Pregnant and Divorced: I Hid His Heir

air before a thunderstorm that refuses to break. Vivian sat on the edge of the examination table, her knuckles white as

hattan elite, and he knew when a situation required celebration and when it required caution. He held

owned. It was a small movement, a tightening of the skin

t, Mrs. Sterling

e had imagined this moment a thousand times. In her head, it was always accompanied by tears of joy, by Julian's hand over h

voice dropping an octave. "We

d for a fraction of a second was inst

our history of anemia and the stress markers in your blood work,

High risk. It sounded like a business

ears welled up in her eyes, hot and stinging, but she refused to let them fall. She wa

spered. Her voice sounded foreig

enemy right now, Vivian. I cannot emphasize this enough. You need absolute bed rest.

alking on the deck of a ship in rough waters. She took the prescr

sharp. "And I want this file sealed. No insurance claims.

t he nodded slowly. "Of course, Vivian

you," s

e prescription. She bought the vitamins and a bottle of generic antacids. In the privacy of the pharmacy bathroom, she dumped the antacids into the t

th a rudeness that felt personal. She stood on the sidewalk, surrounded by the noise of taxis an

to see, no bump, no sign of life, but she knew.

ed to te

d been distant, distracted, always on his phone, always traveling. But a baby changed things. A baby was a bridge. A

from her bag and call

ce trembling slightly. "Int

ate jet was scheduled to land in forty-five minutes. He was coming home a day early. She hadn't been suppo

f blood. Vivian checked her reflection in the compact mirror. She looked pale. She pinched her chee

inal, Vivian felt a wave of nausea. She told herself i

e was the only wife waiting. Usually, assistants or drivers waited here. Wives waited at

sinessmen she recognized nodded at her politely. A

ibs. She looked for his height, the sharp cut of his jaw, t

inned. Then

was not

ed the app a

ce. Then it went straight to voicemail. The me

ef of Staff. It rang and r

bucket. The silence was deafening. She felt a cold chill that had nothing to do w

hone

Google Alert she had se

from a paparazzi agency. The t

ack SUV at the private exit-the exit used for ultra-high-profile celebriti

l Vivian could see was a silhouette,

avoided the main exit. He had avoided the family car. He had taken a sep

hone, then at her face. He had tried to call Julian's security detail, but they had gone r

driver said softly.

her stomach again, a protective shield ov

hispered. "T