mommy.”

However, she ran away before I could reach her.

She ran farther and farther away until the darkness swallowed her whole…

“Don’t go! Baby, don’t go…”

When I opened my eyes again, I found myself lying in a hospital bed, wrapped in thick bandages. My entire body was aching.

The doctor looked at me with a face full of regret.

“Ms. Sanders, now that you’re awake, please settle the medical bill. When you were brought in, your injuries were severe. The fetus had already passed away, so we had no choice but to perform an emergency induction. Please accept our condolences.”

He handed me a small jar. Inside were pieces of flesh, the fetus’s hands and feet were partially developed.

My eyes stung. My heart ached in a thousand tiny ways.

Years ago, Jeremy had been attacked with a knife while trying to secure a multinational deal that his rival opposed. I had taken the blow for him.

He came out unharmed, but my uterus was injured, leaving me with difficulties conceiving.

I finally got pregnant after eighteen rounds of IVF and forty-five hormone injections. It was such a hard-won miracle.

It felt so close. I should have been able to meet my baby. Now, all that remained was a jar of blood and tissue…

I bit my lip, forcing the tears back. Then, a thought struck me, a desperate hope rising.

“Doctor, is there such a disease? Loving one person in your heart, but being uncontrollably physically dependent on another?”

The doctor shook his head immediately. “Ms. Sanders, medically speaking, there’s no such thing as physiological dependency. That ‘strange illness’ doesn’t exist.”

My heart sank completely.

So, the “strange illness” had been nothing but Jeremy’s excuse for his infidelity.

I forced a bitter smile and paid the medical bills.

The nurse who had treated me gave me a sympathetic look.

“Where’s your husband? You’re hurt like this, and he hasn’t come to see you?”

“Some women have it easier. There’s another patient ahead, just diagnosed pregnant, and her husband has been with her the whole time. He’s so attentive. I heard that because she has sensitive skin, they even gave her a private VIP room for her checkups.”

The nurse did not need to name her. It was clear enough.

At that moment, my phone buzzed with a message from Jeremy:

[Zoe, why were you calling me so many times earlier? I’m busy right now. We’ll talk later.]

I clenched my fists, took a deep breath, and calmly replied to the nurse, “My husband can’t come. He’s dead.”

From the moment he chose Molly over me, from the moment my child was lost because of him, he was dead to me. Our marriage was over.

The nurse wisely did not ask further. I closed my eyes and rested for a while.

Once I had regained some strength, I forced myself to get discharged. I needed to cremate my child and lay them to rest.

However, just as I stepped out of the hospital, I ran into Jeremy and Molly, hand in hand.

…

At that moment, Jeremy was carefully supporting Molly, his eyes soft and full of adoration.

My eyes burned with tears, and I sneered coldly when I saw that.

“Jeremy, so this is what you call ‘busy’? Yeah, that’s really busy.”

Jeremy turned at the sound. The moment his eyes landed on me, his hand supporting Molly froze midair. Shock and a flicker of guilt danced across his face, leaving him momentarily paralyzed.

Before he could utter a single word, Molly spoke up first.

“Zoe, you’ve misunderstood! I’m here with Jeremy to help him with his illness.”

“His condition has worsened lately. Attacks are more frequent, and relying on me alone isn’t enough. He came to the hospital to consult specialists and find a cure for this strange illness. Everything he's doing is for you!"

“By the way, Zoe, what are you doing here? You weren’t following us, were you?”

Molly’s words hit their mark. Jeremy’s gaze darkened. Disappointment flashed across his face as he looked at me.

“Zoe, you were following me? We’ve been married five years, and you don’t even trust me this much?”

“How can you doubt my sincerity after everything I’ve done for you?”

I almost laughed.

When I was in danger, he did not care. When I lost our child, he was with Molly at her prenatal checkup, celebrating that she was pregnant. This was the sincerity he claimed?

I let out a cold laugh. While Molly was still stunned, I snatched the prenatal report from her hands and flung it straight at Jeremy’s face.

“You claim you’re sincere and that everything you do is for me. You’ve already had a child with Molly! Is this your idea of doing things for me?”

“And tell me, do you actually have this so-called strange disease, or is it just an excuse to play around and satisfy your desires? You know the truth in your heart!”

Jeremy froze for a moment as his face paled.

“How did you know Molly is pregnant?”

Molly seized the moment to stir the fire.

“Jeremy, Zoe must have seen my post on social media about my pregnancy.”

"It was my fault. I shouldn't have celebrated online, but it was my first time being a mom. I was just too happy to control myself. I didn't think Zoe would see it."

“Zoe, please don’t be mad. If this child really bothers you, I can abort it right now…”

By the time she finished her sentence, her eyes were already red and brimming with tears.

Jeremy’s heart softened, and instinctively, he moved to shield her behind him.

“Zoe, don’t take your anger out on her, or her child!”

“This was supposed to be a simple accident. I thought about asking her to abort the child after I knew she was pregnant. But the doctor said her body is special. This will be her only chance at motherhood. I can’t take that away from her.”

“Zoe, I told you, no one can shake your place as Mrs. Lane. You’ve already had so much. Let Molly be this time. Give her and her child a chance.”

Was Jeremy not fighting for me in the same way at one point in the past?

However, the one he defended was Molly now.

My eyes burned red thinking of the child I had lost because of him. I grabbed the induction report from my bag and slammed it onto his face.

“Jeremy! You claim I shouldn’t take away Molly’s right to be a mother. But why are you so cruel to me? Why did you take away my right to be a mother?”

“Do you realize why I called you so many times? Because the billboard fell on me! And because you didn’t answer, our child is gone! That was the one I’d been waiting for five years!”

Jeremy’s eyes widened in shock at those words. His hand, holding the report, trembled uncontrollably.

“What did you say? The child’s gone?”

“No, that’s impossible. How could this happen? You and the baby were fine this morning…”

Molly’s eyes flickered with a brief thrill as she glanced at the report, but when she caught Jeremy’s expression faltering, her excitement instantly vanished, replaced by cold calculation.