Chapter 50
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050
VIVIAN froze as if the floor beneath her had tilted. The question landed like a cold hand against her cheek, and for a beat she had to steady herself. She sat up, brows knitting to a stubborn line, then drew a long breath and met his gaze.
“I’m keeping it,” she said, the words steady, final.
Adrian’s face remained unreadable for a moment; the room hummed with the weight of the declaration. He sat up slowly, as if the motion itself required thought, and folded his hands together on his knees.
“I’m not saying you can’t,” he said finally, his voice low, “ut I want you to be sure this is really what you want p>
Vivian’s mouth tightened. She had expected celebration, or at least some fierce claim of responsibility, anything but this measured caution. She stared at him for a long second, feeling a twinge of impatience. He continued, earnestness shading his tone.
“You are still in school… pregnancy is not a joke. A child p>
She cut him off, sharper than she intended.
“I am not a child,” she snapped, vertical and fierce. “I’m a grown woman. This baby is a gift. If you don’t want it, fine, I am not going to beg. I will raise my child alone, just like I have been doing life alone already.” The final words came out brittle; she turned her face away to hide the sudden prickle of tears.
Adrian’s expression softened. He shifted, searched for the correct angle of speech, something that neither patronized nor abandoned.
“That is not… that is not what I meant,” he said quietly.
“So what do you mean?” Vivian demanded, pivoting back toward him, her whole body insisting on the answer.
For a long minute he was mute, his eyes tracing the line of her jaw, the small swell of her belly beneath the thin fabric. She felt the silence like a surge of electricity, craving an answer, needing the tether of his decision. When he finally spoke, his voice was steady and deliberate.
“I will take full responsibility,” he said. “As his father, I am not going to walk away. The child is equally mine p>
The words hit her like sunlight through cloud. Vivian’s hands flew to her mouth; the single sound that escaped was half-gasp, half-laugh. Tears welled in her eyes, but this time they were not only of fear; they were of stunned, disbelieving joy.
“You will?” she whispered, as if testing the moment to make sure it was not a dream.
He nodded once, small and certain.
“I will be there. I will be there for the child.” (1)
Vivian couldn’t contain herself.
“Babe!” she cried, launching at him. She threw her arms around him and clung to his back, burying her face into the shirt at his shoulder. He stiffened, then allowed the embrace, his hands finding her waist and holding, not possessive but steady. Her words tumbled out, a rush of gratitude and something closer to worship.
“Oh my God, thank you. Thank you so much.” She rubbed the back of his neck with small frantic motions. When she pulled back a little bit she looked at him as though seeing him for the first time, the tired set of his eyes, the
resolve in his mouth.
“You are going to make me a mother? Oh my God!” She kissed him impulsively on the neck, then again, and again, as if the repetition could seal the promise into fact.
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Adrian’s arms tightened around her. For a moment the room fell away, no threats, no lies, no fractured households, only the two of them and this fragile, dangerous new thing between them.
“I love you,” Vivian breathed into his collar, the declaration soft and urgent. “I love you so much, Adrian. I will be your peace. I promise p>
He swallowed, the weight of what he had just pledged settling in. The man who had once been careful with vows found himself making a new kind of pledge, one with implications that would ripple through lives. He looked at her, at the hopeful tilt of her head, at the way fear and fiere joy warred behind her eyes, and for the first time in a long while, he let himself believe he might be able to keep a promise worth keeping.
“Okay,” he said finally, voice rough with something like resolve. “Then we start from here. We do this together p>
She smiled then, wet-eyed and radiant, and for a few heartbeats, the future however complicated and dangerous seemed to hold the faint promise of something like possibility.
Adrian stepped into the house that night, his footsteps heavy, deliberate. The soft glow of the living room lamps revealed Amelia curled on the couch, already in her nightwear. She wasn’t watching television or reading a book, she was simply staring at her fingers, as if her whole life had reduced to the meticulous study of her nails.
She had become a shadow of herself. And he knew he was the one who dimmed her light.
He sighed, watching her for a few seconds before he spoke.
“Can we talk?” he asked.
She didn’t look at him. For a moment, she didn’t even breathe. Then, in a tone so calm it was unsettling, she answered.
“Yeah. Talk p>
Adrian crossed the room and sat beside her. The distance between them felt like an abyss. He drew in a long breath.
“I know you are disappointed,” he began, voice heavy, “and heartbroken. I… I can’t change what has happened. But I have decided to do right, with everyone involved p>
Her eyes flickered, but she said nothing.
“I’m getting married to Vivian,” he said.
Amelia’s fingers stilled. Slowly, she lifted her head and looked at him. His eyes avoided hers, fixed instead on the empty coffee table.
“What did she say to that?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
“She has my child,” he replied, almost defensive. “I… I cant leave my child out there. I have to take responsibility p>
Her heart clenched. And then, as though someone had ripped open an old wound, memories came flooding back. …Flashback…
“Why did you go through my phone?” Adrian had asked the fateful morning,
“Is that what you should be talking about?” Amelia snappe, fury and pain entwined in her tone. “Or the fact that you have been sleeping with another woman long enough to get her pregnant p>
“You have no right to go through my phone,” he retorted.
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The words stunned her. Her mouth fell open, her chest rising and falling erratically.
“I have no right? I’m your wife, Adrian. Your wife. The one you made vows to. The one who carries your name. And somehow, I’m the problem p>
“There you go again,” he muttered, dismissive. “Overreacting. Always overreacting with everything. This is why I don’t tell you anything, because you blow it out of proportion. I take care of this family. I take care of you, of Hazel, even your mom and your sister p>
Her heart shattered anew.
“Adrian…” she whispered, shaking her head. “The late nights. The missed dinners. Hazel’s award presentation. I should have known p>
He looked away, unfazed.
“Maybe if you had stayed in your lane,” he said coldly, “and focused on your family. Maybe if you hadn’t been so rigid, making me apologize for every little thing you could have overlooked… we wouldn’t be here p>
Her jaw slackened.
“Adrian, you cheated, and it is my fault p>
“I’m a man, Amelia. I provide for this family. That should count as something p>
Her eyes burned, but she forced her voice steady.
“So what am I supposed to tell your daughter? That she has a baby brother or sister from another mommy p>
He didn’t respond. Instead, he yanked the duvet off himself grabbed his phone, and slipped into his flip-flops.
“I don’t have time for this,” he muttered. “If you want to play detective or snoop, fine. Be my guest. But I’m not going to apologize for your insecurity p>
And with that, he walked out, leaving her shattered.
…Present day…
Amelia’s eyes stung as she stared at the man before her. The man who had once slipped a ring on her finger and promised her forever. Was he still that man? Or had that Adrian died long ago?
“How long,” she asked quietly, her voice trembling, “have you been in this relationship p>
Silence stretched until Adrian finally spoke.
“Three years p>
Her heart lurched. She let out a hollow laugh, tears spilling
“Three years. You have been in a whole relationship for three years… yet you came back to me every night. You held me, kissed me, made love to me, told me how happy you were that I was keeping this home together.” Her lips quivered as the betrayal weighed on her chest.
“Amelia-” he started, then faltered.
“I gave you everything,” she whispered through her tears. I gave you my loyalty. I gave you my peace. And you treat me like this p>
Adrian’s face twisted in guilt. For once, the arrogance fell away, and all that remained was a man broken by his
own choices. He swallowed hard.
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“You are still going to be with me,” he said finally, though he words came out weak. “My first wife. Vivian will be a second wife. Nothing has to change p>
Her eyes widened at the audacity. She stared at him through the blur of her tears.
“Nothing has to change?” she repeated, her voice breaking
Their eyes locked, his, weary but resolute; hers, shattered yet burning with a quiet storm.
And then, slowly, Amelia rose. Without another word, she turned and walked away, her figure trembling but upright.
Adrian remained on the couch, the silence pressing against him like judgement. He dropped his face into his hands, unsure if what he felt was regret or simply the melancholy of a man who had lost something he hadn’t valued enough.
Or wasn’t it?
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Olivia Harris
Olivia Harris is an emerging author celebrated for her captivating romantic and steamy novels. With a talent for crafting deep emotional connections and fiery chemistry between her characters, Olivia’s stories offer readers an escape into worlds filled with passion, intrigue, and heart-stopping drama.