She had done that unconsciously throughout the entire pregnancy, sometimes out of simple affection and other times for reassurance, though today I couldn’t quite tell which feeling was behind it.

Eventually, my brother called out to the crowd, suggesting we should cut into the cake before the sun started disappearing behind the tall evergreen trees.

Everyone eagerly gathered around the patio table, cheering with anticipation.

“I’m actually a little nervous,” Chloe admitted with a quiet laugh as Spencer handed her the long cake knife.

“Don’t be nervous, you’ve got this,” Spencer said calmly, standing close beside her with a reassuring smile.

When she finally pressed the metal blade through the smooth white frosting, the entire yard became unusually quiet as everyone leaned forward to catch a glimpse.

Chloe cut slowly into the center, carefully made the second slice, and then slid the serving spatula underneath the first piece.

She lifted it out to reveal a bright pink filling.

“It’s a girl!” several people called out in pure excitement.

The backyard instantly erupted into warm applause and joyful cheers, while someone behind me let out a celebratory shout. Chloe’s best friend, Hannah, started laughing and crying at the exact same time, rushing forward to congratulate her.

However, Chloe herself didn’t celebrate at all.

She simply stared silently at the slice of cake, looking completely frozen in place.

For one strange second, I honestly thought she hadn’t understood what she was looking at, but then quiet tears began streaming down her face. Spencer immediately wrapped both of his arms gently around her shaking shoulders.

“We’re having a daughter, sweetie,” Spencer whispered softly into her ear.

“I know,” she whispered back, her voice sounding unusually distant.

Everyone around them naturally interpreted her emotional reaction as overwhelming joy and enormous relief after everything she had experienced to reach this moment.

Several relatives stepped forward to hug her warmly, telling her over and over that she was going to be an absolutely wonderful mother.

I desperately wanted to believe they were right about those tears, but something about her subtle facial expression deeply concerned me.

She didn’t look happy or relieved in the slightest; instead, her face had gone completely pale, and she kept staring at the pink center as if it had just confirmed something she deeply feared.

I kept a close watch on Spencer as he whispered something private into her ear, causing Chloe to give a stiff, uncertain nod.

That was when I noticed Nora, the baker, standing completely still near our backyard gate. She had delivered the cake hours ago, yet here she was, staring intently at my daughter and Spencer with a look of obvious concern.

Her arms were folded tightly across her chest, and her focused gaze remained firmly fixed on the couple.

When our eyes met across the lawn, she quickly made a subtle motion for me to come over to her right away.

I hesitated for a brief second because Chloe was still surrounded by well-wishers and Spencer still had his arm around her, but the unmistakable worry written across the baker’s face prompted me to walk across the grass.

“Is everything alright?” I asked quietly as I reached the wooden fence.

“I really need to show you something important,” Nora said uneasily, glancing around the yard.

“What is it?” I asked, my heart beginning to flutter with growing concern.

“Not out in the open like this,” she insisted, leading me a few steps toward her parked delivery van before pulling her smartphone out of her apron pocket. “Early this morning, your son-in-law came directly into our bakery.”

I frowned in complete confusion. “Spencer came to the bakery?”

“Yes, and he told us that the original doctor’s envelope was completely incorrect,” she explained quickly.

Behind us, I could still hear our relatives laughing and taking pictures, but a tight knot was rapidly forming in my stomach. “How could he possibly know that the doctor’s note was wrong?”

Nora turned the phone screen toward me to play a video. “Look at the security footage.”

The clear video footage plainly showed Spencer standing at the bakery counter, but he was not alone.

A well-dressed woman I had never seen before in my life was standing right beside him, handing the clerk a second sealed white envelope.

“They paid us five hundred dollars in cash to use this new result instead,” Nora admitted quietly.

I stared back toward the ongoing party where Spencer was still holding my daughter close. “Then what is the baby’s actual gender?”

Nora paused briefly before answering. “That’s not even why I pulled you aside just now.”

She quickly zoomed in on the unfamiliar woman standing next to Spencer on the screen. “This woman came back to the shop alone after he left.”

“And what did she do?” I pressed, my stomach tightening.

“She offered me extra money to attach something directly underneath the cake board,” Nora revealed with an uneasy voice.

PART 3

My pulse began pounding rapidly in my ears as I instinctively glanced back toward the patio table where guests were beginning to disperse.

Chloe was speaking with a friend while Spencer stood only a few feet away, watching her carefully.

“We need to check that cake right now,” I told Nora firmly as we hurried back across the lawn toward the dessert table.

I carefully lifted the heavy decorated cake board up from the table runner.

For a brief second, I noticed nothing unusual, but then the cardboard base shifted slightly in my hands to reveal a folded white envelope taped securely underneath.

My heart immediately sank. Nora reached out to take it, but I pulled the envelope carefully from the tape first.

“What exactly is this?” I asked, staring at the blank paper.

“I honestly don’t know,” Nora replied uneasily. “She refused to tell me what was inside.”

I turned my head and looked directly across the yard. Spencer was standing beside Chloe with one hand resting gently on her shoulder, but then his eyes met mine.