Pustaka
Cari
Beranda / Vampire / At Eight Months Pregnant, I Chose To Raise My Baby Without Her Vampire Father / Chapter 3

Share

Chapter 3

Penulis: Levinne
The shower started running upstairs.

I slowly pushed myself up from the couch, steadying my heavy body against the armrest, then walked over and picked up Adrian's phone.

I opened his messaging app and found Clara's chat at the top. Her profile picture was that smug selfie. Adrian's nickname for her was a single word: "Mine."

I stood there, bile rising in my throat.

The chat history was worse than I'd imagined.

"Miss you."

"Be good. I can't come today — she's home."

"Don't worry. I'm here. Even if you're really pregnant with my child, I'll handle everything. Emily's not going to try anything."

Every message was a blade, carving open the happiness I'd foolishly believed was real.

I took a deep breath, turned on screen recording, and scrolled through page after page. Bank transfers, hotel reservations, property transfers — I saved everything. Then I opened his email and shopping apps, screenshotting every receipt connected to Clara and forwarding it all to my own phone.

By the time I finished, cold sweat had soaked through my back. The baby kicked again — hard — as if sensing something was wrong. My heart seized. I gripped the edge of the table and carefully lowered myself back down, one hand gently soothing my belly.

"It's okay, baby."

"Just a little longer."

"Mommy's going to get us out of here soon."

The water upstairs stopped.

I quickly erased every trace, put the phone back exactly where it had been, and used the armrest to pull myself up and return to the couch. A few minutes later, Adrian came downstairs in loungewear, hair still damp, looking cool and gentle.

He sat beside me and casually pulled me into his arms. "Why aren't you in bed yet?"

I leaned against his chest, listening to the steady heartbeat his body willed into being — a body that should have had no warmth at all — and suddenly remembered a night many years ago, when he first told me what he was.

We'd just started dating. He stood in the moonlight, his face so pale it was almost translucent, and quietly admitted he wasn't human. Adrian said that because of me, for the first time, he'd considered giving up eternity.

I hadn't run.

I'd held him.

I said, "Adrian, it's not the vampire part that scares me. It's losing you."

Looking back now, the truly terrifying thing was never what he was.

It was that his love could change in a heartbeat.

I closed my eyes slowly, forcing every emotion down, my voice so docile it surprised even me. "Adrian."

"Hmm?"

"After the baby's born, will things always be like this?"

He looked down at me, his dark eyes holding mine, his voice warm and certain: "Of course."

"Emily, I'll be with you and the baby forever."

Forever.

What a beautiful word.

Too bad I didn't believe a single syllable of it anymore.
Lanjutkan membaca buku ini secara gratis
Pindai kode untuk mengunduh Aplikasi
Bab sebelumnya Bab selanjutnya

Bab terbaru

  • At Eight Months Pregnant, I Chose To Raise My Baby Without Her Vampire Father   Chapter 14

    Years later.My daughter had grown up and started school.It was summer. The sun beat down hard on the streets.She was holding my hand as we walked, and suddenly, she stopped."Mommy."I looked down at her. "What is it?"She pointed ahead. "Why is that man wearing so many clothes?"I looked where she was pointing.On the street corner, a janitor was sweeping.He wore a hat and a mask, head bowed low. It was blazing hot, but he was bundled up from head to toe.I smiled. "Because the sun's very strong here. Some people don't do well in it."She nodded.But she kept watching.Then she said, "Mommy, that man is crying."I froze.When I looked again, the man had slowly lifted his head.Under the brim of his hat, I recognized the face instantly.Adrian.He'd grown so thin. He looked ten years older.When he saw me, his entire body went rigid.Then he took one step. And another. Walking toward us.My daughter shrank behind me, instinctively frightened.I put my arm around her.Adrian stopped

  • At Eight Months Pregnant, I Chose To Raise My Baby Without Her Vampire Father   Chapter 13

    But things didn't end there.Clara refused to accept it.All of Adrian's assets had been transferred to my name. And the Blackwood Elders had learned of his affair — a scandal that stained the entire family name. Vampires were a species defined by absolute fidelity. They would never tolerate someone like Adrian continuing to bring shame upon the clan.Clara went behind Adrian's back and filed an appeal. She claimed I'd framed him, that every piece of evidence was fabricated.The Blackwood name had always drawn attention, and the media latched on immediately. But Clara hadn't counted on Morgan's evidence being far more thorough than she'd imagined.Surveillance footage. Bank statements. Hospital records.Every piece was airtight.On the day of the trial, Clara nearly collapsed in the courtroom.She clung to Adrian's sleeve. "Say something!""You promised you'd protect me! Say something, damn it!"Adrian never once looked at her.The moment it truly became a joke was during the final hea

  • At Eight Months Pregnant, I Chose To Raise My Baby Without Her Vampire Father   Chapter 12

    The hallway went utterly still.Morgan's hand hung in the air, papers extended.Adrian didn't take them.He stood there, staring at the divorce agreement, and his eyes turned cold. That chill — the kind only a vampire could produce — radiated from him in waves, pressing down on the air around us."Emily just gave birth." His voice was low. "This isn't the time."Morgan didn't waver. "On the contrary. Now is exactly the time."Adrian finally raised his gaze toward the hospital room.I was propped up against the pillows, our daughter cradled in my arms. I didn't speak.His eyes landed on the baby, and his expression softened — just for a moment."Emily." His voice dropped. "We can talk about this later.""Just let me in first."I looked at him for a long time.Then, quietly: "Give him the papers."Morgan said nothing more. She placed the divorce agreement in his hands.Adrian turned the first page.One glance, and he gave a cold, mirthless laugh."You want me to walk away with nothing?"

  • At Eight Months Pregnant, I Chose To Raise My Baby Without Her Vampire Father   Chapter 11

    When I opened my eyes again, daylight had broken.Sunlight slipped through the gap in the curtains and pooled on the hospital floor.The first thing I saw was my mother's red-rimmed eyes. I'd told her everything before going to the café.She sat at my bedside, her hand gripping mine. The moment she saw me awake, something in her seemed to give way all at once, her voice cracking. "You're awake… thank God you're awake."I tried to speak, but my throat was raw."The baby…"My mother's eyes went red again.She gently lifted a small bundle of blankets and placed it carefully beside me."She's right here. The doctor says she's perfectly healthy."I turned my head.And for the first time, I saw my daughter.She was impossibly small, her face scrunched and wrinkled, her eyes not yet fully open — just the faintest rhythm of her breathing.But this tiny life made me feel as though I'd been pulled back from the edge of hell.I reached out and gently touched her fingers.Her little hand closed

  • At Eight Months Pregnant, I Chose To Raise My Baby Without Her Vampire Father   Chapter 10

    The next thing I was aware of was the heavy smell of disinfectant.Blinding white light.Someone was speaking near my ear — muffled, urgent.I tried to open my eyes, but my eyelids felt like they'd been pinned down.The lights swayed. Shadows moved back and forth. Doctors' voices drifted in and out. My body felt lighter and lighter, as if everything inside me was being hollowed out.Through the haze, I suddenly thought of a night many years ago.I'd just learned Adrian was a vampire.When the first ray of dawn fell across the windowsill, he'd asked me in a low voice, "Emily, if you ever regret this, will you leave me?"What had I said?I think I'd smiled."No.""I already chose you."Now, those words felt like a cruel joke.Because I had chosen him.I just never imagined he'd be the one to betray me first.A searing pain ripped through my abdomen, wrenching me back to the present.I heard the doctor's voice."She's fully dilated. The baby's coming.""Hold on."I don't know how long I h

  • At Eight Months Pregnant, I Chose To Raise My Baby Without Her Vampire Father   Chapter 9

    At the doctor's office, I changed my emergency contact to my mother.After the examination — everything normal — I got a phone call. From my husband's number.Only it wasn't his voice on the line. It was Clara's.By the time I reached the cafédownstairs, Clara had been waiting for a while. She sat holding my husband's phone, looking at me with open triumph."He went to get me something to eat. I'm looking after his phone. Haven't you figured it out yet? Adrian loves me now."I looked at her and felt a sudden wave of boredom.So that's why she'd called me down here. Not to negotiate. Not to flaunt how clever she was. Just to use this most pathetic, most amateur move imaginable — showing off the scraps of affection she'd stolen from someone else's husband.I couldn't even be bothered to get angry. I just nodded. "Yeah, I can see that."She clearly hadn't expected that reaction. She frowned. "You're not upset? You can't even touch his phone normally, can you?""Why would I be upset?" I

Bab Lainnya

Anda juga akan menyukai

Jelajahi dan baca novel bagus secara gratis
Akses gratis ke berbagai novel bagus di aplikasi GoodNovel. Unduh buku yang kamu suka dan baca di mana saja & kapan saja.
Baca buku gratis di Aplikasi
Pindai kode untuk membaca di Aplikasi
DMCA.com Protection Status