Chapter Ten
Stephanie's point of view
I rose with heavy steps and lay down on the cold medical bed, the rustle of the paper beneath me adding to my tension.
The doctor approached, pulling up her chair and saying in a professional tone, "Lift your shirt."
I obeyed with trembling hands, and as soon as she applied the viscous gel to my stomach, I winced at its sudden coldness.
At that moment, Cedric moved from his spot and stood right beside me. I felt his overbearing shadow engulf me and turned my face away; I couldn't bear to see his stony features in this moment of vulnerability.
The doctor began moving the ultrasound transducer over my abdomen, her eyes fixed on the screen. Suddenly, she said, "Here he is," pointing to a small dark spot. Then she paused for a moment, frowning. "Oh... what's this?"
My heart constricted, and a chill swept through my limbs. Had something happened to my baby? "What is it?" I asked, my voice choked.
She didn't answer but looked closer, moving the device with greater precision. For the first time, a hint of tension crept into Cedric's voice. "Is something wrong?"
Without looking up, the doctor replied, "No, no... not at all."
"Then what is it?" I asked with a mix of eagerness and fear.
She smiled in surprise. "I thought it was one fetus... but it's twins!"
The word hit me like a thunderbolt. Dizziness swirled in my head as I asked in disbelief, "What?"
Cedric repeated the word as if trying to grasp the magnitude of the news. "Twins?"
The doctor laughed. "Yes, you are very lucky. You're having twins."
What luck was this? The father of my children is a mobster who kills without blinking and is holding me captive on a remote island! I was barely trying to accept the idea of becoming a mother to one, and now I was a mother to two.
Cedric asked, his eyes never leaving the screen, "What are their genders?"
I looked at him with disgust. He dared to ask about the gender now? The doctor replied, "They are too small to tell yet. They are only six and a half weeks along... but we can hear the heartbeats."
"That would be wonderful," Cedric said in a strangely mellow voice.
Moments later, a rhythmic, rapid sound filled the room. It wasn't just one sound, but two, racing toward life inside my womb.
A shiver coursed through my being a feeling beyond words. Last time, I hadn't heard the pulse, but now it was real and so breathtaking that tears flooded my eyes against my will.
Amidst my wonder, I felt strong, warm fingers wrap around my trembling hand. I looked aside and saw Cedric gripping my hand firmly.
Despite all my hatred for him, and despite not wanting his touch, I didn't object. In that moment, I desperately needed to feel that I wasn't alone in facing this terrifying and wondrous fate.
"You can get up now," the doctor said with a calm smile.
She handed me paper towels to dry the cold gel from my stomach, and I sat back in the chair, feeling the weight of responsibility grow heavier on my shoulders.
As she noted down some observations, she added, "Everything is fine. Your babies are doing well and you are in good health. I'll just prescribe some vitamins."
Cedric asked with an interested tone, "When do we come back?"
"We'll have a new appointment in a month," she replied. Then, fixing her sharp gaze on me, she added, "No drinking, no smoking, and no heavy lifting."
"I don't smoke, and I've already stopped drinking," I said in a low voice.
She nodded. "Yes, that's good."
We left the doctor's office in silence. As soon as we got into the car, Cedric exhaled sharply as if trying to process the news. "I can't believe it's twins," he said in his deep voice.
I couldn't believe it either; my mind was a total blur. He turned to me and asked, "What? Aren't you happy?"
I ignored his question entirely. Just a short while ago, he had screamed in my face and told me to shut up, and now he wanted to talk to me as if nothing had happened! He asked again, watching my reaction, "What's wrong with you? Are you angry?"
I didn't say a word. He gave up and drove the car in total silence until we reached the house. I climbed out quickly, entered the palace, and went straight to my room to escape his overbearing presence.
The news of the twins had sent me into a state of shock that made my limbs tremble.
I lay on the bed, placing my hand cautiously on my stomach, and whispered to myself, "My little ones... are you ready to come into this world? To know the truth of your father and who he is?"
The thought terrified me. Would they one day blame me for choosing Cedric as their father? Would they carry his cruel genes?
Suddenly, the door swung open without warning and Cedric walked in. A jolt of panic hit me, and I sat up quickly on the bed. "You can't just come in here without permission!" I snapped.
He leaned his massive frame against the doorframe, a mocking, cold smile playing on his lips as he looked at me. "Why?" he asked. "Are you afraid I'll see you naked?... Because I've already seen you."
I looked at him sharply, my voice trembling as I said, "You are absolutely vulgar."
He didn't back down; instead, he moved closer until I felt the aura of his body invading my personal space. "You loved my vulgarity last time," he said in a mocking tone. "What has changed?"
I swallowed hard, trying to gather my composure. "Because I didn't know who you were."
He slowly trailed his rough thumb over my lower lip in a provocative motion, asking as his grey eyes pierced my stillness, "And now... do you not want me, Stephanie?"
I violently brushed his hand away from my face and said firmly, "No."
He tilted his head slightly and asked in a husky whisper, "Aren't you going to let me fuck you?"
"No, Cedric," I answered with false strength.
"Are you sure?" he asked, narrowing the distance between us.
Suddenly, he loomed over me on the bed, forcing me to recoil in confusion until I was lying completely flat beneath the weight of his massive frame. He pressed his lips against mine in a swift, forceful kiss, sending a violent shiver through my entire body that made my limbs stiffen.
"Haven't you missed me?" he whispered close to my mouth.
I tried to push against his solid chest, gasping for air. "No... get off me."
But he didn't listen; he slid his warm hand under my shirt and gripped my breast with a possessive hold. "But I," he said roughly, "have missed you."
My breathing quickened, and I felt my heart thundering in my ears. I made one last attempt at resistance. "Cedric... get off me."
He pressed his thumb firmly against my nipple, a move that caught my breath, and said in a terrifyingly masculine voice, "Your nipple is hard... you want sex, you want me. Admit it, Stephanie."
I did want him, and I hated myself for it; even though my mouth was uttering words of refusal and telling him to stay away, my traitorous body was responding crazily to his expert touch. He leaned into my ear and whispered, "Say it, Stephanie... tell me, I want to hear it from you. Say: fuck me."