Chapter 1: Two Heartbeats

"Congratulations, Mrs. Hart."

The words hit me like a slap.

Dr. Grey smiled gently as she turned the ultrasound monitor toward me.

"You're pregnant."

I stared at the blurry black-and-white image without understanding what I was looking at. My mind refused to catch up with her words.

Pregnant?

That wasn't possible.

She pointed at the screen.

"And there's something else."

Her smile widened.

"You're having twins."

The room went completely silent.

Twins.

I blinked so hard my eyes burned.

"No..." The word escaped before I could stop it. "That can't be right."

Dr. Grey looked at me with quiet concern.

"I assure you, the scan is very clear."

She zoomed in, outlining two tiny flickering lights.

"There."

She smiled again.

"Those are your babies' heartbeats."

Two tiny hearts.

Two little lives.

Growing inside me.

My fingers trembled as they drifted to my stomach.

I felt... nothing.

Not because they weren't there.

Because I couldn't make myself believe they were.

"I've been taking the pills," I whispered.

Every single day.

Or...

Had I?

My thoughts tangled together.

There had been nights I was exhausted.

Nights Kilan came home late.

Business trips.

Arguments.

Days blurred into weeks.

"I've been careful," I said, more to myself than to her.

Dr. Grey folded her hands together.

"Pregnancy can still happen even when contraception is used correctly. It's uncommon, but not impossible."

She hesitated before asking softly,

"Do you... not want this pregnancy?"

The question pierced something inside me.

I swallowed.

"It's not that."

My voice cracked.

"I just... wasn't supposed to get pregnant."

She studied me for a long moment but didn't pry.

Instead, she handed me a tissue and helped wipe the cool gel from my stomach.

"What matters now is your health."

Her tone became firm but kind.

"You're carrying twins, Lisa. That makes this pregnancy more delicate. You'll need proper nutrition, enough rest, and regular prenatal appointments."

I nodded automatically.

The words barely reached me.

Twins.

Kilan's twins.

A lump rose in my throat.

How was I supposed to tell him?

No...

How was I supposed to survive telling him?

I thanked Dr. Grey, collected the ultrasound photos with numb fingers, and walked out of the hospital.

The afternoon sun was warm against my skin, but I couldn't feel it.

My legs carried me to my car on instinct.

Once inside, I gripped the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles turned white.

Breathe.

Just breathe.

The engine started.

The road blurred beneath me.

Traffic lights changed from red to green without me noticing.

Every few minutes, I found myself touching my stomach again.

Two babies.

Our babies.

A bitter laugh escaped me.

"Our."

The word sounded ridiculous.

Nothing between Kilan and me had ever truly belonged to both of us.

Not our marriage.

Not our home.

Certainly not his heart.

When I reached the mansion, I parked in the driveway but couldn't bring myself to get out.

The house stood exactly as it always had.

Grand.

Elegant.

Beautiful.

Cold.

My forehead rested against the steering wheel.

The memory I'd spent years trying not to relive surfaced anyway.

"There are conditions."

Kilan's deep voice had been calm.

Businesslike.

He had slid the contract toward me without looking into my eyes.

"You'll live here as my wife. Publicly, we'll act like a happily married couple."

I remembered forcing a smile.

"Anything else?"

He'd answered without hesitation.

"No pregnancy."

Just two words.

Simple.

Absolute.

"You'll take birth control every day."

He'd finally looked at me then.

His expression hadn't been cruel.

That almost made it worse.

"I don't want children brought into a marriage that isn't real."

A marriage that isn't real.

The sentence had carved a wound into my heart that never healed.

I signed anyway.

Because loving Kilan Hart had never been about protecting myself.

I'd loved him since I was sixteen.

Since the day his family opened their home after I lost my parents.

To him...

I was family.

Someone to protect.

Someone to take responsibility for.

Never someone to love.

A sharp knock against my window yanked me back to the present.

I gasped.

One of the security guards smiled awkwardly.

"Mrs. Hart? Are you all right? You've been sitting here for almost an hour."

"I..." I quickly wiped my face. "I'm fine."

He nodded and stepped away.

I wasn't fooling anyone.

Least of all myself.

The front door clicked shut behind me as I entered the empty house.

Silence greeted me.

I was grateful for it.

I couldn't pretend everything was normal today.

Not after this.

Not after learning my entire life had changed in a single appointment.

I walked into the kitchen and poured myself a glass of water.

My hands shook so badly that half of it spilled onto the marble countertop.

I stared at the framed family photograph sitting nearby.

Kilan stood beside me in a perfectly tailored suit.

His arm rested politely around my waist.

To everyone else, we looked like the perfect couple.

Only I remembered the photographer asking him to smile.

Only I remembered how quickly he let go the second the cameras stopped flashing.

My phone vibrated.

The screen lit up with one name.

Kilan.

My pulse jumped.

I answered on the second ring.

"Hello?"

"I'll be home in twenty minutes."

His voice was clipped.

Businesslike.

"I need you dressed."

"For what?"

"A dinner."

He paused.

"My grandfather insisted."

Before I could ask another question, he added,

"And Sophia will be there."

The world tilted beneath my feet.

Sophia.

The woman he'd never truly forgotten.

The woman everyone believed would one day become Mrs. Kilan Hart.

The call ended.

I slowly lowered the phone.

Then my gaze drifted to the ultrasound images still clutched in my hand.

Two tiny heartbeats.

One impossible secret.

And in less than twenty minutes...

I'd have to face their father.