There's roaring in my ears, my head is pounding, and the room has started to tilt. Throwing my equilibrium off balance. The room erupts into gasps and Alexander is upon me in a heartbeat. Catching my falling body in his arms before I have a chance to collide with the floor.
Then I promptly throw up all over his very nice and very expensive shirt.
The stress of the situation having gotten the better of me.
When I told Professor Rollins about the baby, it was in the strictest of confidence.
I didn't expect this.
He wasn't supposed to tell anyone, most of all the Kings.
And my mother... don't even get me started.
I knew they'd force me to keep this baby, which is why I chose not to tell anyone. But professor Rollins has taken that decision out of my hands. As if my life isn't stressful or hectic enough without adding my family and the King's into it. Not to mention Alexander and I aren't on the best of terms.
He believes I've done something I didn't, and he hates me for it. The last thing I want is to be tied to someone for the rest of my life that I can't have. I went through that with Jackson, and it destroyed both my heart and my confidence.
I don't want to go through that shit again.
"I'm not keeping this baby." I announce. Filling the room with gasps, protests, and shocked faces while I steady myself.
Alexander's angry gaze finds mine, but he has yet to say anything else to me. He just quietly laments me with his eyes.
"She's impossible." Mary scoffs. Shaking her head. "And she wonders why she can't keep a man."
Excuse me?
Shocked she would pick now of all times to throw this up in my face, I head for the door. Only, the room starts spinning again and Alexander must catch me a second time.
"Sit." He commands. And when I give him a look that says I will do no such thing, he softens his gaze to add, "Please."
Fine.
It's not like I can walk anyway.
Reluctantly, I sit back down. Grateful for the relief from Vertigo when I do.
"When was the last time you've eaten?" Professor Rollins shifts into doctor mode.
"An hour ago."
He shines a light in both my eyes and checks my pulse. Which is normal. Well, until my mother takes my inability to leave as her opportunity to get how she feels off her chest.
My stress levels go through the roof and my ability to function as a human somehow deteriorates. Forcing Professor Rollins to make everyone leave the room but Alexander and me.
"What's wrong with her?" Alexander asks.
Dare I say he even sounds a bit concerned.
"In my medical opinion, I believe the stress of the situation is taking its toll on her." Professor Rollins confides.
"How can I help?"
"Evelyn needs to rest. Preferably in a stress-free environment."
"Say no more." Alexander nods.
He leaves while Professor Rollins finishes his examination of me. Returning a short time later to sit down beside me. Though, he's still not talking.
Again, silence settles between us. But at least it's not angry silence. We both just focus on the fire crackling before us. Deep in thought and reflecting on the series of events that have led us both to this moment.
Our unwavering attraction to one another.
Our inability to keep our clothes on.
And the nights we've spent in each other's arms.
"I didn't leak that information." I tell him one last time. Breaking the silence first. I don't know why I need him to know I would never betray him. Except, he's grown on me. "I know it was leaked from my phone, but I didn't do it."
"You've said this already." He replies with disinterest.
My words aren't getting through to him. And the last thing I want is to push this man even further away than he already is. Not with our baby growing inside me.
Alexander lowers his gaze to my stomach, and there's a curiosity there I'm not expecting. He slips his hand beneath my shirt to splay it across my abdomen, and my breath hitches in my throat.
It's been forever since he's touched me, but my body instantly reacts to his touch. Making me feel things I never thought I would.
He's everything a sane woman with half a brain would want.
Everything I now know I want but am afraid to want.
Reaching into his pocket, Alexander pulls out the contract I signed agreeing to be his pretend wife. Then he guides my focus to the middle of the seventh page. To a clause that states in the event I should get pregnant, all decisions regarding the fetus and custody of the fetus would solely belong to him.
Meaning the choice to either keep or abort this baby is up to him.
Fuck.
"Are you even ready to be a father?" I ask him. Giving him an out. "Because I don't believe you are."
"If life has taught me anything, it's that one is never be ready for their lives to change. But we adapt, Evelyn." He replies. "I'll adapt."
Fair enough.
Professor Rollins returns, and I feel so betrayed that I don't even want to look at him. But this is his home, and I must respect him in his home. So, I can't just ignore him.
"Why?" I ask him. Hurt he would betray my trust in favor of the Kings. And Alexander leaves to give us some privacy.
"He deserved to know."
"Okay, but it wasn't your place to tell him."
"You're right." He agrees. "It was yours."
Furious with him, I stand up to leave. But the room spins again, and I fall back down onto the sofa. A commotion comes from somewhere near the front door and Professor Rollins goes to check it out. He returns moments later with my mother trailing behind him. Then he excuses himself from the room. Instructing her to talk some sense into me.
"How are you feeling, baby?" She places the back of her hand to my forehead. All saccharine sweet and pretending to be motherly.
"I'm feeling like I don't want to be pregnant." I grumble.
"Why? That's the best thing that's ever happened to you."
"Yeah, well... it doesn't feel like it."
"You need to make sure this baby makes it into this world, Evie." She tells me. Getting to the real reason she's here.
Securing our family's future.
I'm not fool enough to believe this is about anything but her own ambitions. And she isn't fool enough to think I would ever believe otherwise.
"He doesn't want me anymore." I shake my head.
"And yet here he is, concerned about his pregnant wife. Evie, as long as you carry that title you have skin in the game. Don't ever forget that."
Only because we made a deal to protect his inheritance.
"I know all that, but... I wanted this to be special. I wanted this to mean something to him and to finally have that someone who isn't afraid to love me back."
"Oh sweetie... you watch too much of the Hallmark channel." She chuckles with amusement.
"Of course, you'd find that funny." I scoff.
My mother doesn't believe in marrying for love. She believes women who marry for love are fools and they should marry for comfort.
"That's because it is funny. And you need to get your damn head out of the clouds, Evelyn. You're not getting any younger, you're a single unwed mother, and you have the catch of the millennium baited and hooked. Ready to be plucked. Only a stupid woman would throw this opportunity away." She makes me feel guilty for having a conscious. "Your pregnancy is a gift from God. A gift this family desperately needs. So, stop thinking about yourself and think about what this will do for the rest of us. For Elijah. Once you pop out this baby, Alexander will not only give him a life and more money than he can ever dream of, but it will also give him a brighter future and access to more resources than he has now. You can be home with him more."
I know this has more to do with what she'll get out of me giving birth to Alexander's child, rather than how it will benefit Elijah or me, but she does have some very valid points. Points I can't ignore because I'd do anything for my son.
"Okay." I give in.
Not that she hass to twist my arm much, I'm not blind to what weight the King name carries. I hate being a pushover, but when it comes to my mother it's just easier this way. She won't leave me alone until I do.
Neither will the Kings.
And I don't want to raise another baby alone. So, finding a way to make this work with Alexander is the best option.
The most logical decision.
Only, convincing a man like Alexander that he'll still need me, even after three years is up, is damn near impossible since he believes I tried to ruin him. And one man's resentment is enough for any woman to deal with in a lifetime. I really don't want to try for two.
Excited, my mother pulls out her phone to call Mrs. King and give her the good news.
I didn't even know they had each other's number.
Together, the two of them come up with ideas for a lavish baby shower for Alexander and me. Getting off the phone long enough to spread the good news before calling each other up again to discuss more details.
And it starts.
My phone dings in my purse and I pull it out to find a message from Alexander.
ALEXANDER: We need to talk. Now.
ME: Ok.
ALEXANDER: Can you walk?
Climbing to my feet, I'm relieved when the room doesn't start spinning.
I guess I can add relieving stress as another good reason to give into everyone's demands. I'm clearly in no condition to fight or argue.
ME: Yes.
ALEXANDER: Benji and I will be waiting for you outside.
Happy to sneak away unnoticed, I wait until my mom has her back turned before hurrying out the door as fast as my feet will take me and quickly climbing into Alexander's waiting car.
"Miss Graham." Benji greets me through the rearview mirror with a smile.
"Benji." I smile back.
He returns his focus back to the road and Alexander raises the privacy window to give us some alone time to talk.
"Before we announce this baby to the world, I want a paternity test." He tells me. Watching me closely to see what my reaction might be.
"Fine." I sulk. Hurt that he suspects it may not be his.
"So, you agree?"
"Yes." I sigh. "I have nothing to hide."
Nodding, Alexander pulls out his phone and sends off a message. Half an hour later, we're standing inside a private lab room having our blood drawn from a woman who looks like she would definitely be his type. A confirmation that comes when she addresses him as Alex and introduces herself as one of his exes when she shakes my hand.
Not that I'm surprised.
"How soon can you get the results?" He asks.
"Seven to ten business days." She replies.
"Let me know as soon as they're ready."
"I will." She undresses him with her eyes before leaving. Adding an extra sway to her hips as she goes. And Alexander watches her intently.
Provoking my jealousy.
Here I am, carrying his child after setting boundaries he fought against until they broke. And yet he still carries on as if he's single with no care in the world.
As if I single-handedly did this to myself.
Now that he has what he wants, he escorts me back to the car and takes me back to his place. Welcoming me inside even though his body language screams piss off.
He heads to his room to change out of his pants, dress shirt, and tie. Swapping them for a pair of light grey jeans and a grey muscle shirt instead. Then he returns to the living room where he starts a fire and sits down beside me.
Looking damn good I might add.
"I don't trust you." He tells me.
"I gathered as much." I sigh.
I have never given him a reason not to trust me, but someone or something is working against me. Setting me up to be this horrible person that I'm not.
Normally I wouldn't care what anyone thought, or I'd roll my eyes. But for the sake of our unborn child and my feelings for him, I want to make this work. That means doing whatever I can to earn his trust back. Even if I'm not the one who put it in jeopardy in the first place.
"If this baby turns out to be mine, I'll help you raise it, because it's the right thing to do. But if you think you can trap me and get away with it..." He looks me in the eyes to let me know just how angry he is. "You're gravely mistaken."
Trap him?
Is he serious?
"Why would I do that?" I glower at him. "We both know I don't need your money, nor am I so desperate for a man that I would need to go to such lengths."
"Right."
After staring incredulously at him, I ignore him. I'm not going to let him bait me into an argument. I get why he's angry, but he's angry with the wrong person. And it's not like his company is still in danger. In fact, it's thriving better than it was before. So, whoever leaked that information did him a favor.
I would never say that to his face, but it's true.
And for the sake of the baby growing inside me, I'm hoping we can move past this. That he'll learn to trust me again, in time.
"Alex, I am trying here." I appeal to his good nature. Praying it will work. "And... and I'm sorry. For everything. I'm sorry. Can we please just... start over."
He meets my gaze and I see the answer in his eyes. Even before he gets up and leaves.
And this is supposed to be the start of the rest of our lives together.
God help me.