Contents
Chapter 42
Overview
Noelle narrates how she engineered Ellie’s pregnancy by tracking Ellie’s ovulation and inseminating her using Floyd’s semen gathered after a night together. She then faked her own pregnancy to Floyd, enforcing celibacy and fabricating medical issues, hoping the baby would bind Floyd to her despite their failing relationship.
Summary
Noelle addresses Floyd, recalling a night of heavy drinking and sex from which she collected semen, having stockpiled “plastic pots” for her plan. She had been charting Ellie’s menstrual cycle, rationing pads and tampons to pinpoint ovulation. Using the sample, Noelle inseminated Ellie and soon noticed missed periods and morning sickness, confirming the pregnancy.
Noelle delayed telling Floyd for months so she could appear visibly pregnant when she revealed there was a baby. To sustain the deception, she claimed a low-lying placenta and banned sex, while maintaining other intimacies to keep Floyd invested.
Noelle further fabricated attending a scan alone, playing on previous loss to elicit sympathy. She sensed Floyd’s waning attachment without sex or genuine intimacy, believing he was indifferent to the baby and might prefer she disappear with it.
Recognizing their relationship was deteriorating, Noelle pinned her hopes on the child’s birth making Floyd fall in love with the baby and tying them together permanently.
Who Appears
- Noelle DonnellyNarrator; reveals she inseminated Ellie, faked her own pregnancy, and manipulated Floyd to keep him.
- Floyd DunnAddressed by Noelle as “you”; unwitting sperm source and target of Noelle’s plan to secure commitment.
- Ellie MackVictim; her ovulation was tracked and she was forcibly impregnated as part of Noelle’s scheme.