She wouldn’t carry his child — but now she’ll carry one for Sarah? The heartbreak cuts deep…

In the heart of Emmerdale, love isn’t always enough — and Mackenzie Boyd is beginning to understand that all too well.

When Charity Dingle told him about her decision to become a surrogate for her granddaughter Sarah, Mack was blindsided. It wasn’t just the secrecy that shattered him — it was the bitter reminder of a wound that never truly healed. Not long ago, they lost their own child through an ectopic pregnancy, and Mack had clung to the hope that, one day, they’d try again. But Charity had shut that door without warning.

Now, she’s opening it again — but not for him. For Sarah.

The pain is unbearable, yet Mack doesn’t show it. He masks it behind short words and long silences. He tells Charity he needs to work, dodges appointments, finds excuses — but the truth is written all over his face. He can’t process why the woman he loves would go through this for someone else’s dream while turning her back on their own.

What began as an act of love from Charity has become a wedge driven deep into their marriage.

Sarah’s struggle is undeniably heartbreaking. After a hysterectomy following life-saving surgery, her dream of becoming a mother was crushed. Cain, trying to ease the weight of his granddaughter’s grief, floated the idea of surrogacy. But with her medical condition making traditional surrogacy options impossible, Charity — impulsive and full of heart — stepped up.

She didn’t ask Mack. She didn’t wait. She simply acted.

By the time Mack found out — thanks to Eric Pollard, who had his own concerns about Jacob being involved as a donor — the decision had already taken root. The tests were underway. The procedure loomed.

And Mack? He was reeling. Reeling from the betrayal, from the implications, from the message that was now echoing in his mind: she’ll do this for Sarah, but not for us.

When Aaron bumps into him on the way to Butlers, even he can see it — Mack is running. He urges him to be honest, to fight for his marriage, to tell Charity what he feels before it’s too late.

But when Mack finally makes it to the clinic, the moment is gone. The procedure is done. Everyone is celebrating. And once again, his voice is lost in the noise.

Later, Aaron reminds him: this silence is costing him everything.

At home, Charity finds herself overwhelmed. The support from Sarah and Jacob is heartfelt but suffocating. She needs a moment, a breath — and when she finally finds herself alone with Mack, the space is raw and fragile.

She confesses: she does have doubts. She’s worried about her health, her age, the weight of it all. But she’s committed to Sarah.

And that’s when Mack has a choice.

Will he tell her that this has broken him — that he can’t understand why she’ll bear a child for someone else but won’t dream of trying again with him?

Or will he bite his tongue, bury the pain, and slowly let the distance between them grow into something irreparable?

What do you think hurts more — losing a child, or watching the one you love carry someone else’s?

How would you feel in Mack’s place?