FIVE

Cara’s POV

“Oh thank God you’re here.” I could practically hear the relief in Doctor Mary’s voice when I walked into her office once again. I studied her for a few seconds as she rose from her chair. Aside from the fearful expression written all over her face, her hair was in slight disarray, and I could see the beads of sweat rolling down her forehead, even from afar.

“Cara, I cannot begin to explain just how terribly sorry I am about this. I didn’t know until it was too late and I called you immediately I found out—”

“Doctor, what’s going on?”

Doctor Mary ran her hands through her red hair and looked straight at me. “There was—There was a mistake at the lab during the insemination process.”

I felt my heart start to beat harder in my chest. Today had been a rollercoaster of emotions, and if the doctor was about to say what I thought she was going to say, I might just lose it, right there and then in her office.

“Are you trying to say I’m not pregnant?” I asked, deciding to jump the gun instead.

“What? No, no you are. That’s not the problem. You see, the mix-up is that—well, there’s no easy way to say this. But your eggs were fertilized with the wrong sperm cells.”

What?

I felt a sudden chill, like a wave of cold, descend down my spine.

“What?”

“I am so sorry about this,” Doctor Mary continued. “I didn’t know.”

I studied her again. She was growing more frantic by the second and understandably so. This was a grave mistake—one that could cost her her career.

“Mary,” I said, feeling her name roll down my tongue with unease, as I moved closer to her. “Are you saying…Henry isn’t the father of—”

“Yes,” Doctor Mary continued. “Yes. He’s not the father.”

The chill down my spine grew almost tenfold as I continued to stare at the doctor. I was in a daze, watching her go through a severe breakdown.

So Henry wouldn’t be the father of my baby after all. He’d only be the father of Patricia’s child and not mine.

The mere thought of it caused me to almost crash onto the floor, but I quickly reached for the closest chair to me, leaning on it as fast as I could.

“So, will Henry’s sperm cells fertilize someone else’s eggs? Do we know who this person is?” I asked anyway, dreading the answer. I’d gone through enough calamities for one day. Might as well get it over with once and for all.

“That’s the—other thing,” Doctor Mary said, staring at me. “The results indicated that Henry’s sperm count is low. They can’t fertilize an egg.”

The force threatening to push me into the floor grew stronger, and I held on to the chair with both hands.

“You were never infertile, Cara. Henry was.”

Oh God.

So he wasn’t the father of Patricia’s baby. It was medically impossible for him to be.

I tried to shelve away any thoughts regarding my husband for now, especially after what he did to me a few hours ago. I looked straight at the doctor, my eyes plain.

“So whose sperm cells did you use for me, Doc? Who’s the father of the baby in my womb?”

Doctor Mary took a deep and long breath. “I—I can’t tell you that, Cara. It’s privileged information.”

I let go of the chair and found the strength to walk closer to her, a determined expression resting on my face. “I’m carrying a stranger’s baby in my stomach, Doc. We are way past privileged.”

Doctor Mary stared at me, her eyes bland and hollow. “It’s—the sperm cells belong to Wesley Morano.”

My heart skipped a beat and a palpable alarm rang across my face. “Wesley Morano?”

Doctor Mary nodded.

“Like—the Wesley Morano? The actual billionaire Wesley Morano?!”

Mary nodded again.

Oh God. This mistake could cost Mary more than her license. It could cost her her freedom.

“Oh my God, you could be imprisoned for this!” I said, my worry for her slowly starting to grow.

“Yes! I know. Trust me I know.”

“Oh my God! It’s freaking Wesley Morano. He’s like the most influential billionaire in the state and I’m carrying his baby? Are you kidding me?!” I said, the words running out of my mouth like I was being tortured with a hot knife.

No. No it couldn’t be. I couldn’t be carrying Wesley Morano’s child. I just couldn’t. It was quite literally impossible to be this unlucky in just one day.

“I already called him and he’s on his way. He should be here soon. Cara, I don’t know what to do.”

I felt a wave of shock settle in me. “Wesley’s coming here?”

Mary nodded gently. A chill ran down my spine.

Oh God. This was not going to end well.