The Surrogate He Discarded

Charlotte’s lips curved into a sweet, innocent smile as she looked at Kristoff, but the gleam in her eyes told a different story.

”Isobel and Morgan are trending,” she said lightly. ”Everyone’s shipping them together. But isn’t Morgan married?” A soft, almost amused laugh escaped her. ”Once the netizens find out he has a wife and children, they’ll tear Isobel apart. They’ll brand her a homewrecker and drag her through the mud.”

A flicker of satisfaction crossed Charlotte’s face. The smile she wore wasn’t warm—it was triumphant.

Kristoff’s brows knitted together.

He had always known Charlotte as gentle, graceful, and compassionate. Yet the expression she wore now was unfamiliar, almost unsettling. There was a coldness in her eyes that made him question whether he had ever truly known her at all.

Charlotte let out a slow, contented breath.

”Perhaps fate is finally being kind to me,” she murmured, unable to hide the pleasure in her voice. ”After the humiliation I suffered today, it’s only fair that she gets a taste of it too.”

She was so consumed by the thought of Isobel’s impending downfall that she failed to notice the complicated look on Kristoff’s face—a mixture of disbelief, disappointment, and quiet concern.

...

Back in the summit hall, Jack strode toward Morgan with urgency etched across his face.

”Boss, we’ve got a problem,” he said in a low voice, careful that no one else could overhear.

Morgan shifted his attention to him.

”You and Isobel are trending.”

Jack unlocked his phone and handed it over.

Morgan’s eyes swept across the screen. Photo after photo. Video after video. Headlines designed to provoke. Thousands of comments poured in every second, fueling speculation about the two of them.

He read a handful before his expression darkened.

The temperature around him seemed to plummet.

Even those standing several feet away instinctively fell silent, an inexplicable chill creeping down their spines under the weight of his icy gaze.

”This isn’t random, Boss,” Jack said grimly. ”It’s coordinated.”

As Morgan continued scrolling, Jack laid out his analysis.

”Someone is deliberately targeting you. They’re using Isobel to destroy your reputation.”

Jack had graduated at the top of his class. His sharp mind and ability to dissect complex situations were exactly why Morgan had chosen him as his personal assistant.

But if Jack could see three moves ahead...Morgan could already see ten.

His enemy’s plan unfolded in his mind with crystal clarity. First, they would let the rumors spread until the public became emotionally invested. Then they would expose the fact that he had a wife and twin children.

Finally, they would brand Isobel as the shameless woman who had seduced a married man—the homewrecker who had destroyed a family.

By then, public opinion would have already turned against her. The internet would convict her long before the truth ever had a chance to surface.

Hateful comments, death threats, relentless harassment... they would come in waves.

And if her spirit wasn’t strong enough to withstand the onslaught...it could destroy her. It could even drive her to take her own life.

The target had never been just him.

It was Isobel.

Someone had recognized her extraordinary potential. Rather than allow her to become one of Morgan’s greatest asset, they had chosen to eliminate her before she could rise.

Destroying her was simply the fastest way to weaken him.

Morgan’s jaw tightened.

She had only just begun to piece her life back together after everything she had endured. If this avalanche of online hate descended upon her now, it could crush her completely.

His fingers tightened around the phone.

His cold, calculating gaze swept across the VIP section, silently assessing every face in the room.

Someone here had orchestrated this. Someone thought they could corner him. They were mistaken.

Without taking his eyes off the crowd, he handed the phone back to Jack.

”Call an emergency meeting.”

”Yes, Boss.”

”Release the full recording of Isobel’s presentation immediately. Highlight the part where she explains that the project was named after my twins.”

Jack nodded.

”And include the segment where she talked about me and Kristine.”

Understanding flashed in Jack’s eyes. The public needed to see the context before the smear campaign gained momentum. Once people realized Isobel’s admiration was directed toward Morgan’s family as a whole—not a secret affair—the narrative would begin to unravel.

”I’ll take care of it immediately.”

Jack hurried away, already issuing orders through his earpiece.

Meanwhile, Morgan remained where he stood, his expression unreadable.

His enemy had made the first move.

Now it was his turn.

...

Morgan took out his phone and opened the trending topic and as he expected, the hate comment had started pouring in.

The comments flooded in relentlessly.

”She’s shameless.”

”Poor wife. Imagine finding out your husband is having an affair online.”

”That woman knew he was married.”

His grip on the phone tightened. His thoughts immediately drifted to Kristine.

Had she already seen it?

A dull ache spread through his chest.

She had only recently awakened from her coma. The doctors had repeatedly warned him to avoid putting her under emotional stress. Her body was recovering, but her mind was still fragile.

If she came across these rumors... If she believed even a fraction of them...

The mere thought made his heart clench.

Morgan trusted Kristine completely. No one knew better than he did how unwavering her faith in him had always been.

But the coma had changed so many things.

She tired easily. She became emotional over the smallest matters. Sometimes she struggled to distinguish vivid dreams from reality.

He couldn’t gamble with her recovery.

Without another thought, he logged into the company’s official social media account.

Within seconds, he uploaded a photograph from their wedding day.

In the picture, he was gazing at Kristine with unmistakable tenderness, while she smiled back at him as though no one else existed.

The caption was simple.

My Kitten.

Moments later, he posted a second photograph.

He and Kristine stood side by side, each cradling one of their twins in their arms. It wasn’t a carefully staged family portrait, but a candid moment filled with exhausted smiles and quiet happiness.

This time, the caption read:

The Love of My Life.

He didn’t bother explaining the rumors.

He didn’t issue a denial.

He simply reminded the world—and more importantly, Kristine—that his heart had never belonged to anyone else.