'I was overjoyed when she told me there were three boys. I decorated the room with toys appropriate for boys and started shopping for clothes, cots, mattresses and prams. It was exciting to buy everything in threes."
But, Road2Riches presenter Nimrod Nkosi's dream of being a daddy have been shattered. Last year he and fiancée Alice Myeza announced they were expecting triplets. Now Myeza has confessed that she "never carried babies" and it "was a phantom pregnancy".
In an exclusive interview with Gaynor Kast, Nkosi describes the events that have left him battling depression.
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Nimrod Nkosi's shattered dream
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'When Alice told me she was pregnant, I was ecstatic and couldn't wait for my son or daughter to be born. I took her for her regular visits to her gynaecologist.
"As time went by, I got more and more excited. When we went to the doctor, I asked if I could go into the room with Alice, but Alice objected. When I asked about scans, Alice made excuses . Then one day, she produced a scan which showed three babies. I was overjoyed when she told me they were three sons."
Nkosi said he became suspicious after Alice's last visit to the doctor, shortly before she was due to give birth.
"It was about two weeks before her due date," he said.
"When I asked the doctor to show me the scans, he said they were not clear and he needed to run some blood tests. He suggested we return the next day for the results. I was anxious and went with my mother.
"I will never forget that day. The doctor told me the blood tests were negative and that Alice was never pregnant. Nothing could take away the pain.
"When I approached Alice later that night, she just stared at me and started crying.
"I was dumbfounded and my world froze for a few seconds. I then reached out to hug her. I asked her why, but she was quiet.
"If she had told me she wasn't pregnant, I would've been disappointed, but, since we were planning a life together, it wouldn't have been the end of the world."
- When Tonight spoke to Alice last weekend, she initially kept talking about the babies. She would not say what sex they were, or what names she'd chosen. She said they were "very big".
When we asked if we could take pictures of her and the babies, she initially said "yes", but later confessed there were "no babies".
"It was a phantom pregnancy. I'm sorry," she said.
Alice denied recent reports in a Sunday newspaper that "Nkosi abandoned the babies" and that "welfare had threatened to place the babies in foster care if Nkosi was not found".
When contacted for comment, Alice's gynaecologist said: " I am not at liberty to divulge information about patients."
Nkosi said he plans to donate the baby clothes and accessories to an orphanage and "pick up the pieces and get on with my life".
Good news for Nkosi is that he will continue to host the Lotto draw shows that have moved from SABC2 to e.tv.