All Chapters of A BILLIONAIRE’S EXCEPTION : Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

Jasmine’s POV I woke slowly, the way you do when your body hasn’t quite decided if it’s ready to rejoin the world. The first thing I noticed was warmth. Not just the physical kind though the blankets were pulled up snug around my shoulders but a deeper, steadier warmth that settled somewhere behind my ribs. The kind that made breathing feel easier. I lay still for a moment, eyes closed, listening. The house was quiet. Not empty-quiet. Safe-quiet. The kind of silence that didn’t rush you, didn’t demand anything. Just held space. My body felt heavy, pleasantly so, like it had finally been permitted to rest after weeks of pretending it was fine. The nausea was still there, faint and lingering, but dulled. The dizziness had retreated to a distant hum instead of a sharp spin. Progress. I opened my eyes slowly. Sunlight spilled through the blinds in soft bands, warming the bed, brushing over the wall, catching on the dust motes drifting lazily in the air. It felt like late morning

Jasmine’s POV Tahimik ang loob ng sasakyan habang pauwi kami mula sa ospital. Hindi ito yung katahimikang nakakailang o naghihintay ng paliwanag. Yung uri na hindi kailangang punuin ng salita para maging buo. Parang natural lang na ganito. Nakatukod ang ulo ko sa sandalan ng upuan. Mabagal ang paghinga ko, sinasabayan ang galaw ng sasakyan Hawak ko ang ultrasound sa kandungan ko, nakapatong ang mga daliri ko sa manipis na papel na para bang mawawala iyon kapag binitiwan ko Ilang beses ko itong tinitigan. Ilang beses ko ring ibinaba ang tingin, hindi ko alam pero parang hindi ko maiwasan matakot. Isang malabong hugis na kulay black in white ang makikita roon. Walang malinaw na detalye. Walang hugis ng mukha o kamay na puwedeng kilalanin. Kanina habang nasa ospital ako at nakahiga sa kama nakatingin ako sa kisame habang hinihintay ang sasabihin ng doktor, pilit kinokontrol ang paghinga ko, pilit pinapakalma ang isip ko. Matagal na akong natutong huwag umasa agad. Hindi

Jasmine’s POV Seven months passed so quietly. Pitong buwan na pakiramdam ko parang kahapon lang hawak-hawak ko pa ang ultrasound na may halong takot at pag-aalala Parang kahapon lang natatakot akong huminga dahil baka may magbago, baka may mawala. Pero ngayon, pitong buwan na ang lumipas hindi naging madali ang pagbubuntis ko. May mga umagang gigising akong mabigat ang katawan ko, parang ayaw sumunod ng mga buto ko. May mga gabi ring hindi ako makatulog dahil sa mga isipin na ayaw tumigil. Pero kung may isang bagay na hindi nagbago sa loob ng pitong buwan na iyon, iyon ay ang presensya ni Alexander. Parang natural na lang siyang naging bahagi ng bawat araw ko hindi lang bilang ama ng ipinagbubuntis ko, kundi bilang sandalan. Hindi siya yung taong palaging may sinasabi. Hindi rin siya yung tipo na laging nagtatanong kung okay lang ako. Pero ramdam ko siya sa bawat maliit na kilos. Sa bawat paghahanda ng pagkain. Sa bawat pag-aayos ng unan sa likod ko. Sa bawat paglalakad niya

Jasmine’s POV Morning arrives quietly. The city beyond the glass is already awake, but inside the penthouse, everything moves at a slower pace measured, careful, intentional. Alexander insists on breakfast together now, no matter how busy the day looks on paper. It’s become routine. One of those small anchors we don’t talk about but never skip. I’m seated at the table, a cushion behind my lower back, a glass of water within reach. Alexander stands by the counter, sleeves rolled up, focused on something simple toast, eggs, fruit arranged neatly on a plate. He keeps glancing my way like he’s checking a balance sheet only he can see. “You okay?” he asks, casually. Too casually. I smile. “I’m fine. Just hungry.” That part is true. I take a bite and chew slowly. The baby shifts a familiar roll beneath my ribs. I rest a hand on my stomach, more instinct than thought. Then it happens. Not pain, at least not yet. Just a tightening. Low. Deep. Like my body briefly forgot how to rela

Alexander’s POV Three days of confinement passed in a blur. Not because time moved quickly, but because every moment with Jasmine and the baby demanded my full attention. Monitoring their health, making sure she rested, ensuring the baby thrived it left little room for anything else. And yet, even in that exhaustion, a quiet excitement had been building in me for months. A surprise I had been carefully crafting, brick by brick, detail by detail. During her pregnancy, I had asked her casually sometimes subtly, sometimes directly what kind of home she imagined for our family. She thought it was idle conversation, part of my habit of dreaming aloud. But every answer, every preference, every passing remark I had carefully filed away. I wanted this moment to be perfect: a reward for her patience, for her strength, for the life she had carried and brought into the world. I had bought the house months ago. A sprawling lot in one of the most exclusive subdivisions in the country where onl