I Hope You Will Never Regret

August and Edwin went back to the living room chatting and laughing. Elizabeth was watching her favourite Telenovela, The Wife. August indicated that he was going to the baby’s nursery to check on baby Avery. Edwin sat on the sofa, he looked at his sister and said, “Elizabeth, since you came back from the hospital, I haven’t seen you holding or breastfeeding your daughter. What is going on?”

Elizabeth lowered her eyes and replied, “I don’t like children, big brother. I agreed to have one child, but August forced me to have a second child. I didn’t want to give birth to her. He threatened me with a divorce.” Her brother was dumbfounded when he heard his sister’s words and asked, “Don’t you think that you went overboard?”

Elizabeth was so annoyed and replied, “This is my body and I have a right to decide what to do with my body. I felt disrespected when he forced me to carry the baby for ten months against my wishes.” Her brother was so shocked and said, “According to my knowledge, my brother-in-law didn’t force you to keep the baby, but he gave you a choice. What stopped you from divorcing my brother-in-law when he gave you a choice?”

Elizabeth looked at her brother with a confused expression; it dawned on her that her husband didn’t force her to have a baby. Her heart was in a mess. She had so many questions, but she didn’t have answers. Did she misunderstand her husband? Did she carry so much hatred in her heart towards her husband for nothing? Did she wrong her husband?

She looked at her brother with tears in her eyes and said, “I was wrong, big brother. I don’t know if I will be able to love them because I have so much hatred in my heart. However, I will apologize and ask for forgiveness.” Her brother nodded his head and asked, “Why are you accusing your husband of having an affair with Bridgette?” She was shocked that her husband told her brother everything. She calmed herself down and replied, “I didn’t mean it, big brother. I know that he would never hurt me. I was so angry that he brought a young lady into my house to take care of our baby.”

Her brother looked at her with a confused expression and asked, “Didn’t you threaten your husband that you would leave the baby at the hospital if he failed to bring the nanny to the delivery room? Also, don’t you know the relationship between Uncle Paul and my brother-in-law? Did you see Bridgette as a threat?”

Elizabeth didn’t understand why she felt threatened by Bridgette. Was it because Bridgette was younger? “Brother, I don’t know what came to me, because when it comes to beauty, we are equally matched.” Elizabeth was very beautiful; she had inherited her parents’ genes.

Her brother shook his head and replied, “Elizabeth, our parents raised us with love and respect. The Lord has blessed you with a good man, but you are so selfish to see that. My brother-in-law loves you so much. It is clear to me that you don’t love him. If you feel that he is not your soulmate, please divorce him and move on. No man will tolerate your behaviour. Be a good mother to your children or move out of their lives before you hurt them.”

Elizabeth promised to change, then she went to their bedroom to rest. She wanted to think about her future. She felt ashamed of herself because her husband had shown her nothing but love. When she opened their closet, her husband’s side was empty. Only her clothes were in the closet. She frowned, then she took her phone and dialed Aunt Rose’s number. When it was connected, she said, “Aunt Rose, please come to my bedroom.”

Aunt Rose was at the nursery feeding the baby. She handed the baby to Bridgette, then she went to Mrs Martins’ bedroom. She knocked and entered the room, “What can I do for you, Madam?” Mrs Martins smiled and replied, “Aunt Rose, I want to apologize for my behaviour, please forgive me.” Aunt Rose smiled and replied, “Apology accepted, Madam.”

Then Mrs Martins asked, “What happened to my husband’s clothes?” Aunt Rose told her that Mr Martins moved his clothes to his study room. She nodded her head, then she asked Aunt Rose to leave. She started panicking. She didn’t see that coming. Was she too late?

She decided to talk to her husband when he had cooled down. It was clear to her that he was angry at her. She felt aggrieved that her husband moved out of their bedroom before giving her a chance to ask for forgiveness. She sat on her bed in deep thoughts. She knew that her marriage was in trouble because of her. She felt that she had let down her brother. Her husband had opened many doors for her brother.

He had even given him a chance to run his hotel, Ebenezer, in Richards Bay. She felt ashamed when she thought about everything her husband had done for her family. She thanked her brother in her heart for opening her eyes. She vowed that she would turn over a new leaf. She would take care of her husband and their children. She was hoping that she was not too late.

Edwin knocked on his brother-in-law’s study room. When he was given permission to enter, his brother-in-law asked him to sit down. He then gave him a bottle of water. Edwin thanked his brother-in-law and said, “Brother-in-law, I have talked to my sister, and she promised that she would apologize to you.”

He took a sip and said, “I also want to apologize on behalf of my sister for the way she treated you. This is not how our parents raised us up. We were raised with love and respect. Our parents loved each other so much. They also loved us dearly. I am not sure if my sister was changed by wealth or if she was always like this. Please find it in your heart to forgive my sister.”

August shook his head and replied, “Brother-in-law, it is too late. Damage has already been done. My heart is dead. For the past five years, your sister has never been kind to me and my relatives. Aunt Rose is my mother’s younger sister, but she never respected her. She forced her to work for us as a maid. Two days ago, she threatened to fire her should she help Bridgette with the baby. To be honest with you, I don’t trust your sister near my daughter. I will never allow her to touch her. I’ve had enough, a trust relationship has been broken.”

Edwin was not surprised to hear his brother-in-law’s words; if he was in his shoes, he wouldn’t trust her as well. Edwin bade his brother-in-law goodbye and left the Martins mansion. He rushed to his home in Richards Bay. His lovely wife, Cathy Parker was alone with their one-week-old daughter, Lily Parker. Would Elizabeth and August find their way back to their love?