Chapter 1 - The Cold Corridor
The maternity wing of Saint Jude’s Private Hospital in Manhattan was bathed in soft, clinical light, but the silence inside room 402 felt colder than ice.
Emma Bennett sat on the edge of the hospital bed, holding three-day-old Baby Lily against her chest. At twenty-nine, Emma was exhausted and emotionally shattered. Her long, wavy blonde hair fell softly over a simple cream maternity dress decorated with delicate embroidery. Around her pale wrist, the white hospital plastic bracelet hummed with her newborn's vital details.
In her arms, Lily slept peacefully. She was tiny and fragile, with soft dark hair resting beneath a pale pink blanket.
Standing several feet away near the glass doorway was Derek Morrison. At thirty-four, Derek looked like a man who belonged on the cover of a Manhattan real estate magazine. Handsome and polished in an expensive light-gray suit and white dress shirt, his expression was completely devoid of warmth.
Beside him stood Brittany Hale. At thirty, Brittany was sleek and elegant, wearing a cream pantsuit, gold heels, and diamond earrings that caught the hallway light. She held a designer handbag over her arm, her hand resting comfortably on her visibly rounded stomach. Her bright blue eyes fixed on Emma with a quiet, triumphant smugness.
Derek stepped forward, sliding a clipboard containing unsigned birth-certificate paperwork across the bedside table toward Emma.
"I’m not signing this," Derek said, his voice flat and unyielding. "I want a paternity test first."
Emma stared at him, the breath catching in her throat. "Derek... she's three days old. You know she's yours."
"I don't know anything, Emma," Derek replied coldly, glancing down at his gold watch. "Brittany and I are moving to Europe next month. I’m not tying my name or my assets to a child until a lab confirms it."
Brittany gently reached out and looped her arm through Derek’s, resting her head against his shoulder. She offered Emma a faint, mock-sympathetic smile that cut deeper than an insult.
Derek turned toward the door, refusing to look at his newborn daughter for even a second.
Emma fought back tears, her chest heaving as she pulled Lily tighter against her heart. Her fair skin flushed with quiet, fierce indignation.
May you like
"Get out," Emma said, her voice quiet but ringing with absolute firmness. "Both of you. Get out of my room."
Derek didn't offer an apology. He simply turned on his heel and walked out into the corridor, Brittany trailing beside him in her clicking gold heels.
