" Baby? You mean… " his eyes fell on her flat tummy awe and he moved closer. "We.. I.. am going to be a father?" He laughed with mirth, the sound echoing across the park. "I can't believe this is real, I'm going to be a dad." He said incredulously his hand reaching for her stomach but stepped back. "This doesn't change anything Jake." The mirthful grin slipped from his face to be replaced by a frown of confusion. "What do you mean if course this changes everything." This is why she didn't want him to know about the baby just yet, he'd pressure her into coming back to him. "I am not having this conversation with you right now." "Why did you keep it from me I had the right to know?" He demanded. " Jake… " " I have the right to know I'm going to be a father. Were you ever going to tell me? "She scoffed." Of course I was going to tell you only when the time is right." " And when is that? " " I don't know! " She sna
" Ash! " Van yelled. Where had he come from? Was he following her?Jake staggered, caught by surprise but when he finally regained his stance he brought a hand to his lip that was now split and bleeding he glared at Ash before he swung his fist and caught Ash by the side of his face. The two men traded blows, grappling each other while Van yelled for them to stop. "Stop this for the love of God! are you two animals?"They ignored her.Ash fell backwards and Jake was onto him before he could breathe landing blows after blows. A searing pain sliced through her mid section and she gasped out suddenly. Slamming her eyes shut, she took a calming breath breathing in through her nose and out through her mouth a few seconds later the pain ebbed. "STOP." It must've been the conviction in her voice because Jake froze mid strike and looked over his shoulder at her. "Have you two no shame?" She glared at them both. Ash's nose was bleeding, she realised when he pulled him
She was pregnant.Rella stared at the piece of paper in her hand, the result of the further tests that was carried out after she fainted at the charity ball and elation mixed with fear, apprehension and uncertainty punched through her knocking out the breath out of her. Rella thought back to the events of the few weeks, she'd been too busy being a Diamond bride attending functions and various charities to notice the little changes in her body the most noticable being her fainting spell which she'd dismissed as stress. A baby. She was going to have a baby Stefan's child. A little person that would take after her or Stefan or both of them. This changes everything. Rella felt panic bubbling up until she was sick. She rinsed off the acidic taste in her mouth after she was done and tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear as she caught her reflection in the mirror imagining how she would look a few months from now. Her fingers instinctively splayed over her lower ab
"Hello sis." Cindy smiled but it didn't quite reach her dark eyes as she gave Rella a once-over, her eyes taking her in from top to bottom slowly and then back to her face. "You look good." She sounded impressed but there was something about her tone that was cutting. Rella was speechless. She stood there opening and shutting her mouth like a fish out of water. What? How? Why?She was shaking her head in disbelief. "You came back. Where have you been?" She said at last. "Looks like you're not very happy to see me Rella." Rella bristled. " Of course I am." " Liar." Cindy said. And Rella realised that a wretched part of her wished her twin would stay away for good and never come back Cindy knew that, she'd always been unable to hide anything from Cindy. Cindy pinned her with a stare that made Rella recoil. "How could you do this to me? How could you betray me like this?"And that's when Rella snapped. "You betrayed me first." She bit back. "You betrayed
"He doesn't love you."If Cindy had been hoping to hurt her for abandoning her then she was doing a pretty damn good job of it. "You don't know that. I'm the one with him, I'm the one he married." " Are you sure about that? " Cindy looked like she was enjoying tormenting her. " You don't even love him. " She bit out. " You don't know anything about my feelings Rella! Do you know what mom said to me, she said to forget about whatever feelings I might've had for Stefan, she told me to never show my face to you because you were happy. But what about me? Don't I deserve to be happy too?" Rella was sobbing quietly. "In the end she chose you, everything has to be about you." She said bitterly. "Afterall, I'm just the pain-in-ass party animal Cindy and you're the prim and proper Rella who could do no wrong." Rella had no idea Cindy thought about her like that. Cindy went on. "For years I've always wanted mom and dad's approval but I never got it. When th
The doctor said her blood pressure was high. She needed plenty of bedrest and to avoid anything that could cause her to be stressed or anxious. Van almost lost the baby today.Their baby.Jake thought as he tried to swallow the lump which had lodged in his throat, he never would've been able to forgive himself if anything had happened to her or the baby. And God he and Ash had behaved like animals throwing punches like barbarians and not listening when she'd yelled at them to stop. She was still at risk but she was stable now, a load had been lifted off his shoulders. The doctor said she was sedated and stable so she was greenlighted to be transferred back to the house with a promise that a doctor would be on hand should any emergency occurred. "I'll tell her you dropped by." Ash said and Jake wanted to punch him again but restrained himself. Like hell he would. "I'll wait for her to wake up and let her decide whether she wants me here or not." Ash pursed his lips, he lo
Rella waited the entire night and then cried herself to sleep when she realised Stefan wasn't coming back. She woke up the next morning with sunlight streaming through the parted curtains. Her head was pounding and her throat was raw and aching from all that crying. Reaching for the glass of water on the night stand she took tentative sips to soothe her aching throat next she checked her phone to see if he tried calling but he didn't, it was Christian instead who left several missed calls for her and that could only mean one thing… Rella called him back too frantic she almost dropped the phone. He picked on the first ring. "Thank God you scared me to death." "How is he?" She asked quietly. "Passed out but he'll be fine."Rella loosed a shaky breath of relief at least she knows where he is and that he's fine and not in an alley somewhere outside a bar. " How are you doing?" Christian asked a second later. "What do you think?" "If he said
The first time he met Rella Cortes she did not hide her dislike towards him and Stefan had felt the same. The feelings were mutual. The second time they met was at the engagement party if he was not mistaken and that was when the deception began and he didn't notice any of it. He didn't notice that the woman who lost her balance and almost fell on her face was Rella Cortes the twin who had nothing but contempt for him. Memories that were once locked or forgotten came tumbling out.He remembered asking her where Rella had gone that night because he'd thought she was Cindy but she looked him in the eyes and lied straight to his face. And like a fool he allowed himself to be manipulated into falling in love with what he thought was a new version of Cindy Cortes. Stefan remembered thinking that she'd changed so drastically from the woman who's always on the tabloids for one scandal or the other but he'd been wrong, she didn't change at all because she was a totally different p