A Tough Moment

Chapter Forty

A few months had passed since I was admitted to hospital with pneumonia, even though it had taken a while, I'd eventually recovered. The short term job that I'd taken at the hospital had finally come to an end, but I'd been pleased when Rita told me that she would let me know if a permanent position arose.

I'd barely seen Ethan in the past few months, I'd been avoiding him due to the fact that I was now showing. It wasn't possible to hide my bump under baggy tops anymore. Caleb had reluctantly agreed to act as the go between for me and Ethan when he came to collect or drop off Georgia.

I smiled at Caleb as he wandered into the bedroom.

"I got you a present." he stated happily, as he handed me a gadget.

"It's a monitor so that you can listen to the baby's heartbeat." he explained.
"Thanks, that's really thoughtful." I smiled at him.

"How's your back?" he asked me.

"Still sore." I admitted.

He smiled sympathetically.

"I'll run you a bath later." he told me.

I watched him as he glanced at his watch and sighed.

"What's wrong?" I frowned.

"Ethan will be dropping off Georgia soon." he replied.

"I hate dealing with him, he keeps questioning me about you but I have no idea what to say." he admitted.

"Yeah I know, I'm sorry that I've put you in this position." I said quietly.

He nodded slowly and sighed. I knew that he still disagreed with my decision to keep the baby a secret, but I'd made my decision so he'd just have to accept it. I looked down at my large bump and smiled fondly. In the next week or so I would be able to meet my baby. Even though I couldn't share this moment with Ethan, I still felt like he was part of this moment. I was carrying his child after all. It felt the same way that I had with Georgia, I felt privileged to be carrying his baby.

Even through I hadn't mentioned anything about it to Caleb, I'd missed Ethan terribly over the last couple of months. Not being able to even speak to him was breaking my heart.

My thoughts were interrupted by a sharp knocking at the front door.

"That'll probably be Ethan." Caleb sighed.

I smiled my thanks at him as he left, closing the bedroom door behind himself.

Caleb's POV

I took a deep breath to try and steady my nerves for what would undoubtedly be a barrage of questions.

"Hey." I said quietly as I opened the door and saw Ethan standing on the doorstep, holding Georgia's hand.

"Did you have a nice time?" I asked Georgia.

She nodded and quickly stepped into the house.

"Is Emma feeling better?" Ethan asked, referring to the story I'd given him last week that Emma wasn't feeling well.

"She's okay." I said quickly.

"I haven't seen her for over three months, is she still upset with what I said about her parenting?" he frowned.

"No I don't think so." I muttered.

"I need to speak to her." he sighed.

"You can't." I stated.

I watched in horror as he walked past me and ran upstairs.

"Ethan, come back!" I called after him.

He ignored me and continued walking as I stood, completely powerless to stop him.

Emma's POV

My head snapped up from my book as I heard a knock at my bedroom door.

"Emma, can I come in?" Ethan asked.

I froze as soon as I heard his voice, if he decided to open the door, there would be no hiding the fact that I was carrying his baby.

"No, please don't." I replied, my stomach churning as the doorknob slowly turned.

I heard him sigh and let go of the doorknob.

"I'm sorry for what I said, you're a fantastic mum, I was just angry when I saw you with Cal." he sighed.

"It's okay, I forgive you." I said quietly, as I slowly stood up and walked over to the door. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I rested my body against the door. He was just on the other side, I'd have given anything to be able to open the door and hold him. No matter how many months that passed, my feelings didn't seem to fade, if anything they intensified.

"Are you sure everything is okay?" he whispered.

I frowned slightly as I realised how close his voice sounded, I was almost certain that he was resting his head against the door too.

"Yes I'm fine." I reassured him.

"Emma, I'm really sorry, but I have to do this." he stated, his voice breaking slightly.

"No, don't come in!" I exclaimed, starting to panic.

"I'm not." he said quickly.

I glanced at the floor as I heard a rustling and eventually an envelope appeared.

"What's that?" I asked.

"It's the final divorce papers for you to sign." he said sadly.

I bit my lip hard to keep me from crying. Even though I was biting my lip so hard that I could taste blood, it didn't stop the tears from flowing. Eventually I sunk to the floor and sobbed.

"Emma?" I heard Ethan whisper, clearly feeling guilty that he'd upset me.

"Please don't do this to me, I can't lose you." I sobbed.

"It'll be okay, Cal will take care of you." he whispered.

I glanced down at the door as he placed his hand underneath it. I placed my hand next to his and gasped slightly as his soft fingers brushed against mine. The familiar jolt of electricity that I felt whenever he touched me was back....just like old times.

"Once you have signed them you need to give them to your solicitor." he told me reluctantly.

I sighed and quickly pulled my hand away from him.