“Yes. Of course.”
I set Lily down and took Julia over somewhere private.
“Did you know Alex is pregnant?”
“What? I had no idea,” she spoke in shock.
“She didn’t mention it at all?”
“No. She never said a word. That would explain why she didn’t have a glass of wine today at lunch. Oh my God, do you know anything yet?”
“No.” Tears filled my eyes.
Julia pulled me into an embrace.
“Both of them are going to be okay. I can feel it.”
“Bro, you can go back and be with her,” Simon said as he walked up.
Chapter 38
Stefan
When I reached her room, I stood in the doorway and stared at her as my heart pounded out of my chest. The moment she saw me, she started crying and I ran over to her.
“Shh. It’s okay.” I leaned over the bed and held her the best I could. “Why didn’t you tell me you were pregnant?” I whispered as she sobbed.
“Alex, I’m Dr. Sutter and I’m going to do an ultrasound now. Okay?”
Alex nodded her head. I let go of her, pulled up a chair and grabbed her hand.
“Are you the baby’s father?” Dr. Sutter asked.
“Yes. He is,” Alex spoke as she looked at me.
The doctor placed the transducer on Alex’s belly and asked the nurse to turn off the lights. She moved it around Alex’s abdomen, and her silence scared the shit out of me.
“There’s your baby’s heartbeat, and it’s nice and strong.” Dr. Sutter smiled.
I gave Alex’s hand a gentle squeeze as more tears filled my eyes.
“Everything looks good, but I’m going to keep you overnight just so we can monitor you as a precaution and for a concussion. The attending doctor told me that you had a pillow wedged between you and the steering wheel.”
“I had to protect my baby.”
“You’re a smart woman, Alex, and you definitely had an angel looking out for you and your baby.” She smiled. “I’m going to go and get the paperwork started to have you admitted. They’ll be in shortly to take you upstairs to your room.”
The moment Dr. Sutter walked out, Alex looked at me and whispered, “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. The only thing that matters is that you and our baby are fine. How far along are you?”
“Almost eight weeks. I’m so sorry. Are you mad?”
“Mad about the baby? No, not one bit. Mad that you didn’t tell me, a little bit. But we can talk about that later. We don’t need to do it now. But what we do need to talk about is how much I love you and how much I need you in my life.”
“Stefan—”
“Shh.” I leaned over and brushed my lips against hers. “I love you, Alessandra Clark, and we’re going to get through this together. And you know why?”
“Why?”
“Because I’m your person.” The corners of my mouth curved upward. “And you’re mine. By the way, Happy Birthday. That’s another thing we’re going to discuss.” I arched my brow at her.
The door to the room opened and two young men walked in and told Alex they were taking her up to her room. Grabbing her things, I followed behind. Once she was settled in, I pulled out my phone and sent a text message to the group.
“Alex and the baby are fine. They’re keeping her overnight for observation. She said it’s okay for you all to come up. Don’t mention the baby, we aren’t ready to tell Lily yet.”
Within a few minutes, my brothers, Julia, and Lily walked into the room. Lily ran over to Alex and grabbed her hand.
“Hey, kiddo.” Alex smiled.
“Are you okay? I was really scared.”
“I’m okay, sweetheart. Come up here.” Alex patted the bed.
“Why do you have that bandage on the side of your head?” she asked.
“I had to get a few stitches.”
“Cool.” Lily smiled. “I always wanted stitches. Are you going to have a scar?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. Would it be cool if I did?”
“So cool!”
I took Sam over to the side.
“I’m going to stay at the hospital tonight with Alex. Would you and Julia mind if Lily spent the night at your house?”
“Not at all.” He placed his hand on my shoulder. “We’ll look after her.”
“Thanks, bro.” I gave him a hug.
I walked over to where Lily sat on the bed next to Alex.
“Listen, baby girl. You’re going to go home with Uncle Sam and Aunt Julia tonight. I’m going to stay here with Alex.”
“Okay, Dad. I don’t want her to be alone.”
“Me either.” I smiled as I looked at Alex and gave her a wink.
Everyone said their goodbyes and I walked them out to the hallway. Sam and Julia took Lily with them, and I asked Simon and Sebastian to stay back for a moment.
“What’s up, brother?” Sebastian asked.
“Do you two think you can cool it with the sleepovers you’ve been having? Lily told me today that she knows when two adults love each other they sleep in the same bed. She also said the two of you love a lot of women.”
“Ha!” Simon laughed. “I love that kid.”
“Damn.” Sebastian shook his head. “We’ll just have them go out the back door then. Right, Simon?”
“Right.” He smiled.
“Just make sure Lily doesn’t see them leave. We still need to celebrate Alex’s birthday, so can we plan something at my house for tomorrow when she gets out?”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve got it covered.” Sebastian patted my back. “By the way, congratulations on another kid. Are you feeling good about it?”
“Yeah. I am.” I smiled. “I better get back in the room.”
“I grabbed this before I left the restaurant,” Sebastian spoke as he handed me the box with Alex’s necklace in it.
“Thank you.” I gave him and Simon a hug. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”
Walking back in the room, I took a seat on the edge of the bed and handed Alex the box.
“Happy Birthday. I was meant to give this to you at your birthday party which we arranged at the restaurant tonight. That’s where I was when Simon called me.”
“You guys were giving me a party? How did you even know it was my birthday?”
“Your birthdate is on the application you filled out.”
“Right.” She smiled. “You didn’t have to get me anything.”
“Of course, I did. Open it.” The corners of my mouth curved upward.
She removed the lid from the box and brought her hand up to her mouth.
“Stefan, it’s gorgeous.”
“Do you really like it?”
“I love it. Nobody has ever given me anything like this before. Thank you.” She brought her hand up to my cheek as I leaned in and kissed her lips.
“I want to apologize to you for not telling you that night that I was in love with you. You were right. I was letting my father’s behaviors control me, and I’m so sorry for that. You make me happy, Alex. I know getting too comfortable scares you, but this is where you’re meant to be. That’s why that raccoon sat in the middle of the road. He brought us together.”