CHAPTER 86
They're Pregnant!
Elena
I spent a few more minutes, fluffing my hair in front of a mirror, my eyes straying over the outfit I had picked out for the hospital visit.
It was casual enough —a leather jacket thrown over a sundress, paired with sunglasses and a strappy sandal to complete the look.
I tried hard not to think about what I was doing so instead I focused on something else.
Cornell.
Contrary to what he thought in the hotel, nothing happened between us as I seized the opportunity to ask some very urgent questions of my own.
Like, where the hell did he disappear off to?
I didn't know what I was expecting, but a part of me didn't think he would open up and tell me the truth, but he did.
The sexual tension between us got steered into a night-long conversation where we both talked…deeply.
He explained why he left so suddenly.
According to him, his uncle, who was the owner of the company, practically forced him into taking ownership, and at that period, his mom wasn't doing so great physically, and to cover up the medical bills, he had to give in.
Everything happened so fast that he didn't have the chance to say goodbye. He had moved abroad to stay with his uncle and learn the reins of the company, and now he's back to officially take over.
I didn't know what to say to his story, but he sounded genuine enough, so I chose to believe him, but that doesn't mean that I chose to forgive him.
I mean, he didn't even bother to reach out to me not even once.
While I stood in front of the mirror, I could feel tendrils of anger trying to sneak their way into my heart, but I shut it down, picking up my bag and walking out the door instead, on my way to the hospital to see Damien.
It wasn't until I had Ethan look into the nonsense that Sophia was spouting at the party that I realized that it was all true.
I felt bad about not knowing earlier, especially since it's been a month since I've seen him or even spoken to him.
I thought he was ignoring me but all this time…he was injured.
Squashing the guilt I felt, I looked out the window, trying to focus as I drove.
The hospital was quite far away, the drive spanning over a few hours as it was located in another city.
I made my way to the reception, inquiring about the room number that he was in. "Hello, I'm here to see Damien Stone," I said with a smile to the frowning blonde nurse behind the counter. "Can I know which room he's in?"
The nurse purses her lips, giving me a quick once-over before saying, "And you are?"
"Elena. Elena Parker." I replied. "I'm a friend of his."
"I'm sorry but you can't go in. Only relatives and spouses can visit him."
Shit.
What do I do now? I came all this way to see him. I'm not leaving until I do.
I turned back to the nurse, but the frown on her face wasn't encouraging, so I moved towards one of those hard plastic chairs that were kept for visitors in the waiting room.
Luckily for me, on my way to the waiting room, I spotted Sophia walking briskly down the hallway.
Realizing that this was my chance to find out where Damien's room is, I smoothly changed direction and followed her.
She turned a corner and went down a room that had the letters ICU written boldly in a section.
She passed a couple of doors before suddenly ducking into a room.
I took a quick glance at the room number before following suit.
I walked in just in time to hear the tail end of Sophia's sentence. "I wish you would just open your eyes… because there's someone you need to meet, Damien."
At first, her words made no sense to me, but when I took another step into the room, I noticed the way her hand was protectively hovering over her stomach.
What the…
"Sophia?" I blurted out the word, causing her to spin around in surprise placing a hand on her chest.
"Holy crap, Elena? What are you doing here?"
"I found out about Damien and I thought that I should pay him a visit. What were you talking about earlier?" My eyes dipped to her stomach. "What's going on?"
"It's none of your business." She rolled her eyes, folding her arms across her chest. "Besides I don't think you should be in here."
"I have every right to be as much as you do… besides you're not even related to him."
"That's where you're wrong, missy." The smugness rolling off her was enough to make me choke. "Damien and I…. we have a connection now… much deeper than you'll ever know."
I scoffed. "And let me guess, this 'connection' has to do with someone that he needs to meet, huh?"
"Fine! You want to know what I meant by that, it's simple." She smirked. "I'm pregnant and Damien's the father!"
The news rocked my world and I meant literally.
I think deep down, I suspected when I walked into the room and saw her like that, but hearing the words was another thing… it made it all that much more real.
My mouth fell open as I was bombarded with a train of emotions. First was shock, then disbelief followed quickly by betrayal.
How could he do this to me?
I didn't know that I had blurted the question out until Sophia threw her head back in laughter.
"The whole world doesn't revolve around you, you know?"
"That doesn't change the fact that you knew this would hurt me, and yet you went ahead anyway! Screw you, Sophia!" I spat out, whirling around on my heel to walk out the door with tears in my eyes.
As I raced through the hallway, forcing the tears back by sheer will, I realized that it wasn't the fact that Sophia got pregnant that hurt me, it was the fact that Damien betrayed my trust.