They would
For days now, I have been feeling weak and constantly sleepy. Ever since the day Sylvia picked up from the road, my body had not felt like my own. That day alone, I had gotten quite an earful from her.
Sylvia had warned repeatedly not to go to work today because of how weak I looked, but I insisted on coming anyway. There was too much to do. I needed to prepare the company before I returned to York City.
Sylvia would soon resu working for her father again, which ant she would leave the company without any trusted hands to oversee things. I couldn’t let that happen.
Besides, I hadn’t even properly stepped into this place since Raymond helped acquire it and hired so staff to manage it. Thinking about it now made feel a little guilty.
Raymond had done so much to set everything up, yet I had barely been here to supervise anything.
Today was the first real step.
I had called for a eting with the entire managent team. The company needed more investors and contracts from other firms if it was going to survive long-term.
Right now, the only major contract we had was with Black Corp, and even though it was profitable, it wasn’t nearly enough to sustain the company’s future growth.
We needed more.
Fortunately, the eting went flawlessly.
The team Raymond had assembled was indeed capable. Each departnt head presented detailed reports and realistic projections, and for the first ti since arriving, I felt a small sense of relief.
Maybe things wouldn’t fall apart after all.
As I listened to them speak, I made a ntal note to reach out to Mr. Lancaster for assistance. He had once ntioned that he wouldn’t mind helping if I ever needed support, and perhaps now was the right ti to take him up on that offer.
Then I suddenly rembered sothing.
We hadn’t had that tea together yet, the one we had casually talked about during the auction
A small smile curved on my lips at the thought as the eting ended.
I slowly made my way toward my office, my heels echoing faintly in the quiet hallway.
However, the mont I pushed the door open, my vision suddenly blurred.
My head spun violently.
For a brief second, everything around turned white. And then, darkness.
That was the last thing I rembered.
When I opened my eyes again, the first thing that reached my senses was the sharp sll of disinfectant.
A steady beeping sound echoed nearby, rhythmic and chanical.
I blinked slowly, my eyes adjusting to the bright lights above .
"Where... am I?" I asked weakly, though there was no one in particular I was directing the question to.
"Lena! You’re awake!"
Sylvia’s voice imdiately filled the room.
Relief was evident in her tone.
"Let call the doctor," she said quickly before rushing out of the room. The door opened and closed in a hurry.
I turned my head slightly and looked around.
White walls.
dical equipnt.
IV tubes.
A hospital bed.
It didn’t take long for to realize where I was.
A few monts later, the door opened again, and Sylvia walked in with a doctor behind her.
The doctor was a middle-aged man with a calm expression. He approached the bed and began checking my vitals while asking a few simple questions.
"How are you feeling?"
"Dizzy... but okay," I replied.
He nodded thoughtfully and scribbled sothing down in the notebook he carried.
After finishing his checks, he turned to Sylvia.
"She is fine," he said calmly. "She just needs regular rest."
Then he began writing a few prescriptions.
Sylvia walked over and sat beside the bed, gently holding my hands.
Her grip was warm and reassuring.
Then the doctor looked at again and smiled.
"Miss Smith," he said kindly, "you need to take better care of yourself and eat well from now on especially since you are eating for two."
For a mont, the words didn’t register.
Eating for two?
"You are three weeks pregnant," he continued with a smile. "Congratulations."
He handed Sylvia a paper.
"This is a list of supplents and foods that will help nourish both you and the baby. The pregnancy is still very early, so the baby is a bit unstable right now. Make sure she gets plenty of rest."
But by then, I had already stopped listening.
My mind had gone completely blank.
Pregnant.
I was... pregnant.
Slowly, almost instinctively, my hands moved to my stomach.
It was still flat.
There was no visible change.
Yet sohow... a life was growing inside .
A small tear slipped down my cheek.
Then another.
But a smile appeared at the sa ti.
I was going to be a mother.
More tears stread down my face as the realization settled into my heart.
At least now... I would have a family.
A real family.
One that wouldn’t leave .
One that wouldn’t betray .
For a brief mont, I wished my mother were here.
"Lena!"
Sylvia’s voice snapped out of my thoughts.
"You need to stop crying," she said anxiously.
"You’re pregnant now. You need to take care of yourself, for the baby’s sake."
I nodded and wiped my tears, offering her a small smile.
The doctor closed his notebook.
"Well, my work here is done," he said. "All you need to do now is complete the paperwork and you will be discharged."
He paused before adding,
"But make sure you visit a gynecologist soon for a proper check-up for both you and the baby."
With that, he left the room.
Silence filled the space after he was gone.
When I looked up, I noticed Sylvia staring at with a complicated expression.
It looked like she wanted to ask sothing but was trying to hold herself back.
I sighed softly.
"Co on," I said gently. "You know you can ask anything, Sylvia. I practically see you as my best friend... if not a sister."
That seed to give her the courage she needed.
"What happened between you and Raymond?" she finally asked with a soft smile. "I’ve been aning to ask."
I couldn’t help the wry smile that appeared on my face.
"I never told you this," I admitted slowly, "but Raymond and I entered into a relationship contract."
Sylvia’s eyes widened.
"What?" she exclaid. "You did what?!"
I nodded slightly.
"At the ti, we had a one-night stand," I explained quietly. "And my family was coming after . I was about to lose the company. That contract... was the only solution."
I sighed softly.
"But he made one condition very clear," I continued. "I wasn’t allowed to fall in love with him. If I did, the contract would be annulled."
Sylvia remained silent, listening carefully.
"And the rest... you already know what happened."
A faint smile rested on my lips.
"After the auction incident, my feelings only grew stronger. I tried to control them... but I couldn’t."
My voice softened.
"He couldn’t accept that I had fallen in love with him."
I looked down at my hands.
"But I thought he felt the sa way," I admitted.
"That’s why I had the courage to say it out loud."
I let out a quiet laugh.
"But I was wrong."
"He only did everything because of the contract... not because he loved ."
I shrugged lightly.
"I’ve made peace with it now... even though it still hurts."
Sylvia watched for a mont before speaking again.
"One thing I’m sure of," she said firmly, "is that Raymond loves you."
I looked up in surprise.
"You didn’t see how he almost went mad when you were kidnapped," she continued. "We all saw it, in his eyes and in his actions."
She paused.
"But he is afraid of falling in love because of his past."
Her expression hardened slightly.
"That doesn’t excuse the way he treated you, though. But you should tell him about the baby."
She squeezed my hand.
"I believe he will be there for you. At least for the baby."
I shook my head imdiately.
"I don’t want him to think I got pregnant just to trap him," I said softly. "You didn’t hear the things he said to , Sylvia... his words hurt so much."
She chuckled lightly.
"He does that, doesn’t he?" she said casually. "I’ve known him for years, so I know how he is."
Then she stood up.
"Let’s go ho first. We’ll talk about the rest later."
She said it as if talking to Raymond wasn’t the sa as walking into a ticking ti bomb.
When we got ho from the hospital, Sylvia insisted that I call Raymond.
After hesitating for several minutes, I finally gathered the courage and dialed his number.
To my surprise, he picked up almost imdiately.
"Hello..."
"Raymond," I said quietly, bracing myself for anger.
But it never ca.
"Lena," his calm voice replied. "How are you doing?"
My mind went blank.
"Uh...," I stamred.
"I thought you called because you wanted to tell sothing," he said again over the phone.
"Yes... yes," I quickly replied. "I called because there is sothing important I need to tell you."
My fingers tightened around the phone.
"But I would prefer it if we discussed it face to face."
I took a deep breath.
"So... Can I invite you out for tea?"
Then I hurriedly added,
"I promise I won’t jump on you or throw myself at you, so you don’t have to worry."
There was a brief pause.
"Alright," he said. "I will have tea with you."
My eyes widened.
"But I’m not in the country right now," he continued. "When I return, I’ll let you know so we can fix a ti."
"Is that okay with you?"
I scread internally.
Just like that?
My mind imdiately began forming dozens of suspicious scenarios.
Was he trying to get rid of ?
Was he planning sothing?
Was he trying to avoid completely?
My thoughts spiraled wildly.
"Are you still there?" his voice asked.
"Y-yes!" I quickly responded. "That’s... that’s okay with ."
Then I quickly ended the call.
I stared at the phone in my hand.
Raymond had been... calm.
And calm was not a word anyone usually associated with Raymond.
I gently placed my hand on my still-flat stomach.
"Well," I whispered softly, "let’s wait until he cos back."
My fingers traced small circles over my abdon.
"Then we’ll see... if he accepts you."
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