MainNovelChapter 56 ~ Unexpected
ATHENA
I'm eleven weeks pregnant, and I still can't wrap my head around the fact that Alex accepted the baby so easily.
Well... accepted is an understatement. The man is thrilled.
In the four-plus years I've known him, Alex has always been a wall of steel, cold, distant, and unreadable. But the
moment he found out about the baby, something changed.
He never misses a single appointment, insists on carrying my vitamins
everywhere, and watcheslike | might break at any moment. It's almost funny. Almost.
But beneath my quiet amusement, there's guilt.
Because no matter how much | want to enjoy this, no matter how much | am enjoying it, one thought keeps
gnawing at me.
Is this really happiness? Or is it just another illusion?
| can't shake the feeling that he's only here because of the baby. Without this child, he would have already left.
Left to be with her.
| know better than to fool myself. Tdoesn't change everything.
I've been married to Alex for three years, and in all that time, I've never once seen his gaze soften forthe
way it does for Leah. It doesn't matter that he sleeps in our home, that he shares my bed. His heart has always
been with someone else.
And maybe... maybe that's something | can't live with.
A deep voice pullsfrom my thoughts.
"| can see something is troubling you. Is it the food?"
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| shiver slightly at the sound of Alex's voice. It's so deep and rough. | feel it grazing my skin every the
speaks, and it makes my legs weak.
Now | see why I'm pregnant. | can never resist this man.
| blink up at him and force a small smile. "The food is fine, thank you."
Before he can say anything else, a throat clears from across the table.
Ariana beams at us, her eyes twinkling with delight, while Giana practically vibrates with excitement.
"I never thought I'd live to see the day you two were this in love!" Ariana gushes, reaching for Eli's hand and
pressing a soft kiss to his knuckles. "I love to see this. Don't you, honey?"
Eli smiles down at her, eyes warm. "Yes, my beautiful flower. | do."
| watch them, my heart twisting.
This.
This is love, the kind of love that's effortless, that doesn't need to be questioned.
And it makeswonder... what happened to Alex to make him the way he is?
He comes from a loving home. His parents are happy, his granny is an angel. So why is he so distant? So cold?
"She just needs a glass of wine. Don't you, Athena?"
Noah's teasing voice cuts through the moment as he pushes a wine glass toward
me.
The air shifts in an instant.
Alex's expression darkens, his entire body stiffening beside me.
"Get that shit off my wife's face, Noah."
His voice is a low growl as he pushes my chair close to him.
And just like that, two simple words send my heart into a free fall.
My wife.
It's ridiculous how much power they hold over me. How much | want them to mean something.
Noah frowns. It's not the first the's offeredwine during dinner, but it's the first tAlex has reacted
infront of his parents.
"Alex.” His mother begins, but |
shake my head, placing my handzon top of his, which is another shock because instead of pushing his hand
away, he actually turns it and squeezes.
"She can't drink, mum. Athena and | are pregnant.”
The silence that follows Alex's words is thick so thick it feels like the entire room is holding its breath.
His grandmother stares at him,
wide-eyed, as if she misheard.
Ariana lets out a sharp gasp,
hand flying to her chest as she stands instantly rushing to my side.
But me?
| can't breathe.
My fingers are still resting on top of Alex's hand, his grip firm, groundingin a
way | don't know how to process.
Pregnant.
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The word hangs in the air, suspended between us and everyone else in the room.
| knew we were going to announce it today. That was the whole point of this luncheon.
And yet, hearing him say it outloud does something to me.
"Oh my God! My sweet child!" Ariana rushes towardswhen Alex lets out a growl.
"Mum, careful. Don't squeeze her too hard."
"Oh we squeezed Ariana, and you cout just fine!" Giana rolls her eyes as she stretches her arms forto
take.
| smile as | pull away from Ariana and throw myself into Nana's arms.
"See that, babe!" Eli laughs proudly as he taps Alex's back, "My son just became
a real fucking man!"
"Eli! Language!" Giana glares at him.
"Oh With this news, cursing can be overlooked!"
Alex keeps his hand on my back, his touch warm and protective as | pull away
from Giana.
Noah, however, hasn't moved. he's still sitting at the table, his expression unreadable.
"Well," he finally says, his voice full of emotion like he's still unable to believe the news. "This is certainly
unexpected."
"Unexpected, but not unwelcome,"
Alex corrects him, his eyes find mine as he pullsto him and shocks
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