Hiding The Daughter Of Jacob Sandoval

NADIA POV

The bathroom was too quiet.

I sat on the cold tile floor with my back against the bathtub, staring at the little white stick in my hand. Two pink lines. Clear. Unmistakable. I was pregnant.

My hands were shaking. I did not know if it was from joy or fear or something in between. I only knew that I had taken this test six times in the last hour, and every single one said the same thing. I was.

going to have a baby.

I pressed my palm flat against my stomachI. Still flat. Still empty. But not for long.

The stared last time I did this, I was happy. The last time I did this, I ran to Julian with the test in at my hand and he lifted me off the floor and spun me around until I was dizzy. He kissed me like I was the most precious thing in the world. He whispered that we were going to be a family. He promised me he would be there for every appointment. Every milestone. Every sleepless night.

He was not there for any of it.

I closed my eyes and tried not to remember. The bleeding. The cramping. The hospital room with the pale walls and the too-bright lights. The doctor's voice, gentle and careful, telling me there was nothing they could do. The silence that followed.

The way Julian held my hand and told me we would try again.

The way he left the next morning for a business trip and did not come back for three weeks.

I opened my eyes and looked at the test again. Two pink lines.

This time, I had not told him. This time, I had not run to him. This time, I sat alone on the bathroom floor and wondered if I should be happy or terrified.

I decided to be happy. Just for a moment. Just for myself.

I stood up slowly and wrapped the test in tissue and hid it in the back of the drawer under the sink. I splashed cold water on my face. I looked at myself in the mirror. Pale. Tired. But alive. Still alive.

I would tell him tonight. After the dinner. After the party. After we were alone and I could find the right words.

I did not know then that I would never find the right words. I did not know then that the words would not matter. I did not know then that everything was about to fall apart.

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JULIAN POV

I left the penthouse before she woke up.

I always left before she woke up now. It was easier that way. No small talk. No questions. No looking into her eyes and pretending everything was fine.

I got into the car and checked my phone. Three messages from Serena. I smiled. I did not reply yet. I would reply later. When I was alone. When I was not thinking about the woman I left behind in that cold, quiet penthouse.

Nadia.

I did not know when things had changed between us. I did not know when I had stopped loving her. Maybe I never stopped. Maybe I just stopped trying. Maybe I got tired of pretending to be the man she thought I was.

She was a good wife. She was a great wife. She built my company. She built my life. She gave me everything I had. And I gave her nothing in return.

I knew that.

I did not care.

Not anymore.

I had Serena now. Serena was different. Serena did not expect anything from me. Serena did not look at me with those sad eyes. Serena did not make me feel guilty. Serena just wanted me. That was all. That was enough.

I put my phone away and stared out the window. The city passed by in a blur. I thought about the gala tonight. I thought about Nadia. I thought about how I would have to stand beside her and pretend. Pretend to be the loving husband. Pretend to be the man she married. Pretend to be someone I was not.

I was good at pretending.

I had been pretending for years.

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NADIA POV

The morning passed slowly.

I made myself breakfast. I could not eat it. I made myself tea. I could not drink it. I sat at the kitchen table and stared out the window and thought about the baby.

I thought about names. I thought about nurseries. I thought about first steps and first words and first days of school. I thought about everything I had dreamed of the first time. Everything I had lost.

I thought about the tiny life growing inside me right now. So small. So fragile. So innocent. This baby did not know anything. This baby did not know that its father was distant. This baby did not know that its mother was lonely. This baby did not know that the marriage it was being born into was barely holding together.

But I knew.

I knew that things were not right between Julian and me. I had known for a while. I had been pretending not to notice. I had been telling myself that it was just a phase. That he was stressed from work. That things would get better. That we would get better.

But they had not gotten better. They had gotten worse.

He came home later and later. He left earlier and earlier. He stopped touching me. He stopped looking at me. He stopped asking me how my day was. He stopped caring.

I did not know what I had done wrong. I did not know if I had done anything wrong. I only knew that I missed him. I missed the man I married. I missed the way he used to hold me. I missed the way he used to laugh with me. I missed the way he used to look at me like I was still the woman he fell in love with.

I missed us.

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JULIAN POV

I spent the afternoon with Serena.

We met at a hotel across town. The same hotel we always met at. Room 412. She was waiting for me when I walked in. She was wearing a red dress and a smile that told me she had been thinking about me.

"Hello, handsome," she said.

"Hello, beautiful."

She kissed me. I kissed her back. It was easy. It was always easy with her. No expectations. No history. No weight.

"How is your wife?" she asked.

I shrugged. "Fine."

"Just fine?"

"She is always fine."

Serena laughed. She ran her finger down my chest. "You are terrible."

"I know."

"You should leave her."

I did not answer. I had heard this before. Serena asked me to leave Nadia at least once a week. I always gave her the same non-answer. I always changed the subject. I always distracted her.

I was not ready to leave Nadia. I did not know why. Maybe it was guilt. Maybe it was habit. Maybe it was because Nadia was the only person who had ever believed in me. Maybe it was because I knew that leaving her would mean admitting that I had failed. That I had ruined the only good thing I had ever had.

I did not want to admit that.

Not yet.

Not ever.

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NADIA POV

That afternoon, I got a text from Julian.

Dinner tonight. The Ashford Hotel. 7pm. Charity gala. Be ready.

No please. No I love you. No I miss you. Just an order the message for a long time. I typed a reply. I deleted it. I typed another. I deleted it too. What was I supposed to say?

Okay.

That was all I sent. One word. He did not reply.

I put the phone down and went to the closet. I looked through my dresses. I found the black gown he had bought me for our anniversary. I had worn it once. He had told me I looked beautiful. He had told me I was the most beautiful woman in the room. He had held my hand all night.

That was two years ago.

I wondered if he would even notice what I was wearing tonight. I wondered if he would even look at me.

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JULIAN POV

I left Serena at six.

I told her I had a gala to attend. She pouted. She always pouted when I left. She always wanted more time. More attention. More of me.

I did not have more to give.

I went home and changed into my tuxedo. Nadia was still getting ready. I could hear her in the bathroom. The sound of the hairdryer. The sound of her humming. She used to hum all the time. She used to sing in the shower. She used to dance in the kitchen while she cooked.

She did not do that anymore.

I did not know when she stopped.

I did not know when I stopped noticing.

I looked at myself in the mirror. I looked like the man everyone expected me to be. Handsome. Successful. Powerful. The perfect husband. The perfect CEO. The perfect life.

But it was all a lie.

I knew that.

I did not care.

Not anymore.

---

NADIA POV

I took my time getting ready.

I did my own makeup. I did my own hair. I had learned long ago not to rely on anyone else. Julian used to tell me I did not need makeup. He used to tell me I was beautiful without it. He used to tell me I was beautiful no matter what.

I did not know if he still thought that. I did not know if he thought about me at all.

I looked at myself in the mirror. The black gown. The diamond necklace. The carefully applied lipstick. I looked like the perfect wife. I looked like the woman everyone expected me to be.

But I did not feel like her. I felt like a stranger in my own life. I felt like I was playing a part. I felt like I was waiting for something to happen. Something I could not name. Something I could not see. Something that was coming whether I was ready or not.

I pressed my hand against my stomach one more time. I will tell him tonight, I thought. After the gala. When we are alone. I will tell him about you. And everything will change.

I believed that. I had to believe that. Because if I did not believe that, what was left?

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JULIAN POV

The car arrived at seven.

I was already in the back seat when Nadia came out. She was wearing a black gown. The one I bought her for our anniversary. She looked beautiful. She always looked beautiful. I just did not tell her anymore.

I did not look up when she got in. I did not say hello. I did not tell her she looked nice. I just kept staring at my phone. Kept typing. Kept scrolling. Kept ignoring her.

I did not know why I was so cold to her. I did not know why I could not just be kind. She had done nothing wrong. She had done everything right. She had been a good wife. A great wife. The best wife.

I just did not love her anymore.

I did not know when I stopped.

I did not know if I ever really started.

NADIA POV

I sat beside him. Close enough to touch. Far enough to feel like strangers. I looked out the window. The city lights blurred past. The silence was heavy. The distance between us was heavier.

Tonight, I told myself. Tonight I will tell him. Tonight everything will change.

I did not know then how right I was. I did not know then that everything was about to change.

Just not the way I hoped.

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