Chapter 5:JL Jewelry

Trista’s POV

My paper gown crinkled as I laid down on the bed for an ultrasound. I wouldn’t normally go to a human hospital but what choice did I have? I was exiled. So I’d found a small but cheap hospital one town over from Summerset. Because the hospital was small and cheap, I knew their equipment wouldn’t be very accurate. They wouldn’t pick up on any of the ‘wolf’ in me.

The doctor was nice. I described my symptoms and he suggested an ultra sound. He smeared the cold jelly on my stomach.

“Ah,” he said, smiling. “I thought that might be the case. See here?” He pointed at the screen and I looked over. “That small ball, right there. That’s your baby. Congratulations! You’re pregnant!”

Preg…nant?

What?

He smiled kindly at me. “I assume from the look on your face that you weren’t planning this?” I shook my head in disbelief. I’d been trying to conceive for three years! To give Liam the heirs he so desperately wanted! How was it possible that I was finally pregnant…now…right after he divorced me? This was some sort of joke. It had to be. Some sort of cruel, twisted joke.

“Are you…are you sure?” I asked, skeptically eying the ultrasound screen. The hospital was cheap. Maybe the equipment was faulty.

“100%! You can see the fetus, right here. See?”

I squinted and adjusted my glasses. But all I saw was a dark blob.

He recommended me to a women’s clinic close by that dealt with pregnancies. I nodded, only half-listening to everything he said. I was in a daze.

When I got home, I sat with my hands in my head. I was shocked at first, but as the shock wore off, my mood changed. I was going to be a mother! I had a little, tiny creature growing inside of me! I flipped open my laptop, more determined than ever to find a good, reliable job. I had a baby to support now!

Over the next few weeks, I applied to a number of large financial institutions in the city. I had the credentials and the experience, but as soon as I told them I was pregnant, they showed me the door. No one wanted to hire a pregnant woman I soon learned.

So I decided to try for a job that was a little more female friendly. Waitressing? A clothing store? A day care? I was desperate! But that’s when I saw an ad for a famous jewelry store, JL. It was one of the companies I had invested in when I was Luna. They were looking for designers…

That’s when I remembered my second degree, my degree in design. I quickly submitted my designs and I heard back from them right away!

“We are willing to hire you, Trista,” the manager said. “Your designs are really great. But our customers have specific needs and demands. And you lack direct work experience in the jewelry business. So we’d like to offer you a three-month internship as a personal shopper at one of our stores. This way, you can learn what our customers want from our jewelry.”

It wasn’t exactly my dream job, a personal shopper, but it was something. I accepted the offer.

I went in for my first day of work, excited to start my new career as a future jewelry designer in the human world. So just imagine my surprise when Liam waltzed in, with Lucy on his arm.

Seriously?      

They didn’t see me at first. Lucy pointed to a decadent necklace dripping with sapphires and diamonds. Liam had never bought me jewelry, not even a single piece! Even though Liam was the second largest shareholder in the company right of this brand, all thanks to me and my smart investing.

“Is that the one you want, darling?” He smiled at her and she nodded, excitedly. “Then that’s the one you shall have.”

They looked around for someone to help them and that’s when they saw me. Lucy burst out laughing. “Excuse me,” she said loudly. “We can have some help here please?” I knew she was going to mock me, but what choice did I have? This was my job. So I smiled as sweetly as I could. I opened the case and handed her the necklace. But then she dropped it, on purpose!

“Ooops,” she said. “Guess you better come pick it up.”

She was so cruel. I walked around the counter and bent down to pick up the necklace.

“Is everything okay over here?” It was my manager.

“Yes,” I smiled, the necklace in my hand.

“No,” Lucy snapped. “This clerk here, she dropped my necklace. Look at her! She can barely see! Why would you hire such a stupid girl? She’s disabled!”

“I..I didn’t…” I stammered, but Lucy scoffed. I was humiliated. I’d never been so embarrassed in all my life. And the fact that she was an omega made it ten times worse. My cheeks flushed a deep crimson.

I looked at Liam. What did he see in this woman? She was snide and condescending. But Liam wouldn’t look me in the eyes. His gaze was fixed on his new Luna.  We just separated less than a month ago. He seemed to have completely forgotten me as a stranger.

“Trista,” my manager snapped at me, displeased that his customers weren’t happy. “Go clean the glass casing over there. I’ll serve these lovely customers myself.”

Lucy flashed me a sly smile.

But I had something Lucy didn’t. She could mock me all she wanted, but I was the one carrying Liam’s baby. Maybe if I told him, he’d change his mind. Let me come home. Cast out this horrible woman and let me be Luna again.

So I took a deep breath and told him.

“Liam, I’m pregnant.”