With the pregnancy test still in her shaking hand, Isabella sat on the edge of the bed. As if a clear proof of the life developing inside her, the two pink lines gazed back at her.
She couldn't tell if the twisting in her stomach was due to fear or nausea.
She immediately wanted to tell Nolan. He has every right to know, don't he?
Her mind then imagined a picture of his unreadable, icy face and how he never stood up for her or held her in the way she had once desired.
Would he even care?
The thought sent a fresh wave of pain crashing through her.
He hadn't chased after her. Hadn't called. Hadn't even asked why.
Isabella let her head drop back against the wall and took a trembling breath.
This child…
Her fingers moved to her stomach and lightly touched the spot where a small heart had just started beating.
A war raged inside her.
Tell him, or don't?
She had never been the type to run away from responsibility.
But she had also spent too many nights feeling like a ghost in her own home.
Would this baby have to grow up in a house filled with silence? Would they feel unwanted like she had felt? Like a duty rather than a choice?
She trembled.
No.
She wouldn't treat them that way.
Isabella went over to her small desk and grabbed a notepad after pushing herself up. She pressed the pen to the paper with trembling hand.
Nolan,
She paused. How did you tell a man like him something like this?
She tried again.
I don't know if you'll even care, but I have to tell you—I'm pregnant. It's yours.
Even though the words were straightforward and sharp, they didn't feel right.
She bit her lip and added, I wasn't planning to leave the way I did. I wanted you to stop me. But you didn't, and maybe that's the answer I needed.
Her throat ached as she forced the last part onto the page.
I won't ask you for anything. You don't have to be in our child's life. I just wanted you to be aware.
She stared at the letter for a long time, blinking back the sting in her eyes.
Then, suddenly, she tore the paper into pieces.
Her hands were steady now as she pressed her lips together.
She won't let him know.
She had made up her mind.
But fate had other plans.
—-
Isabella's nerves were not calmed by the odd combination of lavender and antiseptic that filled the clinic. As the nurse took her vitals, she sat rigidly in the examination chair with her hands clasped tightly in her laps.
"First pregnancy?" the nurse smiled, asking kindly.
Isabella nodded, unable to respond due to her dry throat.
She was left alone with the sound of a ticking clock after the nurse left. Every second was heavier than the one before it.
She hadn't planned for this. She hadn't even allowed herself to want this. But here she was, anticipating the tiny life that was developing inside of her.
A middle-aged doctor entered through the open door, his kind eyes crinkling as he gave her a comforting look. "Miss Moon? How about we have a look?"
Isabella lay back as the doctor rolled up her sweater, spreading cool gel over her stomach. The machine whirred to life, and she held her breath, eyes fixed on the screen.
Then, a sound filled the room.
Soft at first, then stronger. A steady, rhythmic thump.
Isabella opened her mouth.
"That's your baby's heartbeat,"the doctor whispered.
Her heart tightened.
It was real. This wasn't just two pink lines on a test. This wasn't just fear or uncertainty. This was… a life.
Tears faded her vision as she stared at the tiny flickering heartbeat.
She had expected doubt. Maybe even regret.
But instead, she felt something else entirely.
Love.
Unyielding. Overwhelming. All-consuming.
The doctor smiled, printing out the ultrasound image. "Looks like you're about eight weeks along. The baby is healthy."
Isabella took the picture with shaky hands. She traced the blurry outline, her heart tightening.
She could still remember the coldness in Nolan's eyes that night. How he had let her walk away. How he had never reached out.
Maybe he deserved to know. Maybe he didn't.
But one thing was clear now.
This child would never feel unwanted.
Isabella wiped her tears and straightened her shoulders. She wasn't weak. She wouldn't be the helpless woman waiting for someone to choose her anymore.
She vowed silently as she looked down at the ultrasound.
"No matter what, my love will be enough for you."
She had no idea that someone was already watching her.
—
Nolan sat behind his large desk, the room was filled with sharp shadows from his office lamp.
He wasn't reading the contracts and reports that were piled in front of him. For weeks now, he had been unable to concentrate.
The mansion was too quiet.
Isabella's absence should have been a relief. Their marriage had been nothing but cold silences and quiet resentment, hadn't it?
She had always threatened to leave, always tested his patience—yet she had never actually done it.
Until now.
With a sharp exhale, he leaned back in his chair and gripped the crystal whiskey glass he had not touched, tightly.
He whispered to himself, "she'll return." But would she?
Something felt off. The way she had left—no phone calls, no demands, no dramatic outburst.
Just… gone.
Nolan frowned.
Isabella wasn't careless, but she was stubborn. She would have made sure she saw and felt it if she had intended to discipline him.
But this? This was something else.
A tense sensation took hold of his chest. His cell rang. He picked it up and looked at the caller ID before responding.
"Find her" he said, skipping the small talk. "Just find her, no matter how long it takes."
The person on the other end paused. His investigator then spoke.
"We already did."
Nolan stilled.
The investigator paused then spoke again, lowering his voice.
"Mr Nolan, you have to see something. You won't like it, no doubt about it.
Nolan gripped the phone more tightly. His rib throbbed with his heartbeat.
"What did you discover?" He insisted.
The response came, quiet but certain.
"She's not alone.