CHAPTER 37: CHAPTER 37: THE CHILD ISN’T HIS

In the afternoon, someone indeed delivered the keys to the company, but luckily they didn’t mention they were keys to Landon Sutton’s house, they only asked the receptionist to hand them over to Shannon Quinn.

After work, Shannon returned to her room, looking at Mia, who circled around her feet, yet she still couldn’t stop thinking about the cat next door.

Grudges between people shouldn’t involve the cat.

She got up and took the key, knocking on the door next door first. There was no response inside, but she could hear the kitten’s meows.

Once she confirmed that Landon Sutton indeed wasn’t home, Shannon used the key to open the door. As soon as she opened it, she saw the little blue-and-white cat standing by the door, as if it had been waiting for its owner to return.

Shannon reached out to pick up the kitten and craned her neck to look inside the house. The room was still clean and tidy, and despite having a cat, there was no odor; instead, there was a faint fragrance.

The wind and rain outside were strong. Seeing the balcony door open, Shannon hesitated for a couple of seconds but eventually went over to close it.

This room seemed much larger, and she felt a little bit of emptiness staying there.

Without exploring his place, she took the kitten directly back to her room.

The two cats were about the same size, and at first, they were both a bit afraid of each other. After sharing a bowl of food and fighting over a ball, they started playing together.

The sound of the rain outside was noisy. Shannon sat on the sofa, with a pen and paper on the coffee table, and the TV was on, but her mind wasn’t on the TV show or on creating drafts.

Instead, she stared at the calendar on her phone, looking somewhat dazed.

If she remembered correctly, last month her period arrived on this exact day, and usually her period was only early or late by a day or two.

If that night hadn’t happened, she rarely noted if her period was punctual, and now even being just one day late made her uneasy.

She looked at the delivery progress, and the pregnancy test kit she bought online should arrive tomorrow, and she would find out...

During the weekend, the store was closed, and with the rain, Shannon didn’t go anywhere, just staying at home.

Perhaps it was psychological, but after looking up pregnancy symptoms online, she felt as though she had been a bit drowsy over the last couple of days.

All sorts of guesses and thoughts were surfacing in her mind, and she could only keep praying that she was overthinking it.

In the afternoon, receiving the courier pick-up code, she immediately went down to pick it up.

She had bought several brands of pregnancy test kits and strips. Holding the courier box in the elevator, her heart was in her throat.

Back in her room, she ripped open the courier package with her hand, took out the products, and, guided by online tutorials on usage, she immediately went to the bathroom...

Though she had considered all sorts of outcomes in her mind, seeing the two red lines on the pregnancy test, Shannon still felt like the sky had fallen.

There must be some mistake... there must be!

She hastily opened another box, but the result was the same.

She was still in denial, thinking that the internet said the morning urine result would be more accurate, convinced that it was just the wrong timing!

So she waited until the next morning, and as she saw the unchanged result on the pregnancy test, Shannon’s body slowly slid down against the wall, collapsing in a heap on the floor.

Her eyes were vacant, unable to believe or know how to face such a result.

She squatted there for a good ten minutes before the cat scratching the door brought her back to her senses.

Her legs were numb. She got up by holding the wall, waiting for pins and needles to subside before she walked out.

With one wrong step, her whole life was thrown into chaos...

Sitting on the sofa, her hand touched her abdomen, unable to imagine nurturing a small life there.

Every time she had seen peers showing motherly love on their social media, she would be envious, wondering what it would be like to have a child.

She imagined it, but she never thought it would really happen.

She hadn’t even shared a bed with her husband, yet now was pregnant, how ironic if people found out.

Moreover, none of her friends knew she was already married, having a child all of a sudden would definitely be gossip fodder.

Should she terminate the pregnancy? Only then could everything return to peace...

Immediately, she picked up her phone and searched the internet for information about abortion.

Her hand swiping the phone trembled slightly.

What should she do...

By evening, the rain had stopped for a bit when Erin Bishop called, "Shannon, where are you? Mae called earlier, saying that the handsome pilot also checked your information and was quite satisfied, wanting to meet you. How about tonight? Have dinner together?"

At this moment, Shannon couldn’t afford those thoughts, after thinking for a bit she said, "I’m at home... Rona, can you come over to my place? I have something I want to tell you."

When feeling helpless, even if the people around you can’t provide substantial help, just expressing what’s pent up inside feels somewhat relieving.

Erin could sense something wasn’t quite right with Shannon’s mood, and without asking much over the phone, she said she would drive over right away.

When she arrived, Erin brought takeout with her, and the two of them sat by the coffee table, eating while watching TV.

"What’s the matter, Shannon? The pilot called asking about you on the way over."

Shannon paused while picking food, pressing her lips together before looking up at Erin, and said, "Rona, I’ve been hiding something from you all this time, I’m sorry, I’m actually married."

Erin was stunned, her mouth agape, with the food on her chopsticks not reaching her mouth, Shannon’s words scared her, "What?! You’re married?"

"...Yes."

"Are you kidding? Are you playing some kind of dare with your friends?" Erin said, standing up, thinking that her friends might be hiding in the room.

Shannon reached out to pull her back to sit down, straightforwardly explaining the ins and outs to Erin.

Erin forgot to eat while listening, chewing on her chopsticks blankly for a moment before reacting, "So... you’re now the Young Madam of the Rhodes Family?!"

"Do you think, given my current situation, this identity is any beneficial?"

"That’s true, I have heard nobody dares to marry Vincent Rhodes. I heard he had some strange illness growing up, and he was..." Erin stopped mid-sentence, realizing that the woman opposite was Vincent Rhodes’s wife, felt the need to correct her words, saying, "not very good looking, and heard he’s disabled. Shannon, have you met him?"

"Met... and yet haven’t. He always comes to find me at night, in the darkness, wearing a mask, says a few words then disappears."

"Oh my, that’s quite thrilling, like a suspense drama."

"Actually, I called you here today for something else."

"Why are you still hesitating with me? Whatever it is, just say it, your sister won’t delay in helping you."

"...I think I might be pregnant, and the child isn’t his."