Novels by Ihechiink

The drive home from St. Mary's was the quietest forty minutes of my life.Damien knew. He had not said another word after the doctor left the room. He had simply helped me into my coat, collected my discharge papers, and walked me to his car with a hand hovering near my back without actually touching it. That hand told me everything. It was the gesture of a man recalculating everything he thought he understood.I pulled my coat tight around my middle and stared out the passenger window. The city moved past in streaks of yellow and white light. Damien drove the way he did everything, with total control, both hands on the wheel, eyes forward. I could feel him glancing at me every few minutes. Short looks, clinical, like he was checking a monitor reading.I did not look back. I watched the lights and breathed and told myself to hold it together until I reached the guest room. Just get to the guest room. Then I could fall apart in peace.The penthouse was dark when we arrived. Damien turn

Tristan's POVI couldn't focus on the surgery in front of me. Mr. Patterson's mitral valve was in front of me, the instruments were in my hands, but my mind was in that café, watching Elena walk away with another man's hand on her back."Dr. Caine?" My resident's voice cut through my thoughts. "The valve replacement?"I blinked, forcing myself back to the present. Focus. Save the patient in front of you. Worry about your crumbling marriage later.Except it wasn't a real marriage, was it? It was a contract. An arrangement. So why did the thought of Elena leaving make me want to destroy something?"Suction," I ordered, my hands moving with practiced precision even as my thoughts spiraled. "And someone get me an update on Mrs. Henderson's post-op vitals."The surgery took three hours. Three hours of perfect technique, of saving a life, of doing what I did best. But the moment I stepped out of that OR, the dark thoughts came rushing back.Elena. Marco Bennett. That protective touch on her

Elena's POVI didn't go home. I couldn't face Tristan's penthouse, couldn't stand the thought of waiting in that sterile space for him to return from whatever he was doing with Serena. Instead, I drove aimlessly through the city until I found myself at a small café near the university where I'd once studied.Marco was already there when I arrived, sitting at a corner table with two cups of hot chocolate. He stood when he saw me, his face breaking into a warm smile that faltered when he got a closer look at my expression."Elena." He pulled me into a gentle hug. "What's wrong?"I held it together for exactly three seconds. Then I was crying into his shoulder, all the fear and hurt and exhaustion of the past few days pouring out of me."Hey, it's okay," Marco murmured, guiding me into a chair. "You're okay. I've got you."When I could finally speak, I told him everything. Not about the pregnancy, not about the contract marriage, but about the suspension, about Serena's cruelty, about fe

Elena's POVThe surgery went perfectly, which somehow made everything worse. For four hours, Tristan and I worked in perfect synchronization, our hands moving in practiced harmony around Mr. Henderson's open chest. I anticipated his every need, passing instruments before he asked, adjusting retractors, monitoring vitals. In the OR, we were partners.It was the only place we ever were."Excellent work," Tristan said as we closed, and for just a moment, his eyes met mine over his surgical mask. There was something there, a flicker of acknowledgment that made my heart race. Then it was gone, and he was all business again. "Elena, handle the post-op notes. I have a meeting."A meeting. With Serena, no doubt.I finished the paperwork and changed out of my surgical scrubs, my body aching with exhaustion. The nausea had returned with a vengeance, and I barely made it to the bathroom before I was sick again. When would this end? The pregnancy books said twelve weeks, but I wasn't even at nine

Elena's POVI barely slept. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw those two tiny dots on the ultrasound screen, pulsing with life I never meant to create. By the time my alarm went off at four thirty, I'd already been awake for an hour, staring at the ceiling of the guest bedroom where I slept most nights.Tristan preferred it that way. Our arrangement was simple: I existed in his penthouse like a ghost, taking up as little space as possible. The master bedroom was his domain. I was only invited in when he needed me, and even then, it was always on his terms.I dragged myself to the bathroom and immediately regretted it. The nausea hit me like a wave, and I barely made it to the toilet before I was violently sick. Morning sickness. Of course. As if this situation wasn't complicated enough.When the wave passed, I brushed my teeth three times and studied my reflection in the mirror. Dark circles shadowed my green eyes. My brown hair hung limp around my face. I looked exactly like what I w

Elena's POVThe words hung in the air between us, impossible and terrifying."Congratulations, Dr. Rossi," Dr. Patel said, her smile warm and genuine. "You're pregnant."I stared at her, my mind refusing to process what she'd just said. Pregnant. The word echoed in my head, bouncing off the walls of my skull like a ricocheting bullet. This couldn't be happening. I'd been so careful. The pills Tristan gave me every morning were supposed to prevent exactly this.Dr. Patel turned the ultrasound screen toward me, her finger pointing at two small, flickering spots. "And from what I can see here, you're carrying twins. Fraternal, most likely. I'd estimate you're about eight weeks along."Twins.My hand flew to my mouth, and I tasted the salt of tears I hadn't realized were falling. Eight weeks. That meant it happened during that night two months ago, the night Tristan had come home late from the hospital, exhausted and vulnerable after losing a patient on the operating table. He'd reached f